The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-01-18
Making Germans Into World Beaters

Copyright, 1914 by Curtis Brown.)
~ ERLIN, January -(SpeeiaD-Carl
Diem, secretary general of the 1916
Olympic games, says that Ger
many is the eve of sport craze.
This has been brought on by recent sue
cesses in swimming, rowing, and lawn
tennis; by the approach Of the first Ger
nan Olympiar. and by the opening dur
ing the Kaiser Jubilee celebration of Pro-
fessor Marchs stadium in the Grunewald,
which Alvin Kranenzlein, the German
American who Is training native candi-
dates for the Olympic games, admits
heats anything in America or elsewhere.
Also the German imperial committee for
the Olympic games is doing good pro-
pagsndizing work, and showing the av-
erage sceptical German what splendid
sport material is being wasted owing to
lack of judges who can discover II, ana
trainers who can turn 1t to account. The
Olympic committee is under the patronage
OF the crown prince. 1t is well backed
by the imperial government, which will
give it considerable subsidiary This
government attitude is something new,
for until late years the Prussian official
distrusted all physical exercise except
gymnastics, and little farther back he
distrusted even gymnastics and regarded
the first gymnast associations as revolu-
tionary clubs. Now the other extreme
has been reached, for government Of
ficia, lately stated publicly that sport is
useful because 1t distracts the young
mind from socialistic politics.
Minister of Education Trott Won Solz
is now preparing circular to the uni
versites in which he calls for more
80 participation in athletics and sport
THIS new move is inspired by Kraenzlein.
If the circualr has any effect on the uni
-.s- "A k1..t fv~,x~
manys chances in the Olympic games,
as at present athletics and games are en-
saged in mostly by the clerk and junior
salary-e earning class whose members have
not enough free time and resources to
&c in for special training. However, even
without that German sport interests are
looking up Diem thinks that Germany
may rise from the fifth place to the third
In 1912 at Stockholm she gained only AZ
points and was beaten by little Finland
which gained 4s as well as by the three
leading nations, America, Sweden and
Great Britain.
The German state also is encouraging
sport In the army and navy, and thereby
every year turning into civilian life thou
sards of young sportsmen, athletes and
game players. So far the army and navy
authorities have concentrated on Rugby
football of the English kind Rugby foot
rail has made tremendous progress. Thir-
Teen years ago, wehn the imperial foot
paii association was formed, only 90 CLUBS
couiu be found In al 1.-The empire. Now
tnere are over 1000 clubs with 170,0 MEM
rers. The state is partly responsible.
Lately the commander of a Saxon army
corps issued regulation saying that
1ootpaH is the best physical training
icr recruits because 1t admirably sup
piements their military drill" Even
greater zeal to spread football exists in
,ne navy. The movement was started
ry the Kaiser's brother. Prince Henry
or Prussia. who gave 1 football chal-
lcnge cup, which is held at present by
the crew of the dreadnaught, '.Posen."
Grand Admiral Koestcr who is now chief
Of the navy league. also pushed football
n the fleet. and he was supported by
Grand Admiral Tirpitz, the minister CT
marine Today football il compulsory for
ships boys. In the battlcship fleet boys
aget between Is and IS arc divided into
five divisions each numbering 10, who