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by Walt Murphy’s Information and Outcomes Service (wmurphy25@aol.com), used with permission
This Day in Monitor & Area/X-Nation-November 26
1956–The Males’s 800-meters in Melbourne supplied one of many nice dramatic stretch runs in Olympic historical past. People Tom Courtney (1955) and Arnie Sowell (1954,1956), the final two NCAA Champions from Fordham and Pittsburgh, respectively, battled for the lead down the backstretch and thru the ultimate flip. As they straightened out for the race to the end line, Nice Britain’s Derek Johnson took benefit of a gap between the 2 and took the lead. Sowell started fading, however Courtney by some means discovered the need and power to battle again and edged forward of Johnson to win the gold medal. Norway’s Audun Boysen caught Sowell to win the bronze medal.
The Reverend Bob Richards (“The Vaulting Vicar”) was the defending champion within the Pole Vault, however he virtually didn’t make it out of the qualifying spherical after having bother adjusting to a brand new pole. Within the wind-plagued remaining, which lasted virtually 11-hours, the three medalists have been determined when Richards, fellow American Bob Gutowski, and Greece’s Georgios Roubanis have been the one ones to clear 14-5 ¼ (4.40).
Gutowski, the 1956 NCAA Champion from Occidental (he additionally received in 1957), wanted three tries at 14-7 ¼ (4.45), whereas the opposite two every cleared on their first try. Roubanis, who had educated underneath Payton Jordan at Occidental earlier than transferring to UCLA, was the primary Olympian to reach in Melbourne and had turn out to be a favourite of Australian followers (see hyperlink). He had their backing as he matched the primary try clearances of Gutowski and Richards at 14-9 (4.50). Roubanis, who gave the primary trace of the way forward for the occasion through the use of a fiberglass pole, lastly went out at 14-10 ¼ (4.53), whereas Richards, who had but to overlook, and Gutowski every cleared on their preliminary effort.
After one miss, Richards topped his Olympic Document by a centimeter along with his clearance of 14-11 ½ (4.56) and had his 2nd gold medal after Gutowski missed all three of his tries. Picked from 500 candidates, Richards was the primary spokesperson for Wheaties and the primary athlete to seem on the entrance of the cereal’s field. He stays the one man to win two Olympic Pole Vault titles.
Norway’s Egil Danielsen received the gold medal within the Males’s Javelin with a World Document toss of 281-2 (85.71). Taking the silver was Poland’s Janusz Sidło (262-5/79.98), the earlier document holder, and the bronze went to the Soviet Union’s (and Ukraine’s) Viktor Tsybulenko (260-10/79.50). American Cy Younger, the defending Olympic champion, was hampered by a sprained ankle and will solely handle an Eleventh-place end (225-2/68.64), one spot behind teammate Phil Conley (228-10/69.74). Danielson returned to Melbourne in 1991, profitable the javelin on the World Masters Championships!
18-year outdated Australian Betty Cuthbert began her journey in direction of immortality in her house nation by profitable the Ladies’s 100-Meters in 11.5 (11.82). The “Golden Lady” went on to additionally win gold medals within the 200 and 4×100 relay. Cuthbert got here out of retirement to win the primary Ladies’s Olympic 400 in 1964 and have become the one athlete to win all three dash titles. She was later stricken with A number of Sclerosis, however was nonetheless in a position to take part as one of many torch bearers on the Opening Ceremony when the Olympics returned to Australia in 2000.
Richards picture: http://tinyurl.com/yaanytz; Cuthbert Pictures: http://tinyurl.com/yllp6u
Outcomes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1956_Summer_Olympics
X-Nation
1910—For the threerd time in 4 years, Frank Bellars of the New York Athletic Membership was the winner on the U.S. X-Nation Championships in NY’s Celtic Park (six one-mile loops).
(For subscribers) https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/11/27/101230099.html?pageNumber=22
1927—Finland’s Ville “Willie” Ritola received his 5th (and remaining) U.S. X-Nation title at NY’s venerable Van Cortlandt Park. Ritola was unchallenged after the primary mile and went on to win by 150 yards (29:27/6-miles).
(For subscribers): https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1927/11/27/96681860.html?pageNumber=154
1951–Kansas senior Herb Semper (20:09.5) received his 2nd straight NCAA title on the snow-covered course at Michigan State. Semper, the primary Jayhawk to win a NCAA title, handed away in 2011 on the age of 81. 2nd was Tennessee’s Alf Holmberg (20:17), a junior from Sweden, and third was Ray Osterhout (20:21.0), who led Syracuse to its 1st workforce title (they received their 2nd in 2015).
