Beginning our 14th year and 1,200+ postings. A blog for athletes and fans of 20th century Track and Field culled from articles in sports journals of the day, original articles, book reviews, and commentaries from readers who lived and ran and coached in that era. We're equivalent to an Amer. Legion post of Track and Field but without cheap beer. You may contact us directly at irathermediate@gmail.com or write a comment below. George Brose, Courtenay, BC ed.
We have some requests for documents to relay to our readers. First from Russ Reabold of Trojan Force who is looking for some of those old AAU annual books that came out annually with results of conference meets, AAU results, and All American lists. Here is his letter. I used to have a few, but alas many moves and marriage brought an end to much of 'stuff'. Oh No!!The second request comes from my blog mate Roy Mason who wishes to divest himself of his Track and Field News collection.
Hi George,
I have a favor to ask. I’m in dire need of finding AAU All American information / lists from several past AAU books (like those old Spalding’s books). I wouldn’t need to whole book (but would not object to receiving any), but only the page(s) that have the All-Am lists. It’s a bit much to ask but I’m attempting to verify the All American awards for USC athletes and I have a few too many gaps in my information. I’ll understand if you choose to decline.
AAU books needed
1941
1943
1944
1945
1952
1954
1955
1957
1958
1964
And any and all books after 1968, including the 70s
The time has come to move my 112 pounds of Track and Field News.
Mostly complete years from 1959 to 1990. There are a few from the mid-fifties.
Suggestions for somewhere to donate or if someone wants them, if they pay the shipping, they got em. If you are intersted, contact Roy by responding to me, George, and I will forward your request to him. irathermediate@gmail.com, my email.
Track and Field News recently published a list of US sub 4 minute milers in chronological order, no metric conversions. It's an interesting list to peruse. Tom Von Ruden had a first sub 4 at 3:56+. Not many have been better on the first time.
* for the stats manics is is noted that Paul Pilgrim won both titles at the 1906 Intercalated Games in Athens whose results are not recognised by the IOC.
Ned Price one of our regular readers and former UCTC member found this photo recently floating on the internet showing Jesse Owens, Cornelius Johnson and Glenn Hardin surrounded by their teammates on the 1936 US team celebrating their victories.
Front: Cornelius Johnson, Jesse Owens, and Glenn Hardin
Back Marty Glickman, Gene Venzke, Albert Mangin, Foy Draper, and Forrest Towns
from our Western Michigan correspondent Richard Mach
The remarkable thing about Rai Benjamin is even in his 400 m H Tokyo final he never looked like he was putting a whole lot of effort into it ...... into his running despite how fast the surrounding environment went by or what the clock tells us when he, too, smashed the only recently broken WR in that same race. Even in his 43.2 anchoring of our men’s gold medal 4x4 relay, he rolled without the appearance of much effort. If even paced, that would be 21.6 for the first 200 m followed by another equally scintillating 21.6.
What is happening to explain this perception: The fluidity of his style? I have to wonder at the biomechanical efficacy or extreme intelligence of his body and how it must work to engender and maintain that kind of speed. And the idea that nothing in that complex of working parts is not about compelling forward motion. When we compare him with the 2011 World Champion @ 18 and the London Olympics 400 gold medalist @ 19, Karani James, we see how the Grenadian sprinter must compensate for what is happening with his left leg in follow through as it travels a longer distance due perhaps to a congenital player.
We may learn about more of Benjamin’s full potential come Saturday @ the Pre Classic when he runs the open elite 200 m. Something tells me no one, not even Rai Benjamin, knows what he is truly capable of. And, just perhaps, we are about to get another peek into his immense talent. As one wag once opined: “If you intend on winning at the Olympic Games, you must pick your parents very carefully.” Perhaps, as the future unfolds, we shall learn he did.
Tune in.
"
Buce Kritzler notes: "Rai broke 20 a couple of years ago, so will be competive at Pre. Also did a great job of picking his parents. Dad was international cricketer from Antigua"
Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei, WR @ 5,000 and 10,000 m, has been said to be going after the Kenyan Daniel Komen’s phenomenal 2 mile WR of 7:58.61 @ Pre. Forty yrs before Sir Roger had broken the 4 minute barrier running 3:59.4. Komen’s mile average was 3:59.3. Cheptegei will have to average 59.78 per lap to accomplish his mission. His two podium compatriots in Tokyo’s 5000 m final will also be in the race.
