by RBR Admin
Walt Murphy is one of the finest track geeks that I know. Walt does #ThisDayinTrack&FieldHistory, an excellent daily service that provides true geek stories about our sport. You can check out the service for FREE with a free one-month trial subscription! (email: [email protected] ) for the entire daily service. We will post a few historic moments each day, beginning February 1, 2024.
by Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service ([email protected]), used with permission
This Day in Track & Field/X-Country-November 26
1956–The Men’s 800-meters in Melbourne provided one of the great dramatic stretch runs in Olympic history. Americans Tom Courtney (1955) and Arnie Sowell (1954,1956), the last two NCAA Champions from Fordham and Pittsburgh, respectively, battled for the lead down the backstretch and through the final turn. As they straightened out for the race to the finish line, Great Britain’s Derek Johnson took advantage of an opening between the two and took the lead. Sowell began fading, but Courtney somehow found the will and strength to fight back and edged ahead 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 in the Pole Vault, but he almost didn’t make it out of the qualifying round after having trouble adjusting to a new pole. In the wind-plagued final, which lasted almost 11-hours, the three medalists were decided when Richards, fellow American Bob Gutowski, and Greece’s Georgios Roubanis were the only ones to clear 14-5 ¼ (4.40).
Gutowski, the 1956 NCAA Champion from Occidental (he also won in 1957), needed three tries at 14-7 ¼ (4.45), while the other two each cleared on their first attempt. Roubanis, who had trained under Payton Jordan at Occidental before transferring to UCLA, was the first Olympian to arrive in Melbourne and had become a favorite of Australian fans (see link). He had their backing as he matched the first attempt clearances of Gutowski and Richards at 14-9 (4.50). Roubanis, who gave the first hint of the future of the event by using a fiberglass pole, finally went out at 14-10 ¼ (4.53), while Richards, who had yet to miss, and Gutowski each cleared on their initial effort.
After one miss, Richards topped his Olympic Record by a centimeter 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 first spokesperson for Wheaties and the first athlete to appear on the front of the cereal’s box. He remains the only man to win two Olympic Pole Vault titles.
Norway’s Egil Danielsen won the gold medal in the Men’s Javelin with a World Record toss of 281-2 (85.71). Taking the silver was Poland’s Janusz Sidło (262-5/79.98), the previous record holder, and the bronze went to the Soviet Union’s (and Ukraine’s) Viktor Tsybulenko (260-10/79.50). American Cy Young, the defending Olympic champion, was hampered by a sprained ankle and could only manage an 11th-place finish (225-2/68.64), one spot behind teammate Phil Conley (228-10/69.74). Danielson returned to Melbourne in 1991, winning the javelin at the World Masters Championships!
18-year old Australian Betty Cuthbert started her journey towards immortality in her home country by winning the Women’s 100-Meters in 11.5 (11.82). The “Golden Girl” went on to also win gold medals in the 200 and 4×100 relay. Cuthbert came out of retirement to win the first Women’s Olympic 400 in 1964 and became the only athlete to win all three sprint titles. She was later stricken with Multiple Sclerosis, but was still able to participate as one of the torch bearers at the Opening Ceremony when the Olympics returned to Australia in 2000.
Richards photo: http://tinyurl.com/yaanytz; Cuthbert Photos: http://tinyurl.com/yllp6u
Results: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1956_Summer_Olympics
X-Country
1910—For the 3rd time in 4 years, Frank Bellars of the New York Athletic Club was the winner at the U.S. X-Country 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 won his 5th (and final) U.S. X-Country title at NY’s venerable Van Cortlandt Park. Ritola was unchallenged after the first 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) won his 2nd straight NCAA title on the snow-covered course at Michigan State. Semper, the first Jayhawk to win a NCAA title, passed away in 2011 at the age of 81. 2nd was Tennessee’s Alf Holmberg (20:17), a junior from Sweden, and 3rd was Ray Osterhout (20:21.0), who led Syracuse to its 1st team title (they won their 2nd in 2015).
Holmberg, Tennessee’s first All-American in X-Country, also passed away in 2011 (83). He had a life-long love affair with UT and his friendly demeanor had such an impact on his Vol teammates that they helped establish the Alf Holmberg Scholarship in his honor in 1998.
Results:
MileSplit (18 teams, 122 finishers)
Other Notable Finishers: 4.Bill Ashenfelter (Penn State), 36.Wes Santee (Kanas)
https://utsports.com/news/2011/11/8/Vol_Great_Alf_Holmberg_Passes_Away
1956–Texas junior Walter McNew won the individual NCAA X-Country title, with host Michigan State winning its 6th team title. Finishing 2nd was North Carolina senior Jim Beatty, who later became the first man to break 4-minutes for the mile indoors (among his many other accomplishments).
Results:
https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/1956-men.pdf
(14 teams, 115 finishers)
Other notable Finishers: 9.Buddy Edelen (Minnesota), 85.Ed Moran (Penn State)
1959—Just 3 days after winning the NCAA title, Houston’s Al Lawrence (32:22-10k) won the 1st of his two U.S. X-Country titles in Louisville. Finishing 2nd, just as he had at the NCAA meet, was his Houston teammate, John Macy (32:27). A strong finish by Billy Mills (32:50) brought him home in 3rd place. The University of Houston won the team title, ending the NYAC’s 9-year winning streak.
Lawrence, who was the bronze medalist in the 10,000 meters at the 1956 Olympics in his native Australia, would repeat his double-cross win in 1960. Lawrence, who was active as a coach in Houston into his 80s, passed away in 2017 at the age of 86.