Holmberg, Tennessee’s first All-American in X-Nation, additionally handed away in 2011 (83). He had a life-long love affair with UT and his pleasant demeanor had such an affect on his Vol teammates that they helped set up the Alf Holmberg Scholarship in his honor in 1998.
Outcomes:
MileSplit (18 groups, 122 finishers)
Different Notable Finishers: 4.Invoice Ashenfelter (Penn State), 36.Wes Santee (Kanas)
https://utsports.com/information/2011/11/8/Vol_Great_Alf_Holmberg_Passes_Away
1956–Texas junior Walter McNew received the person NCAA X-Nation title, with host Michigan State profitable its sixth workforce title. Ending 2nd was North Carolina senior Jim Beatty, who later turned the primary man to interrupt 4-minutes for the mile indoors (amongst his many different accomplishments).
Outcomes:
https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/1956-men.pdf
(14 groups, 115 finishers)
Different notable Finishers: 9.Buddy Edelen (Minnesota), 85.Ed Moran (Penn State)
1959—Simply 3 days after profitable the NCAA title, Houston’s Al Lawrence (32:22-10k) received the 1st of his two U.S. X-Nation titles in Louisville. Ending 2nd, simply as he had on the NCAA meet, was his Houston teammate, John Macy (32:27). A powerful end by Billy Mills (32:50) introduced him house in 3rd place. The College of Houston received the workforce title, ending the NYAC’s 9-year profitable streak.
Lawrence, who was the bronze medalist within the 10,000 meters on the 1956 Olympics in his native Australia, would repeat his double-cross win in 1960. Lawrence, who was energetic as a coach in Houston into his 80s, handed away in 2017 on the age of 86.
Different Notable Finishers:8.Pete McArdle, 11.Hal Higdon, 14.Vic Zwolak.
1962-–Loyola’s Tom O’Hara (19:20.3) beat Villanova’s Pat Traynor (19:22) to win the person NCAA X-Nation title at Michigan State, whereas Danny Murphy completed 3rd (19:32) to steer San Jose State to the primary of its two straight workforce titles, beating Villanova, 58-69. Ending twelfth was Illinois junior Al Carius, who coached North Central Faculty to 19 NCAA Div.3 males’s titles.
This NCAA article appears again on the win by San Jose State, the primary by an built-in workforce.
http://www.ncaa.org/about/assets/media-center/information/san-joses-historic-feet
Outcomes
https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/1962-men.pdf
(14 groups, 136 finishers)
Different notable finishers-4.Vic Zwolak (Villanova), 15.Tom Sullivan (Villanova), 39.Dale Story (Oregon State–1961 champion)
1963–Villanova senior Vic Zwolak (19:35), 4th the earlier 12 months, beat Emporia State junior John Camien (19:38) to win the NCAA Div.I title at Michigan State. Camien had received the Faculty Division title earlier within the season. San Jose State beat Oregon to win its 2nd straight workforce title (53-68). Zwolak remained Villanova’s solely male NCAA Champion till 2016, when Patrick Tiernan turned the twondWildcat winner.
The meet was moved from Saturday to Tuesday within the wake of the assassination of President Kennedy the earlier Friday.
Outcomes:
https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/1963-men.pdf
Different notable finishers-14.Kenny Moore (Oregon), 17.Jack Bacheler (Miami/Ohio), 27.John Lawson (Kansas), 28.Keith Forman (Oregon), 38.Al Carius (Illinois), 43.Preston Davis (Texas), 44.Elmore Banton (Ohio U., the place he coached from 1980-2003), 64.Archie San Romani (Oregon), 83.Tom Sullivan (Villanova).
1966—Ron Larrieu (31:23), Francie Larrieu-Smith’s older brother, ran away from the sector to win his 2nd straight U.S. X-Nation title on the hilly course in Woodland Hills, CA. Subsequent throughout the road have been John Lawson (32:10), Joe Lynch (32:10), and Kenny Moore (32:22). Different notable finishers: 9.Al Carius, 13.Tom Laris, 15.Tom Von Ruden, 18.Ed Bowes, 24.Pat Traynor.
1969—This was a time when the U.S. Monitor & Area Federation (USTFF) was conducting its personal X-Nation Championship (1964-1980). 6’-7” Jack Bacheler, a 1968 U.S. Olympian at 5000-Meters, was the winner at this 12 months’s version at Penn State and would win the “official” U.S. title 3 days later.
