The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1915-05-04
WILL STRIVE TO =:
BOOST SWIMMING
Hawaiian Branch Of A. A. U.
Realizes Conditions Must
Change TO Help Sport

Within the nnkt ten days, arrange.
ments win be Under way for the an
nual swimming meet OF the Hawaiian
branch Of the Amateur Athlete Union
and efforts will be made to get TO.
gether aa many of the swimmers here,
about as possible. The men handling
the swimming end Of the union here
well realize that the game has detcri-
grated during the last two years and
something must be done to bring back
the confidence of the public. In the
last meet two clubs, the Myrtles and
Hui Nalus, had entries to amount to
anything and throughout the entire
program, there was hardly a feature
to bring forth cheer. In fact he
only two real features" on the pro
gram were the diving of Miss Dorothy
Alden Becker and Cliff Bowes, who
gave an excellent exhibition of diff
cult feats. -
As the fans well remember, the Hea.
lanis withdrew at the last moment
from the meet, leaving the field clear
practically to the Hui Nalus. The COM
plant Of the Blue and White. swim.
mers was, that they had been double.
crossed regarding the diving events
and il Is the hope Of the greater major
ty of those who follow swimming, that
this event win be placed on the pro
gram at the next meet.
just what part the Hui Nalus,
Myrtles, Healanis and Outrig ger Club
will take part in the meet remains to
be seen. Outside competition, that is
a swimmer or several swimmers coming
from the Coast seems out of the ques-
ton at the present time. The big
meet at San Francisco, i'm July is too
close to our meet for any Of the con-
testants in that meet to come here and
Honolulu will have to worry along
without the mainland stars. True, loo
al fans would like to see KahanamOku
measure strides with Small who beat
him in the fifty last year and they
would also like to see Mias Ruth Stack
err swim again against uher conqueror,
Miss Dorothy Becker of San Francisco,
but both Small and thatSan Francisco
mermaid have declared that they would
only swim against the local talent in
I San Francisco, so matches between the
men and women swimmers here is out
of the question. @r.'
That the Hui Nalus will be we'll rep.
resented in the July, swimming meet at
San Francisco is assured. A meeting
of the club will be held at an early
date to discuss the plans of sending a
fast team to the meet Iaand. naturally
! Duke Kahanamoku will'Ibe the first
: man picked to go. George Cunha is al.
. so a possibility and so is young Lane,
{ who has shown great strides forward
during the last year in the swimming
gate. Whether Honolulu will send a
| woman swimmer to the mainland re.
mains to be seen but the fans are hope.
full Hawaii will be represented in the
races for the mermaids at the ExpOsi-
ton. 1t is said that the Exposition
people will make an appropriation for
woman swimmer and at the next
meeting of the A. A. U. it is possible
some action will be taken.in the mat
| ter. y en-. IS" =
/ Whether the local branch Of the A.
A. y. will make any provisions for q
! handicap race or races at the coming
, meet remains tQ,be seen but it is hoped
by followers of.the game, familiar with
I this system, thatit will be adopted
Swimming is in rut In Honolulu and
one way to bring it back is to start q
system of handicap races and the soon
er it is done the quicker will the game
get back onto the firm footing it was
/ a few years ago. ,-. g..