Cunningham is pleased
PATRONIZE KANSAN ADVERTISERS
Son wins, dad watches
By JERRY KLEIN Assistant Sports Editor
A cool breeze rippled the high grass surrounding the cross-country course as Glenn Cunningham Jr. stepped to the starting line in his first collegiate three-mile race Saturday.
The sky was partly cloudy above the standard six-mile course. The temperature was 52 degrees, making weather conditions far from perfect. But inclement weather did not stop about 200 people from attending the 10:30 a.m. opening of the freshman season.
Just before an official fired the starting gun, a barrel-chested man, clad in a rough tweed suit, trotted to the starting line and whispered encouragement to the five KU freshmen.
GLENN CUNNINGHAM paused a few seconds more with his son, however.
"Keep cool, get in there and run and stay up there with them," he ordered. The 18-year-old Cunningham obeyed.
During the first mile, Cunningham ran sixth and watched as teammates Roger Kathol and Paul Mattingly set a brisk pace. With little more than a half mile remaining, Cunningham, with arms swinging, stepped up the pace and passed the leaders.
AFTER REACHING that last long hill, about 330 yards from the finish, Cunningham started his kick.
The stopwatches stopped at 15.05.
He had sprinted in 25 yards and five seconds ahead of runnerup Mattingly.
Shortly after Cunningham crossed the finish line, his father
ESCAPE LESSONS
SWINDERBY, England—(UPI)
--A group of youths confined to a reformatory are to be given lessons on how to escape. An army unit here is going to teach the youths how to flee captors during wartime.
An army leader said, "They will be much too busy escaping to have time to escape."
rushed to him and said, "Very well done, your form looked okay."
WAS HE SATISFIED with his son's performance?
Cunningham simply answered,
"As long as he came in first,
that's pretty good, I guess."
The older Cunningham was used to coming in first, too. From the early 30's until he retired in 1941, Cunningham and the mile were synonymous. At the time, the major topic of conversation among track fans dealt with man's attempt to crack the four-minute mile.
FINLAND'S PAAVO Nurmi, who won four gold medals in the 1924 Olympics, generated enthusiasm when he ran a 4:10.4 mile in 1923. Eight years later, Jules Ladoumengue lowered the mile record to 4:09.2 while running in Paris.
In the same year, a sophomore at KU named Glenn Cunningham, won the NCAA mile in 4:11.1, a new American record.
His honors increased. In 1932, he was selected for the Olympic team and finished fourth in the 1500-meter race, the closest Olympic distance to the 1760-yard mile. One year later, he received the Sullivan Trophy, awarded to America's outstanding amateur athlete.
THEN IN 1934, more than 25,000 fans gathered at Princeton University and watched Cunningham set a new world record of 4:06.7, bettering the time of 4:07.6 established by New Zealand-Love Lovelack.
He held the world's record in the mile for the following three years, with no runner being able to chop more than a half second from his record time.
Cunningham finally slowed down and retired in 1941 because of leg trouble. Although his legs were seriously burned in a fire when he was younger, Cunningham says today it did not cause his retirement.
"SURE, MY LEGS bothered me through my entire track career," he said.
"Doctors told me all the time I was through. However, it was finally learned that eight abscessed teeth, where I had been hit in the mouth by a baseball
bat, caused the damage. It almost poisoned my entire system."
He claims his legs are in better shape today than they have ever been.
OF COURSE, they are not strong enough for competition. However, Cunningham must keep in perfect shape to keep up with his traveling and speaking engagements.
For the past 20 years, the Cunningham's have opened up their home in Leon for troubled children. As a result, more than 8,300 children have spent days, weeks, or months there.
When these children arrive, they are given jobs and are shown they are wanted and needed.
"THE KIDS NEED somebody to understand them, instead of a kick in the teeth," Cunningham said. Of the 18 children there now, nine are Cunningham's.
Glenn Cunningham is kept very busy trying to raise the necessary money to keep his program moving. Last weekend was one of the few times he has had a chance to watch his son run.
HE DOESN'T ENJOY watching track or ensue country meals
"I always wanted to compete," he says.
In competition, his son likes to compete too, and he is a strategist. The night before the race, the apprehensive freshman sat down and planned.
"In my mind, I ran through the course, thinking about where I would be at a certain time," he said.
ALTHOUGH HIS parents and two of his brothers were at the race, Cunningham admits he did not feel any pressure.
"I only thought about the race."
6
HAWKERS — Let us winterize your car NOW before it's too late. WE WILL:
- Check your entire cooling system
- Flush old water and anti-freeze
- Install guaranteed anti-freeze
Remember—we care about you and your car. Let our famous Phillips quality and service prove it!
Southside 66 6th & Mich.
Potter's 66 23rd & La.
Daily Kansan Thursday, October 27, 1966
Jane Fothergill Pi Beta Phi Classic Villager — Pants - Shirt - Cardigan for your casual life. 12th & Oread
Try an unconventional approach
Let the other guys in your fraternity house run after that new doll on campus. Relax, she'll pick you out from the crowd when you wear a Cricketeer Scotsweigh Tweet Sportcoat. She'll really be impressed with the great-looking Shetland fabric and the bold heather colorings. Looks like you'll be sharing her notes in no time at all.
CRICKETEER®
Scotsweigh Tweed
Sportcoat.
THE
University Shop On The Hill Town Shop
DOWNTOWN
SOLID STATE SOUND CENTERS
in Fine furniture-discriminatingly designed from
MASTERWORK a Product of COLUMBIA RECORDS
STEREOPHONIC SOLID STATE CONSOLES WITH AM-FM-FM STEREO • Solid State dual channel amplifier • 40 watt output • 6 speaker system • Solid State AM-FM-FM Stereo tuner • custom Masterwork-Garrard fully automatic changer • high compliance cartridge • diamond needle • automatic FM Stereo beacon • Automatic Frequency Control • 45 rpm Spindle included • One year Warranty on parts, labor and diamond needle.
ONE YEAR WARRANTY ON PARTS, LABOR, AND DIAMOND NEEDLE
**MASTERWORK**. MARCAS REG. Reg. $399.00
Now $339.00
RECORD DEPARTMENT