Evening star., 1952-08-03
By MiIt Mormor
Associated Press Staff Writer

HELSINKI. Aug. 2.-Is Emil
zatopek possible?
Tens of thousands saw the in
credible Czech win the Olympic
5000 meters. then the 10000 and
climax it all by capturing the
marathon. But they may have
trouble convincing those who
were not here that it really hap
pened.
Emil, the human dynamo, did
more than exhaust his opponents.
In one unbelievable Olympic
week. he drained what cynical
souls once claimed was the in
exhaustible adjectival fount of
the sports writer's.
Who is this man who grimaces
as if he were being tortured as
he runs an easy race-easy, that,
is for this implausible human?
What manner of man is this
who decides he will run and win
the most trying of races, the
marathon, and then does so with
out sign of agony, even though
he had never run the 26 miles
385 yards before in his life?
Zatopek is 20 years old. He was
born in Koprinivice. Czechoslo-
Ivakia. He is S feet 8 inches tall
and weighs about $50 pounds. His
face is rugged but pleasantly
handsome. He has blond but
thinning hair.
Played Catch with Javelin.
His wife was so inspired by her
husband that she won the Olym-
pic women's javelin champion
ship the same day he won the S.
000-meter run. He is a staff cap
tain in the Czech Army, the equiv
alent of major in the United
States Army.
Zatopek is the same man who,
in England, while waiting for the
1948 London Olympics to start,
courted his wife, then Dana In
grova. by playing catch with her
with javelin.
Emil is the same man who would
speak volubly and pleasantly in
any Of five languages to any re-
porter who cared to question him
before the present Olympic Games
began.
Yet after he had won the mara
thon, just as he said he would, he
darted through host of reporters,
leaped into a car and went back
to camp to sleep. He didn't care to
be botherd.
zatopek is the man who during
the marathon slipped back to
Britain's Jim PeterS-holder of the
fastest known time for the dis
tance-and asked him if the pace
was proper"
Then he sped forward again.
Later in the race, he asked Peters
whether he (Zatopek) was going
too fast. He was going too fast
for the Englishman. all right.
Peters by now had developed a
cramp and soon dropped out.
Heat Turned Into Mockery.
zatopek is the runner who dur
ing a heat in the 5000. when
every one was struggling hard to
qualify. made a mockery of the
race. Emil dropped well back to
advise Curtis Stone of the United
States that he had better move up
or he would miss the bus" When
he saw Stone couldn't make it,
Zatopek shrugged his shoulders
and went back to the leaders
lgain.
This same Zatopek directed
traffic during the last lap Of that
race. He instructed the Russian
Aleksander Anoufriev. to finish
first.
9i Zatopek cracked jokes during
slthis heat and jockeyed back and
forth among the leaders and the
trailers to encourage them. egg
them on, or simply pass the time
lof day. Most of these athletes
IWere running the fastest race Of
their lives.
3 In the marathon. Zatopek
c talked to cyclists. to newsmen ir
the accompanying bus. to the
Y ylother runners-aH this in a race
S for which he was not prepared
and for which normal human.
sItear out their hearts in training
: The wonder runner happens tx
gIbe a charming pixy. He is alst
a somewhat cynical. rather bril-
clHort man whn laughs at thl