The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-03-27
MEL SHEPPAn:HS
 WILL SOON 5E
 BACK ON BOARD
Popular Runner Will Be Dis charged From the Army
 Probably Next Week.
LATE ATHLETIC GOSSIP.

A. 4. II. Officials Kept Busy Sanctioning Meets Through out COuntry-Other News. Mel Shepard, the former Olympic champion middle distance champion and record holder, who has been an army athletic instructor for the past IS months at Camp Shelby, will shortly receive his discharge. Mel has not yet made up his mind what 10
 do when he is discharged.
 l Bernie Wefers. the old time sprint 1 ing king. is always an interesting feI- 1 low with whom to talk athletics Ser
 nie does not quite agree with ex-
 perts over the qualification of Murch- 1 ison as sprinter. ''Take 1t from
 me-" he said, ''the bunch will put it 1 all over him when the outdoor season gets into full swing
 1 Tommy Lennon who did such good 1 work in aviation in France last year, | expects to be in the army for a year l or so more. Lennon said he likes l army life and will stick to it for a 1 while longer.
 i Billy Williams of the Los Angeles l A C., champion diver and crack
 swimmer, now with the A F. F in i Germany, writes to his former coach, | Vance Neith, that acquattc events will | be held in connection with the in | a fT7 TOoy-iC i in June. He says he will enter several 1 of the events.
 Louis Grupp. PittsbUrgh's cham 1 plon long distance swimmer, will at
 tempt again this year to hang up a new time record for continuous
 swimming and is now in training for
 the trial in West Lake, Fairfield, 1 Ala.
 Norman Ross, worlds swimming 1 recordist from Frisco, now in Chi cago, made his first competitive ap- 1 pearance of the season last week in 1 a water carnival at the Hamilton 1 Club in the Windy City and romped 1 away with a furlong swim in 2:35 2-5 defeating his nearest opponent 1 by more than ten yards.
 Miss Ruth Thomas, an immature | miss fren Philadelphia, covered 220 yards in the very good time of 4:0f 2-5 minutes at a, recent meeting held by the Philadelphia Gymnastic So-
 ciety, according to a report that has 1 just reached this office.
 D. Bush, a crack East Orange. \.
 J.. high school runner, is expected to l enter Yale next Fall. This runner is said to be a find and New York writers have written columns about
 him. His work in the Central High l School games in Newark Saturday surprised many of the veterans. He won the mile, tnterscholastie cham pionship event without any trouble. Word has Just been received here
 that the new Pershing Stadium at
 JoinviIIe, France, has been conplet-
 ed and will be ready for the big in ter-Auied Olympic games in June.
 The stadium Is a cement structure , which has cost the United States Government about $100,oOO and is
 rated as the finest athletic arena in
 France.
 The three-quarter mile handicap
 run promises to be the big event at
 the welcome home athletic carnival that the PauIist 4. C. of New York . will hold tomorrow night. Among those who have entered the meet are Jack Sellers, national 60O-yard cham ! pion; Homer Baker, Newton Brown, national junior 10O0-yard champ, and Harry Wigger of the PauIist Club.
 V
 boxing tournament at Mechanics
 Building in Boston on April and s
 close next Tuesday, according to an
 nouncement made today in New YoSll
 by Secretary Fred Rubien of the A.
 A. U. The classes are 10S, 115, 125,
 1855, 145, 15S, 175 pounds and heavy
 weight.
 Practically all of the best bycycIe | riders in this section of the country
 are entered in the tEree-mile race at
 the games of the Postal Mems ath-
 Ietic carnival in New York, April 12.
 Much interest has been shown in thIs
 event.
 The Cygnet 4. c. of East Port Chester, Conn, has been granted a sanction to conduct an eight-mile road race in it's town on Saturday
 afternoon, June 21. Nearly all of the prominent long distance runners will take part in the event.
 , An official report from the A. A. U. headquarters in New York today had it that Homer Baker, of the
 Glencoe A. c. who holds the half mile championship of Great Britain, , will take part in the big British track and field championship meet in Lon , don on July 5.
 An idea of the interest being taken
 in athletics in western Pennsylvania can be obtained through the fact that 16O athletes from all parts of the
 East took part in the big Allegheny