The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-03-02
SWIFT SWEDES
 ARRIVE IN USA;
 RUN SATURDAY
Ny OSCAR FRALEY

United Press Stan COrrespondent)
 New York, March 2.-tUP)- tance runner Qunder Hagg, the Swede with the wide stride, got busy belatedly today on his project to set new indoor world mile record after a stormy voyage across the Atlantic which took only l3 days less than the trip by Christopher Columbus to discover America.
 Hagg, who has acquired a speak ing knowledge of English md con- geniality which he lacked on his trip in l943, arrived last night with murder Haakon Lidman in a con- voy which was underway for g days. Despite obvious weariness, both met the press in an hour-long conference in which they announced that they would compete in the in- tercollegiate AA.AA. games at Madison Square Garden Saturday night.
 Tt was yer bad journey and I'm not surprised it took us almost as long as 1t did Columbus" Hagg said We haven't trained since we had a chance to work out at Hyde Park in London and I hope the American public will forgive us if we don't do too well against your competition Saturday night"
 Hagg asked to compete in the two mile race which he said would re- quire less conditioning,
 Informed that there was no two mile race on the program, Hagg said, "Okay, fine, will run in the mile, but I think not can beat Jimmy Ra 'ferty."
 Rafferty, New York Athletic club distance star, is the best of the competing crop of milers. He won the National AA.U. mile here last week with a time of 4:l75.
 Hagg said he would work out to- day and tomorrow on outdoor col- lege tracks here and that he would try the boards at the Garden Sat- urday morning. It will be his first experience on an indoor track.
 The lanky runner expressed keen disappointment that Gil Dodds, the Boston TheologIan, would not be on hand to compete against him. Dodds, who holds the world indoor mile record Of 4:06.4, retired from running to conduct a preaching tour.
 He was my best friend in Amer lea, l will miss him much," Hagg asid. He would give me real test"
 Hagg said he had mo talk" about the possibility of marriage to Dor- othy Nortier, the pretty waitress in her fathers restaurant in Piedmont, Cal, whom he courted on his 1943 tour of America. He indicated that he might not even get to see her, since he is booked for appearances at indoor meets in the east until March g, and has been told by his employer, Sure Ohlsson, a Malmoe haberdasher, that he will lose his job as salesman unless he returns by April IS.
 The athletes have been booked tentatively or an outdoor meet at San Francisco on April 2. out Hagg said he doubted if he could take that in. Lidman, however, intends to remain through most of the the outdoor season.
 Comparison
 Hagg holds the fastest time ever marked up for mile in America, a 4:05.3 race which he ran at Har- yards stadium in Cambridge, Mass, in 1943. However, his countryman and colleague, Arne Anderson, set the official world record of 4:02.6 while Hagg was in the U. s. in l943. Last year Anderson lowered that mark to 4:0l.6 and Hagg tied An- ders2.'3 old time of 4:02.6 in teh same race. Those marks have not been given official recognition, however.
 Hagg, who probably will compete in the two mile after Saturday, holds the world outdoor record of 8.428 set last August. Lidnan, Swedish l00-meter high hurdle champion, has topped the timbers in Al, better than the time of any of the Americans who will compete against him.
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