However, as the only homo sapien to ever run under 8 minutes, this was not Komen’s finest race. His 7:20.67 for 3000 m is. Extended out to 2 miles, while preserving that same rather impossible pace, would have manifested a projected 7:53 and change. Hicham El Guerrouj — owner still of 3 WRs —- has come closest to Komen’s mark, but he was still 2.42 secs slower and H. Gebrsellassie 4 seconds slower, a man who broke a total of 27 or 28 WRs in his time.
Pre also promises Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands to go after the 5000 WR. And the talented S. Richardson, back from rather temporary MJ infamy, will square off against all three Jamaicans on the podium in Tokyo.
from OUTV:
We will not be covering this meet live due to the difficulty of crossing the US Canada border both ways in three days. Just too many hassles. The weekend ferries are sold out for all kinds of reasons not related to the meet, and getting back into Canada also requires a negative covid test before returning. So we'll be watching from the comfort of our home and subject to the whims of the networks and what they want us to see. Bet there will be a lot of attention brought to that women's 100m.
By the way, here are Daniel Komen's splits on his way to the 7:20.67 3000m record. Great interval workout with 60 sec. rest. George
PS, check comments section on our previous post. Mike Gregory has some interesting ideas about relay exchanges.
We x runners were just joggers!
Jerry Ashmore
For the two attempts at WRs, amen. The big unknown, heat. Pacing lights seem amenable to Cheptegei’s metronomic style as I believe both his WRs last year employed same. So little common awareness about a sub- 8 two mile. It’s extreme rarity — as in one — and lack of awareness Joshua is after Komen’s record now 24 yrs old. Let’sRun rather clueless putting the Richardson resurrection atop the pile of importance. That 10.61 of Thompson-Herah, the Jamaican gold medalist, is no joke. She will dust Richardson and so might Fraser-Price. Bromell all over again most likely. Richard Mach
Isaiah Jewett and Nigel Amos collided in the semis of the 800 in Tokyo last week. I've been hard pressed to find a good film of the fall, but the one below does show that Jewett appears to have established a gap ahead of Amos before he went down. You have to put up with this rather forced narration of the event by someone who is just reading a script. I've looked at several other tapes but couldn't make a conclusion except from this one. Our reader Richard Mach has a strong opinion about this as stated below. We always look forward to Richard's observations from a highly skilled eye.
Slow mo video shown during prime time clarifies the US runner, Isiah Jewett’s back kick in the midst of the final turn — his heel hitting Botswana’s Nigel Amos’ knee and Jewett now off balance falls to the track and the following too close Amos cannot avoid him and falls too. The officials — if they follow top racing @ all — know Amos has a checkered reputation when racing causing innumerable problems lurching about on the pack and making sudden untelegraphed moves throwing other competitors off stride and violating —rather severely —-English Rules. To my knowledge he has never been sanctioned nor called onto account Jewett was the innocent party here. Clearly so. As a racer, you are obliged to give competitors in front of you sufficient room not to get tangled up by your actions and choices.
The decision on the matter was shocking. Amos reinstated on into the final: Jewett is not and, by implication, seen as the violator. I have no information that the US officials ever lodged a protest over this misbegotten decision. However, it does occur to me that the decision was made on what served NBC. And since the IOC gets most of its funding from selling the Olympic coverage to NBC, they along w the USOC, brazenly went along and excluded the innocent US runner. With Jewett already on a tear and the very slow final, he could quite easily won the gold on his finishing kick. A disgusting injustice seen by anyone looking. The sport of athletics has been so thoroughly invaded by cheesy network politics I hardly recognize it. NBC has virtually homogenized our sport to fit its pre- and ill conceived notions of what they want it to be. The only saving grace on the matter was Jewett’s on-track magnanimity that probably ended up working against him. As in he wouldn’t be likely to put up a stink. And where does Amos end up finishing in the 9 man final: Next to last. 8th.
What about those 4x100 relay passes?
Jim Metcalf, former member of Oklahoma State's 2 mile world record relay team with the Perry brothers John and David and Tom Von Ruden has sent some comments about our seemingly endless drama with men's relay exchanges. He has shown us in clips first from London 1948 and then Tokyo 1964 where the fastest man in the world, Bob Hayes had no trouble taking a pass from his teammate and going on to victory. Jim makes note that this style of pass is quite simple, but it does require a bit of practice.
"The US has lost so many 4 x 100's over the past 20 years because of poor passes. This was used all the way back to 1948, and before. Every team in the world used it..it is fool proof."
