Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-02-04
u. S. Four-Man Team Third
As Swiss Win BobsIeddinq
Red Skiers Take
Relay; Americans
Beaten in Hockey

l
Feb. 4 R.-Franz Kapus,
nerveless, 46-year-old. Swiss
chauffeur who broke his back in
a race here two years ago, drove
Switzerland to the four-man
bobsled championships and a
Russian quartet ended q 81
year-old Scandinavian monopoly
by winning the 40 : kilometer
cross-country ski relay cham
pionShip today.
These were the highfghts of
the early program of the next
| to last day of these seventh
Winter Dlympics. Chief Ameri-
can interest, however, was CEN
tered in the battle for the hockey
championship with unbeaten
Russia (4-0). the United States
GID and Canada's pre-games
Ifavorites (3-1) in contention.
Russia took the undisputed
lead last night by banking the
surprising United States team,
40.
Russians Meet Canada
In the final key games tonight
Russia collded with Canada
$3.50 pm. EST with the Soviets
needing only a tie or a close,
losing game to clinch the cham
pionship for their most aston
fishing triumph Of the Red
dominated spectacle. The only
hope for the Yanks was big
Canadian victory and an even
bigger United States win over
Czechoslovakia (l-3) in an earlier
game Il pm. EST.
II the three teams should wind
up in tie at Al each, the team
with the biggest spread between
goals scored and goals scored
! against. will win the title. Russia
has an 18-goal spread with 1875.
Canada has IA spread with 80
9 and the United States is third
with a nine-goal spread on l7-8.
Kapus, a burly veteran Of Is
years of bobsledding, announced
his retirement Immediately after
his victory on the dangerous,
lhole-pocked, ice glazed Mount
Tofana chute.
| The ruddy-faced, 6-footer who
drives cars for a living and a
!, sled for thrills, almost didn't
! make the final fourth run today
because he said four big gouges
in the curves had made the mile
long chute so dangerous some
body might get killed"
Bronze Medals for U. S.
I He said that. after shattering
his own. 24-hour record for the
hazardous descent with a dazzl-
ing time of l:l7.09. Then he went
down again in 1:18.16 for four
heat total Of 5:10.44.
/ The United States No. sled,
lpiloted by Art Tyler, 40-year-old
Rochester, N, Y, physicist, cap
tured third place and bronze
medals for the four men, with a
total 5:12.39. Tyler steered his
istreamlined sled to two runs Of
I1:18.25 and 1:18.52 today.
Italy's Eugenio Month was sec
Iond with 5:12.l0. Thus the 90
year-old Italian won his second
silver medal of the games, He
WAS second to another Italian.
Lamberto Dalla Costa. in the
two-man title chase.
i Another Swiss sled was fourth,
the No. Italian sled was fifth
. and Germany's No. l sled was
] sixth.
/ The second United States
sled. steered by veteran Jim
Bickford Of Saranac Lake, N. Y,
was far back in 10Th place.
i hedS Get Big Lead
/ The grim-faced Russian skiers
jumped off to a big lead of 2
minutes, IS seconds for the first
half of the cross-country race
and then fought off a Finnish
Surge to become the first male
Enon-Scandinavians ever to win
long ski race. The Russians were
timed in 2 hours, 1880.
/ Finland was second, Sweden
! third and Norway fourth. The
United States was far back in
this grind of IS miles in which
each Of the four skiers Travelled
1914 miles through the hills and
Idales of the pine studded AM
Ipezzo Valley.
The Russian skiing victory in
creased their total in the un-
official team rankings to Ill,
with Austria still second with
1854 points. Sweden is third
with 81, while Switzerland
Jumped from seventh to fourth
on the strength of its bobsled-
ding with 54l2 points. Finland
lis fifth with 81, followed by the
United States, 49h2, and Nor
way, At.
Windup Tomorrow
The seventh winter games
come to their spectacular climax
tomorrow in the ski-jumping
contest down the $350,000 Italia
slope, with high American hopes
of making good showing.
A crowd of $4,000 is expected
to gather on the sides of the
slopes Beneath the lavish cement
tower with its elevator for con-
Itestants.
The Firms are the favorites in
the games last event, but the
Norwegians and Russians have
also looked good.
Il wouldn't want to say we can
win a medal, but in my opinion
this is the strongest jumping
team we ever had" said Art
iDevlin of Lake Placid, N. Y,
the 33-year-old veteran who has
made the Olympic ski squad four
times. At the games four years
ago in Oslo he placed 18th.
Devlin will compete along with
Willis Olson, Denver, Colo; Rich