The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1918-01-22
TRACK ATHLET TES
HAVE RECORDED
4 BIG ADVANCE.
Records Cut Down Since The
Organization OF a. A. U.
in Eighties.
ALL CLASSES III GAINS

tBy Associated Press TO Tie Hauue-I
NEW YORK. Jan. 1s-Thc remark
able advance made in track and field
athletics by American performers in
recent years is s,rikingly demonstrat.
ed by the latest charts Of the Anna
teur Athletic union With tho OK
ception OF two or three events. the
records show that almost every stan.
dard contest has repeatedly been
hettered during the period since the
early eighties when the \. A. t. was
organized.
The loo-yard dash record was cu-
down 20 Of a second in a trife less
'than 80 years Between 1855 and
1918 it was broken twice and 10 less
than II sprinter. participated in
breaking or tying the time In the
900 dash - of o second was lorped
off the time in a similar period, the
record being broken twice and eight
runners receiving credit for excced.
ing or equalling the previous clock
ing. The quarter mile event is one
Ct the exceptions to the general rule
Wendell Baker ran the 440 yards in
47S4 seconds in 1885 and in 1890 Max
ey Long reduced the time to - sec.
Onds fiat. Since that date no spriuter
has ever eCualled this performance.
Coming to the longer distance, the
half mile run has been hettered two
times, 3'2 seconds having bcna cut
OFF the time made by Lon Myers iU
1855. This time was lowered twice
and four athletes are credited with
tying Or breaking the record. In the
mile run s ~ seconds marks the i'm.
proyement. W. G.. George ran the
distance in 1882 in ~ - and in
turn Tommy Conner. John Paul
Jones and Norman Tabcr each clip
ped the time until. at present il
stands at i12 b. The five mile rec
, ord ha- been broken three times and
equalled once since 1857 and the to-
tai gain amounts to - - seconds.
The ten mile run shows Il gain OF
LOO - seconds since 1886, tine rec
ord Of that date having been bcttered
three tines.
In the hurdle race - second +;
marks the gain over tho 12o-yard
fight In 1891 II. l.. Williams did
Il 40 seconds and in 1916 r. Simp-
son established the present figures of
II 81. During these % years the rec
ord was broken four times and ,isd
four times At 220 yards The gain
amounts 10 a full second. This sec
ond was cut off by A. c. Kraerzlain
in 1S9S and has been tied twice but
never beaten. The one mile walk has
leen improved to the extent OF >
seconds since "Cinders" Murray step
PED the distance in minutes % 3.5
seconds in 1883. II was not until
1911. however, that George Gculding,
the Canadian walker. heel-and-tood
the distance in 62S and no ether per.
former has eQualled those figures
since.
The field events also afford some
remarkable examples Of the improve
ment in athletic competition, The
running high jump has been moved
up 5-16 inches since 1881 when W
r. Page cleared 6 fl in. Eddie
Bepson holds the record at present
with t feet : JIG inches, but in the
intervening time Mike Sweeney
ard George HORNE held the
figures of their day thus proving lac
tors in the climb of the jumpers. The
broad jump shows an improvement OF
it. ~ in. In 1856 the figures stood
at % It. in. made by Malcolm Ford
and between that date and Meyer
Brimsteins record leap OF ~ #. ~
in, the records We're hrCJ.en five
times hy four different broad jump
ers. The hop, step and jump shows
4 gain OF It. glt in. between lSNl
and l9l1 when the existing figure
were established by Dan Ahearn.
The pole vauiters also kept raisina
the bar steadily from the day when
Hugh Baxter did II II. > in. in 1857
Mark Wright now holds the record
. -, - Ia, fgFfa "a