"Someone needs to tell the US track coaches how to coach passing the baton"
"Texas Relays (Photo)1965 notice the baton pass takes place 10 yards from begining of zone (ie. the middle)...sometimes we passed half way past the 10 yard marker. We all had an extra 10-15 yard gear to accelerate to the pass..."
Tokyo 1964 4x100 link This one has an especially good shot of the final exchange between Hayes and Richard Stebbins. First two runners on that team were Paul Drayton and Gerald Ashworth.
Lee Evans and Larry James, Lake Tahoe '68
Perry to Von Ruden, Texas Relays
Amos was clearly at fault since he was behind Jewett and needed to give him space. However, I am unclear as to why NBC would rather have the Botswana runner in the finals rather than the American, thinking they would rather have Jewett.
The passes promoted in the blog were 1950s and 60s passes which strangely the Japanese still use. It is underhanded and forces the runners to be closer together and also passed near the teammates' legs. The current exchange is about shoulder high with each teammates' hand fully extended, benefiting them about 5 feet in a perfect world. However, the problem in this Olympics was the takeoff point as well as timing.
Bill Schnier
Bob Schul, Still the Only American to Win the Olympic 5000
Rich Davis and Bob Schul
Going into this Olympic year it seemed fairly certain that Bob Schul would still be the only western hemisphere runner ever to win the 5000 meters, although I was thinking that Mo Ahmed or Grant Fisher might be an outside shot, but sure enough Bob is still the man. Recently I received a note and picture of Bob from Rich Davis, the former men's cross country coach at the University of Dayton. Rich is a long time runner and disciple of Bob Schul. For a number of years when I coached the women's XC team, Rich helped me through all the machinations of scheduling and getting buses and hotels for our many trips away from the campus, and Bob was one of our big rivals coaching at Wright State University also near Dayton. Rich has remained a steadfast friend of Bob. He informed me recently that Bob soon to be 84 years old is staying in an assisted living facility in Middletown, Ohio. The staff have to make sure he doesn't run them down in the halls. If you would like to contact Bob he can be reached at the following address. Perhaps a birthday card on September 28th would be nice.
His contact info:
Bickford Assisted Living
4375 UNION RD Middletown , OH 45005 Phone 937.550.4911
I agree 100% that Jewett was the one who should have beenasvanced. I am unclear whether the U.S. coaches filed a protest. If they didn't, I wish someone would explain their decision.
Underhand passes, as the Japanese teams have shown for years, are safer because they are easier. The hand of the outgoing runner is a much steadier target than with the overhand pass plus when the baton hits the Vee of the outgoing runner it is automatic to squeeze it.
Bob Schul: Do you know more about his health. "Assisted living" seems to suggest he isn't functioning well independently, but I think that in some cases folks just choose it to make life easier. Fewer daily chores to do.
Bob Schul Sept 28th and Buddy Edelen Sept. 22nd and George Young July 24th and Ron Daws June 21st were all born in a roughly three month span in 1937. As was I. Sept 18th. I was a wee bit slower, of course. But I became very aware of this chronological relationship.
On Jan 2, 1988 the National Masters 10K was held in Charlotte NC on a very hilly course - and in freezing weather. It attracted pretty strong fields since Bill Rodgers and Frank Shorter had turned 40 not long before. Rodgers won. I ran it and felt like I had run tough. I asked the race announcer who was calling the finishers if he knew how I had done in the 50-54 division. I was a bit disappointed to hear I was second - until I learned that Bob Schul was the guy who beat me. And by "only" 57 sec. I just wish I would have been within 57 seconds of him in a 10k when we were young. Heck, I would have been delighted to be within 57 sec. in a 5K in our younger days. Geoff Pietsch
Dear George:
I wouldn't jump to conclusions on the Amos/Jewett collision.
If you will look at the YouTube of the race it appears Jewett caused the fall, clipping Amos's foot. Bad luck or not being one stride clear?
Amos won the 800 silver in the 2012 Olympics and has gone 1:43 a number of times and even sub 1:42. He may be older but was no slouch.
I was sorry to see Jewett out of the final but a lot of good athletes fell in Toyko.
Thanks to Richard Mach who brought the following article to the attention of our team. I've sent this article to two runners/engineers who work in carbon composite materials for their read. This of course leads us to ask the question, "What was Rai Benjamin wearing on his feet? And was he at a disadvantage? Not sure I have a definitive answer.