Coming simply two days after their win on the NCAA Championships, the UTEP Miners as soon as once more received the workforce title over Villanova.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Bacheler
1974–Western Kentucky’s Nick Rose (29:22) overcame a moist and difficult course in Bloomington, Indiana, to win the NCAA X-Nation title over Washington State’s John Ngeno (29:37). UTEP’s Wilson Waigwa completed third, adopted by three Oregon runners-Paul Geis, David Taylor, and Terry Williams because the Geese received their third workforce title within the final 4 years. Illinois sophomore Craig Virgin completed Eleventh.
Outcomes
(28 groups, 250 finishers)
Different notable finishers-10.Greg Meyer (Michigan), , 22.Herb Lindsay (Michigan State), 30.Mike McGuire (Michigan—Head Ladies’s XC coach at his alma mater), 39.George Malley (Penn State), 45.John Treacy (Windfall)
Video Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wslmaq-VjGc
1977—Lower than two months after having her appendix eliminated, Jan Merrill efficiently defended her title on the U.S. Ladies’s X-Nation Championships in San Bernadino, California. Working cautiously, Merrill waged a back-and-forth battle with Penn State’s Kathy Mills earlier than pulling away to win the 5k race in 16:54.4.
Trailing Mills throughout the road have been Julie Shea, Cindy Bremser, Judy Graham, and Brenda Webb. Struggling house in eighth was 35-year outdated Doris Brown
From Kenny Moore’s article in Sports activities Illustrated: “Because the runners rounded the final flip, the end line was clearly delineated, for Wilt Chamberlain rose up there in a shining blue tank prime, timing, encouraging, recalling his childhood. He had run cross-country for Overbrook Excessive Faculty in Philadelphia, by no means making the highest 5. “Monitor and discipline is my best love,” he mentioned, “and distance runners get pleasure from my best respect. Lord, I understand how they really feel.”
The Males’s championship was held on the identical day in Houston and it featured a star-studded discipline. Nice Britain’s Nick Rose, the 1974 NCAA Champion whereas at Western Kentucky, took benefit of a wayward transfer by Craig Virgin, the 1975 NCAA champ, late within the race to win the 10k take a look at in 30:14 (Virgin-30:23).
Different notable finishers 3.Greg Meyer, 4.Thom Hunt, 8.Doug Brown, 10.Alberto Salazar, 12.Garry Bjorklund, 18.Jim Stintzi, 19.George Watts, 28.Dick Buerkle, 32.Duncan Macdonald, 34.Julio Piazza
1983—Pat Porter received the 2nd of his 8 straight U.S. X-Nation titles in windy and muddy circumstances at Penn State, whereas North Carolina State’s Betty Jo Springs backed up her NCAA win 5 days earlier by profitable her first U.S. Championship. Springs was challenged all through a lot of the race by Lesley Welch, who had completed the double win in 1981, earlier than pulling away and profitable by greater than 100 yards over Nan Doak, who had additionally completed 2nd to Springs on the NCAA Championships. Welch, who fought the wind whereas main Springs early on, pale to 12th.
Sports activities Illustrated Vault: http://www.si.com/vault/1983/12/05/669227/betty-springs-to-the-fore
1988–Pat Porter (31:07-10k) received his seventh straight U.S. title in Raleigh to tie Don Lash’s document (1934-1940). Porter would win his document 8th title the next 12 months. In a runaway, Lynn Jennings received her third title, beating runnerup Sabrina Dornhoefer by 21-seconds (6k:19:32-19:53.
Sadly, Porter (and his son Connor) died in the summertime of 2012 when the airplane he was piloting crashed in Sedona, Arizona.
Different notable finishers
Males:2.Bob Kempainen (31:20), 4.Tim Hacker, 9.Mark Coogan
Ladies: 3.Betty Jo Springs-Geiger, 4.Margaret Groos.
Sports activities Illustrated Vault:
Kenny Moore’s 1986 Article in Sports activities Illustrated (Porter):
https://vault.si.com/vault/1986/03/17/running-on-a-rocky-mountain-high
Airplane Crash:
https://www.denverpost.com/2012/07/27/olympian-pat-porter-son-among-three-dead-in-plane-crash/
Historic Hyperlinks
Historic Hyperlinks
Div.I Ladies Males T&F Information Archives USTFCCA
U.S. Championships: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USA_Cross_Country_Championships
Nice Pictorial Historical past of the NCAA Div.I Championships(Males)