Polytechnic Marathon

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Polytechnic Marathon
Polystart1967.jpg
Start of the 1967 Polytechnic Marathon at Windsor Castle
LocationLondon
Distancemarathon
Established1909
Last held1996

The Polytechnic Marathon, often called the Poly, was a marathon held annually between 1909 and 1996, over various courses in or near London. It was the first marathon to be run regularly over the distance of 26 miles, 385 yards which is now the global standard. A total of eight world marathon bests were set in the Poly, including the first authenticated time under 2 hours, 20 minutes which had been regarded as the marathon equivalent of the four-minute mile. At the time of its demise in 1996, the Poly was Europe's oldest regular marathon. It had seen more world records and had been run over 42.195 kilometres (26.219 mi) more often than any other marathon.

Contents

Origin

The Polytechnic Marathon had its origins in the marathon of the 1908 Summer Olympics, held in London. This race was organised by the Polytechnic Harriers, the athletics club of the London Polytechnic at Regent Street (now the University of Westminster). In those days, there was no set distance for the marathon; it was simply a long race, around 40 km (25 mi) in length. The Polytechnic Harriers decided to start the Olympic marathon in front of the Royal apartments at Windsor Castle and end it on the track at White City Stadium in front of the Royal Box, a distance that turned out to be 26 miles, 385 yards.

There was immense public interest in the 1908 Olympic race, with its dramatic finish in which Dorando Pietri of Italy entered the stadium well clear of the field and staggered around the last lap to the finish line—only to be disqualified for receiving assistance. Building on this interest, The Sporting Life newspaper offered a magnificent trophy [1] for an annual international marathon that would be second in importance only to the Olympic event itself. The Polytechnic Harriers were again asked to organise the event, and the Polytechnic Marathon was born.

Early races

The first Polytechnic Marathon was held on 8 May 1909. [2] Henry Barrett won, followed by Fred Lord, and Harry Green. [2]

As with the Olympic race, the start was at Windsor Castle and the course was 26 miles, 385 yards; this distance was adopted as the international standard for marathons in 1924. (The older Boston Marathon, founded in 1897, adopted the 42.195-kilometre (26.219 mi) distance in 1924, but was slightly short for the first three years and was shorter still from 1951 to 1956. [3] )

Over the years, the route of the Poly Marathon varied. From 1909 until 1932, it ended at Stamford Bridge in west London; then in 1933, it moved back to the White City stadium, where the 1908 Olympic marathon had finished. From 1938, the race ended at the new Polytechnic Harriers stadium in Chiswick, west London. It was on this course that Jim Peters, the greatest marathoner of his day, broke the 2 hours and 20 minutes barrier in 1953. Even more remarkably, remeasurement showed the course to have been about 150 yards too long.

In 1961, The Sporting Life withdrew its sponsorship, having ceased to report on athletics. A new sponsor was found in the form of confectionery company Callard and Bowser; and in the next few years, the race went from strength to strength, with a succession of world records (see table).

Decline and fall

By 1970, the Polytechnic Harriers and the Poly Marathon were in decline. Traffic problems made it difficult to continue with the Windsor-to-Chiswick route, and from 1973 until 1992, the race was restricted to the Windsor area. Performances declined, and so did the status of the Poly Marathon. With the introduction of mass marathons and big-money events elsewhere, the Poly Marathon could not compete.

There were organizational changes, too. In 1985, the Polytechnic Harriers merged with Kingston AC and moved in with them at Kingsmeadow Stadium in Kingston, Surrey. Some ex-Polytechnic Harriers remained at the Polytechnic sports ground in Hartington Road, Chiswick, where they formed a new club—West 4 Harriers—which was to become involved with the Polytechnic Marathon some years later.

Management of the race passed to the London Road Runners Club (LRRC) for 1986 and 1987, but the LRRC then folded. After a four-year gap, the race was revived in 1992 by Capital Road Runners (an even shorter-lived successor to LRRC) in conjunction with West 4 Harriers. A revised route was introduced, from Windsor to the Polytechnic stadium at Chiswick, recalling the event's former glory days.

From 1993 to 1995, the Poly Marathon was organised by a group from West 4 Harriers. In 1996, responsibility passed to a commercial events organiser, but increased traffic and other difficulties made it impossible to keep the race going beyond 1996.

World records

World records set in the Polytechnic Marathon. [4]

DateAthleteTime
1909 May 8 (see note 1) Henry Barrett (GBR)2:42:31.0
1913 May 31 Alexis Ahlgren (SWE)2:36:06.6
1952 June 14 Jim Peters (GBR)2:20:42.2
1953 June 13Jim Peters (GBR)2:18:40.2 (see note 2)
1954 June 26Jim Peters (GBR )2:17:39.4
1963 June 15 Leonard "Buddy" Edelen (USA)2:14:28
1964 June 13 Basil Heatley (GBR)2:13:55.0
1965 June 12 Morio Shigematsu (JPN)2:12:00.0

Note 1: Date wrongly given as 26 May in some sources. Note 2: Distance measured as 42.337 km.