Other 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 individual NCAA X-Country title at Michigan State, while Danny Murphy finished 3rd (19:32) to lead San Jose State to the first of its two straight team titles, beating Villanova, 58-69. Finishing 12th was Illinois junior Al Carius, who coached North Central College to 19 NCAA Div.3 men’s titles.
This NCAA article looks back at the win by San Jose State, the first by an integrated team.
http://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/san-joses-historic-feet
Results
https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/1962-men.pdf
(14 teams, 136 finishers)
Other 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 previous year, beat Emporia State junior John Camien (19:38) to win the NCAA Div.I title at Michigan State. Camien had won the College Division title earlier in the season. San Jose State beat Oregon to win its 2nd straight team title (53-68). Zwolak remained Villanova’s only male NCAA Champion until 2016, when Patrick Tiernan became the 2ndWildcat winner.
The meet was moved from Saturday to Tuesday in the wake of the assassination of President Kennedy the previous Friday.
Results:
https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/1963-men.pdf
Other 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., where 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 field to win his 2nd straight U.S. X-Country title on the hilly course in Woodland Hills, CA. Next across the line were John Lawson (32:10), Joe Lynch (32:10), and Kenny Moore (32:22). Other 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. Track & Field Federation (USTFF) was conducting its own X-Country Championship (1964-1980). 6’-7” Jack Bacheler, a 1968 U.S. Olympian at 5000-Meters, was the winner at this year’s edition at Penn State and would win the “official” U.S. title 3 days later.
Coming just two days after their win at the NCAA Championships, the UTEP Miners once again won the team title over Villanova.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Bacheler
1974–Western Kentucky’s Nick Rose (29:22) overcame a wet and challenging course in Bloomington, Indiana, to win the NCAA X-Country title over Washington State’s John Ngeno (29:37). UTEP’s Wilson Waigwa finished 3rd, followed by three Oregon runners-Paul Geis, David Taylor, and Terry Williams as the Ducks won their 3rd team title in the last 4 years. Illinois sophomore Craig Virgin finished 11th.
Results
(28 teams, 250 finishers)
Other notable finishers-10.Greg Meyer (Michigan), , 22.Herb Lindsay (Michigan State), 30.Mike McGuire (Michigan—Head Women’s XC coach at his alma mater), 39.George Malley (Penn State), 45.John Treacy (Providence)
Video Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wslmaq-VjGc
1977—Less than two months after having her appendix removed, Jan Merrill successfully defended her title at the U.S. Women’s X-Country Championships in San Bernadino, California. Running cautiously, Merrill waged a back-and-forth battle with Penn State’s Kathy Mills before pulling away to win the 5k race in 16:54.4.
Trailing Mills across the line were Julie Shea, Cindy Bremser, Judy Graham, and Brenda Webb. Struggling home in 8th was 35-year old Doris Brown
From Kenny Moore’s article in Sports Illustrated: “As the runners rounded the last turn, the finish line was clearly delineated, for Wilt Chamberlain rose up there in a shining blue tank top, timing, encouraging, recalling his childhood. He had run cross-country for Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, never making the top five. “Track and field is my greatest love,” he said, “and distance runners enjoy my greatest respect. Lord, I know how they feel.”
The Men’s championship was held on the same day in Houston and it featured a star-studded field. Great Britain’s Nick Rose, the 1974 NCAA Champion while at Western Kentucky, took advantage of a wayward move by Craig Virgin, the 1975 NCAA champ, late in the race to win the 10k test in 30:14 (Virgin-30:23).
Other 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 won the 2nd of his 8 straight U.S. X-Country titles in windy and muddy conditions at Penn State, while North Carolina State’s Betty Jo Springs backed up her NCAA win 5 days earlier by winning her first U.S. Championship. Springs was challenged throughout much of the race by Lesley Welch, who had accomplished the double win in 1981, before pulling away and winning by more than 100 yards over Nan Doak, who had also finished 2nd to Springs at the NCAA Championships. Welch, who fought the wind while leading Springs early on, faded to 12th.
Sports Illustrated Vault: http://www.si.com/vault/1983/12/05/669227/betty-springs-to-the-fore
1988–Pat Porter (31:07-10k) won his 7th straight U.S. title in Raleigh to tie Don Lash’s record (1934-1940). Porter would win his record 8th title the following year. In a runaway, Lynn Jennings won her 3rd title, beating runnerup Sabrina Dornhoefer by 21-seconds (6k:19:32-19:53.
Sadly, Porter (and his son Connor) died in the summer of 2012 when the plane he was piloting crashed in Sedona, Arizona.
Other notable finishers
Men:2.Bob Kempainen (31:20), 4.Tim Hacker, 9.Mark Coogan
Women: 3.Betty Jo Springs-Geiger, 4.Margaret Groos.
Sports Illustrated Vault:
Kenny Moore’s 1986 Article in Sports Illustrated (Porter):
https://vault.si.com/vault/1986/03/17/running-on-a-rocky-mountain-high
Plane Crash:
https://www.denverpost.com/2012/07/27/olympian-pat-porter-son-among-three-dead-in-plane-crash/
Historical Links
Historical Links
Div.I Women Men T&F News Archives USTFCCA
U.S. Championships: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USA_Cross_Country_Championships
Great Pictorial History of the NCAA Div.I Championships(Men)
http://www.runningentertainment.com/runningshots35.html
