by RBR Admin
Walt Murphy is one of the finest track statisticians 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.
This Day in Track & Field–June 5
(c)Copyright 2024-all rights reserved. It may not be reprinted or retransmitted without permission.
By Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service ([email protected]), used with permission.
1943—Navy ensign Hugh Cannon set an American Record of 174-10 (53.29) in the discus at the Metropolitan AAU Championships on NY’s Randall’s Island.
Garry Hill explains in the link below why some people thought Cannon had also set a World Record!
https://forum.trackandfieldnews.com/forum/historical/325-hugh-cannon-lost-in-history
https://www.utahsportshalloffame.org/honorees-hall-of-fame-induction/hall-of-fame-1980s/
1948–Jamaica’s Herb McKenley lowered his World Record in the 440y to 46.0 at the Pacific AAU meet at Cal-Berkeley’s Edwards Stadium. McKenley set the previous mark of 46.3 at the same site the previous year.
WR Progression: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men’s_400_metres_world_record_progression
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herb_McKenley
1953–Parry O’Brien improved his World Record in the Shot Put to 59-2 ¼ (18.04m) at the Compton Inv.
Kansas junior Wes Santee won the Mile in 4:02.4 to set the first of his four American Records in the event. The winner of the NCAA 5000 in 1952, Santee would win the 1953 NCAA Mile two weeks later and would win the NCAA X-Country title in November, leading Kansas to the team title.
WR Progression(meters): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men’s_shot_put_world_record_progression
Santee: https://www.usatf.org/athlete-bios/wes-santee
1959—Al Cantello, a long-time coach at the U.S. Naval Academy, set a World Record in the Javelin with his throw of 282-3 (86.04) at the Compton Inv. Norway’s Egil Danielson, who won the gold medal at the 1956 Olympics, set the previous mark of 281-2 (85.71).
Recalls Cantello, who was only 5-7 ½ (1.715), “My 1st throw was measured at 279-9 (85.26). Rafer Johnson (who had the best throw going in–mid 250’s) ran back to me and said, ‘Al, they mismeasured your throw because they weren’t ready for it,,,it was farther!’ The next throw was the record”.
Helping to support his family, Cantello went to work for two years after graduating from Norristown H.S.(PA). A chance meeting with a LaSalle University alum led to a scholarship at the Philadelphia school, where he was a three time IC4A and Penn Relays Champion (1953-1955). He went on to win the bronze medal at the 1959 Pan-American Games and finished 10th at the 1960 Olympics in Rome.
http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/msg17528.html (Scroll down)
WR Progression(meters): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men%27s_javelin_throw_world_record_progression
http://legacy.usatf.org/statistics/calculators/markConversions/index.asp
1964 –Two historic prep records were set at the Compton Inv. in California. First up was senior Gerry Lindgren (Rogers-Spokane, WA), who finished 4th in the 5000-Meters with a time of 13:44.0, a U.S. High School Record that stood for 40 years until Galen Rupp ran 13:37.91 in 2004. Despite losing some time after he got bumped off the track on the 2nd lap, junior Jim Ryun (Wichita East, KS) finished 8th in the Mile but ran 3:59.0 to become the first high school runner to break 4 minutes in the event.
The winner of the 5000 was Bob Schul, whose time of 13:38.0 smashed Jim Beatty’s American Record of 13:45.0, which was set in 1962. (Lindgren was also under the previous AR). Schul, of course, went on later in the year to win the gold medal in the 5000 at the Tokyo Olympics. (Lindgren [10k] and Ryun [1500] would also later qualify for the U.S. Olympic team).
Dyrol Burleson (3:57.4) was the winner of the deep Mile over Tom O’Hara (3:57.6), Archie San Romani (3:57.6), Morgan Groth (3:57.9), Jim Grelle (3:58.5), Bob Day (3:58.9), Cary Weisiger (3:58.9), and Ryun (3:59.0). It was the first time in history that 8 men had run sub-4 in the same race.
SI Article on Ryun: https://vault.si.com/vault/1964/09/14/a-kansas-boy-with-a-mansize-task
http://bringbackthemile.com/athletes/detail/jim_ryun