From the website formula1.com
Mercedes are used to setting records on track, but the Silver Arrows have played a key part in a different type of track record this week, after Track & Field spikes they designed in collaboration with PUMA helped Karsten Warholm set an incredible new 400m men's hurdles record at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
With design input from Mercedes, the PUMA Evospeed Tokyo Future Faster+ spikes feature carbon fibre threads in the upper and a carbon plate in the sole, with each shoe weighing just 135 grams.
And Norwegian athlete Warholm used the spikes – which he and his coach Leif Olav Alnes also helped to design – to set a new World Record of 45.94s at the Tokyo Olympics on August 3, in a race some are already calling the greatest in Olympic history.
“This collaboration with PUMA has been a natural alignment – track spikes need to run fast, and racing cars need to drive fast,” said Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff. “Whether you’re designing a great racing car or the perfect track spike, it comes down to engineering and putting as much performance as possible into the product.
Warholm set a new World Record of 45.94s in the F1-enhanced spikes
“We have drawn on our experience and expertise in carbon fibre with the design, and along the way we learned that making an innovative track spike involves the same kind of complexity as a Formula 1 car – and it has been an exciting challenge to tackle together.” Speaking of the tie-up, meanwhile, Warholm said: “What I feel is very unique about this project is that it combines the best of all the worlds. It combines what PUMA knows about how to make a shoe that’s comfortable and fits your foot. It combines what Mercedes knows about carbon fibre through their Formula 1 work and it combines what my coach and I know about running and the biomechanics for running.
“This is very unique and it has given us the perfect product for us to work on the track - a spike that is really aggressive, with a really good forward propulsion.” end of article
In conclusion I venture to guess that Warholm's innate ability and his incredible fortitude and drive to succeed were more responsible than the engineering that went into his shoes.
It has also been argued that his left lead foot running compared to Rai Benjamin's lead right foot running may have made it a slightly shorter way around the track for Warholm. I'd need to see more of the work to accept this math problem.
Bruce Kritzler writes on this subject:
Definitly an advantage (around the curves) to have a left lead leg, enabling you to run along the line.
But don't they actually both use right lead leg for about first 8 hurdles(13 steps between hurdles)? Then fatigue makes them shorten stride, and they have to cut back to 14, and alternate lead legs.
Definitly an advantage to be able to use both lead legs. That why Kersee had McGlaghlin running 100m hurles with her weak lead leg.
Bruce, I just reviewed the race on youtube. Warholm went left leg all the way and Benjamin went right leg all the way. Looking at them exiting the first turn, both were in the middle of their respective lanes. On the last two hurdles of the second turn, again both were running in the middle of their lanes, so I doubt that there was any distance advantage. Note, I could not tell from the film where they were running in the first half of the two turns. George
The article indicates that Karsten Warholm worked with Puma and the Formula One Gran Prix engineers at Mecedes Benz to develop a pair of shoes to assist him in his quest for a gold in the 400IH. By all descriptions they sound like a stripped down pair of Nike Vaporflys, but who am I to say for sure? This must sound like blasphemy at the Puma factory. I'm sure there are still a lot of structural options out there that Nike did not incorporate in the Vaporfly. The article, which is more an advertisement than a scientific paper describes as has been described before how the carbon composite layer in the sole of the shoe is able to absorb the shock of impact and return that energy back to the runner through his foot and probably all the muscles in the lower leg that are in the process of loading for their next contraction. There is also a hint that the shoes also work in concert with the new type of track that was put down for the Tokyo Olympics. But there is no description of what made that track different from others on the top circuits where international meets are held. And Sydney McGlaughlin was wearing New Balance to get her record. Anyway it is fodder to think about. After reading it I wrote to two runners I know who were very good marathoners in the early 2000s, Kara and Tara Storage (2hr 45 min) Both women are engineers who are more than familiar with carbon composite engineering applications.
Tara's reply was as follows:
Hi George,
Here are a few of my thoughts. Carbon fiber composites have great strength/stiffness to weight ratios but also have good energy absorbing/dampening properties. Therefore, they can be tailored for applications like LIGHTWEIGHT automobile leaf springs, skis/snowboards, amputee springs, and now fiber insoles/plates in distance running shoes (the Mercedes/Puma track spikes is a new one for me!). A running friend and Kara’s boyfriend, Jonathan Spowart, has a pair of Nike’s Vaporfly (the distance shoe with the carbon fiber plate) and has consistently run PRs in the shoe. He says his legs don’t tire as quickly, he has a more efficient stride, and ultimately can maintain his cadence for longer than his other running shoes. It scientifically makes sense. I’d love to try a pair but they’re pretty pricey. It’s hard for me to justify when I know the raw material costs. They should be much cheaper, especially when you they don’t always use aerospace grade fibers.
