Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-07-31
HAYES, The RUNNER
Crack Marat hol Race Winner
a department. Store
Lad
ONLY 10 YEARS OF AGE
Slight and Small, but Game a. They
come-Resarded Conner For Some
seasons-Good Job Waiting For
Him, With Bio Advance In Pay.

Seasons-Good Job Waiting For
Him, With Big Advance In Pay.
John J. Hayes, the New York boy
who recently won tho Marathon race
in the Olympic games at London, told
his friends in q department store
weeks before he started with the
American athletes for England that
he would win the big race sure
IL just know I'm going to win" said
Jack Hayes. land ! wish it were tifty
miles instead Of twenty-six. The next
ing the laurel wreath. or whatever
they give the winner. around my ears
I've been training my head and my
legs for ten years for chance at the
Marathon"
The boy who made good in the
toughest most heartbreaking athletic
contest in the worli is only nineteen
years old. slim, little nickeled steel
athlete from his tors to the crown Of
his head says the New York Sun. He
stands just shade under. five feet
four inches, and he weighs 125 pounds.
Jack Hayes is as Irish as you find
them, with black hair. blue eyes, a
good aumored and frecklcd face and
q ton Of confidence in himself. With
all his triumphs on the cinder path
and he has won enough cups and
medals and trophies to fill cup
board-he is a modest chap who does
not care to gable about his own
achievements. When he talked about
his chances in the Marathon before he
left the United States young Hayes
said to his friends In the store:
II know to breath how far I can
run and how fast. intend to go
right out with the paccmnkers. keep
ut their heels unit am ready to fin-
ish and then go in and win. l am
not afraid Of any Of them, but ex-
pect our own boys to make 1t hot for
me. Longboat: I'll bet you the In
dian crumplcs up before he goes TWEEN
ty miles. Tom Longboat Is like q
prize fighter who has seen his best
days. and don't believe he will have
enough in him to 60 the distance"
The actual running Of the Marathon
proved how accurately young Hayes
had estimated his own ability and the
strength Of his competitors. Long
boat, the Indian. gave up before the
twenty mile mark. and. except for the
Italian and the South AfricaE. It was
the Americans who gave Jack Hayes
the stiffest trial. He ran as he said
he would. up with the pacemakers un-
til he got ready to let them see his
heels, and then he sprinted on and
won, as he told his friends he could.
Hayes went to work at the depart
ment store when he was seventeen
years old as a messenger and odd job
boy He wasn't all muscles and legs,
SO he worked his way up to the Job
of assistant in the superintendent's
ONCE at salary Of $50 week. When
he gets back to the big store Its
proprietor will otter him tho chance Of
making $4,000 or 5000 year as
head of the sporting goods department.
More than that, he is going to give
him big reception.
Last spring Hayes trained on q
quarter mile track on top Of the
department store Most Of his train
ing had to be done at night, since
his job kept him busy every day but
Sunday In letter Hayes wrote to
one of his friends in the store and re-
ceiyed the other day he said:
There won't be any excuse II we
don't win. Az for ~''f, can still
eat, sleep and run ~ well as ]
did on the other side
Hayes is unmarried and lives at 246
East Fifty-hfth street.
Hayes is the flrst American to fg-
ure prominently In Marathon held
abroad. The event at the first Olym-
pic revival in Athens was won by a
Greek. Loues. who covered the orig
inal course from the village Of Mara
thon to the stadium at Athens in
hours IS minutes 20 seconds. At the
Paris olympiad Of 1900 the Marathon
was won by Teato, Frenchman,
with A. L. Newton Of the New York
Athletic club II good second. Teatos
time was 2 hours 50 minutes. In the
st. Louis Oily mpiad Of 1904 all the
places were won by Americans, there
being no foreign opposition worth
while. The winner, T. j. Hicks of
Boston, won over wretched course
in the unavohlably slow time of 3
hours % minutes 50 seconds.
Once again the event was held on
the original course at Athens in 1908,
and, though the Americans made
good fight, fist place went to Sher-
ring Of Canada. w. g. Frank of the
Irish-American Athletic club was
third in. Sherrings time was 2 hours
81 minutes 2s. 3-5 seconds. Outside OF
some minor Marathons, such as at
Boston, st. Louis and other places.
this brings the history Of the race to
the present.
As q distance man anywhere from
two to ten miles Hayes was slow and
never figured In the front brigade.
But he had plenty of stamina, and
whenever he did run any long dis
tance It was noticed that he finished
fresh and In good shape. This led
to the belief that he was cut out for
Marathon runner. and his friends ad-
vised him to go for the Boston race
two years ago He was duly entered
by the St Bartholomew's club, Of