In automobiles, composites are not great in blunt impact or crash performance once the fibers break and delaminate. A lot of times you won’t see much external/visual damage, but there may be large internal damage with minimal ability to repair. Therefore, you must scrap and replace. I’m not a fan of composite cars. However, in footwear there’s not a lot of catastrophic damage so I actually think it’s a good application. It would make a great Ball State Human Performance research study! I’m sure they’re working on something.
Regarding the ethics question, I don’t have issues with the shoes being legal in T&F and road running since it is available to the general public. Shoes have advanced over time as have the tracks (cinder to all-weather rubber).
The following is a description of the track surface at the Tokyo stadium from learingenglish.voa.com
The track is made by Mondo, an Italian company that makes running surfaces for sports competitions. The shoes, known as Vaporfly, are made by Nike.
Mondo created its first track for the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. It has supplied tracks to 12 different Olympic Games. The company built the track in Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium in late 2019. Because the Games were postponed for one year, the surface was not used much before the athletes arrived.
Ronnie Baker is an American 100-meter runner.
He told The Associated Press that running on the surface “feels like I’m walking on clouds.” He called the track “beautiful” and “smooth.”
Mondo says the Olympic track is designed to “maximize the speed of athletes and improve their performance.”
The top part of the track is made from extra-hard rubber. Below that are spaces containing air holes. This design aims to take the shock and help runners bounce off the track after each step.
So there's the info on that race and tech development.
The shoe, the technique, and the surface. But let's not forget the input by the athlete.
Bill Schnier writes:
Interesting thoughts about Warholm's shoes but keep in mind that Rai Benjamin wore Nike shoes, allegedly the Cadillac in shoe performance and the maker of the Vaporfly, the shoe so many people wish to declare illegal. Most people would say that Benjamin had the shoe advantage or at least wore shoes of the company with the greater recent success. However, it is possible that Nike has put its emphasis on distance-running shoes whereas Puma / Mercedes saw an opportunity for engineering breakthroughs in sprint shoes. However, none of us knows the facts. There have always been technological improvements in shoes, tracks, blocks, nutrition, uniforms, etc. so this Olympics is just a reflection of those 2021 improvements. Keep in mind it is the job of shoe companies and track companies to improve their product, not just churn out Grasstex tracks or spikes with nails placed in holes dug with a trowel.
It has been common thinking that a left-lead-leg hurdler has an advantage over a right-lead-leg hurdler, but based on the Warholm/Benjamin race I can only conclude they ran the same distance. However, it is possible that the right trail leg could pull the runner closer to the inside lane on the curve, giving advantage to the left-lead-leg hurdler (Warholm), but I have seen no physical studies on that phenomenon so at this point I can only conclude that it just doesn't matter. What does matter is the ability to alternate lead legs guaranteeing that the hurdler does not stutter before a hurdle. Warholm could have used that skill on his ninth hurdle which almost cost him the race. In the end the runner with the faster time continued to have the faster time with almost the identical pre-race / post-race difference. The better man, not the better shoes or the better lead leg won the race.
Today from Richard Mach who started this whole conversation.
Yesterday was working on my views of the DeGrasse Tyson notion of extra travel. Will send when finished. Can say that on the back stretch, Warholm is like an arrow, straight true and his pace and his actions refined -- including almost overstriding -- into a metronomic sameness between and over hurdles which means a tremendous focused attention every moment on what he is instructing his body to do and not unlike the science of sprinting and the different phases. As I say in the unfinished piece, Benjamin stutters every so slightly in adjusting his step on the 10th hurdle and then could not recoup the lost momentum and meanwhile Warholm sensed him coming up on his left and found the adrenaline to push to the finish while Rai is fading. I'd picked Benjamin to beat the WRH because of his superior speed {43.2 on his 4 x 4 anchor} and his natural gifts, while not discounting the immense talent of the Norseman. So much for prognostication. Richard Mach
Dear George:
Doesn't this all take you back to the days of the bamboo/fiberglass pole discussions?
Not to mention the cinder tracks vs the clay compositions.