Past winners

Men

YearWinnerClubTimeNotes
1909 Henry Barrett Polytechnic Harriers 2.42.31WR
1910 No race owing to the death of HM The King
1911 Harry Green Herne Hill Harriers 2.46.29 & 4/5ths
1912 Canadian Red Ensign (1868-1921).svg Jim Corkery Canada2.36.55 & 2/5ths
1913 Flag of Sweden.svg Alexis Ahlgren Sweden2.36.06 & 3/5thsWR
1914 Flag of France.svg Ahmed Djebellia France2.46.30 & 4/5ths
1915-1918 No races during World War I
1919 Edward Woolston Machine Gun Corps2.52.30 & 1/5th
1920 Bobby Mills Leicester H2.37.40 & 2/5ths
1921 Bobby Mills Leicester H2.51.00 & 2/5ths
1922 Bobby Mills Leicester H2.47.30 & 2/5ths
1923 Flag of Denmark.svg Axel Jensen Denmark2.40.46 & 4/5ths
1924 Flag of Scotland.svg Dunky Wright Scotland2.53.17 & 2/5ths
1925 Ulster Banner.svg Sam Ferris Royal Air Force2.35.58 & 1/5th
1926 Ulster Banner.svg Sam Ferris Royal Air Force2.42.24 & 1/5th
1927 Ulster Banner.svg Sam Ferris Royal Air Force2.40.32 & 1/5th
1928 Ulster Banner.svg Sam Ferris Royal Air Force2.41.02 & 1/5th
1929 Ulster Banner.svg Sam Ferris Royal Air Force2.40.47 & 2/5ths
1930 Stanley Smith Birchfield Harriers 2.41.55
1931 Ulster Banner.svg Sam Ferris Royal Air Force2.35.31 & 4/5ths
1932 Ulster Banner.svg Sam Ferris Royal Air Force2.36.32 & 2/5ths
1933 Ulster Banner.svg Sam Ferris Royal Air Force2.42.24
1934 Flag of Scotland.svg Dunky Wright Scotland2.56.30
1935 Bert Norris Polytechnic Harriers 2.48.37
1936 Bert Norris Polytechnic Harriers2.35.20
1937 Bert Norris Polytechnic Harriers2.48.40
1938 Flag of Sweden.svg Henri Palme Sweden2.42.00
1939 Flag of Sweden.svg Henri Palme Sweden2.36.56
1940 Leslie Griffiths Herne Hill Harriers 2.53.41
1941 Gerry Humphreys Woodford Green AC 3.12.36
1942 Leslie Griffiths Reading AC 2.53.56
1943 Leslie Griffiths Reading AC2.53.14
1944 Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Tom Richards Mitcham AC 2.48.45
1945 Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Tom Richards Mitcham AC2.56.39
1946 Harry Oliver Reading AC2.38.12
1947 Cecil Ballard Surrey AC 2.36.52
1948 Jack Holden Tipton Harriers 2.36.44
1949 Jack Holden Tipton Harriers2.42.52
1950 Jack Holden Tipton Harriers2.33.07
1951 Jim Peters Essex Beagles 2.29.24
1952 Jim Peters Essex Beagles2.20.42WR
1953 Jim Peters Essex Beagles2.18.40WR
1954 Jim Peters Essex Beagles2.17.39WR
1955 Bill McMinnis Royal Air Force2.36.23
1956 Ron Clark Herne Hill Harriers 2.20.16
1957 Eddie Kirkup Rotherham H2.37.04.4
1958 Colin Kemball Wolverhampton H2.22.27
1959 Flag of Ireland.svg Denis O'Gorman St Albans AC2.25.11
1960 Arthur Keily Derby & County AC2.19.06
1961 Peter Wilkinson Derby & County AC2.20.25
1962 Ron Hill Bolton United AC2.20.59
1963 Flag of the United States.svg Buddy Edelen Hadleigh Olympiads AC & USA2.14.28WR
1964 Basil Heatley Coventry Godiva Harriers 2.13.55WR
1965 Flag of Japan.svg Morio Shigematsu Japan2.12.00WR
1966 Graham Taylor Cambridge Harriers2.19.04
1967 Flag of Scotland.svg Fergus Murray Oxford University AC2.19.06
1968 Flag of Japan.svg Kenji Kimihara Japan2.15.15
1969 Phil Hampton Royal Navy AC South2.25.22
1970 Don Faircloth Croydon Harriers 2.18.15
1971 Phil Hampton Royal Navy AC South2.18.31
1972 Don Faircloth Croydon Harriers2.31.52
1973 Robert Sercombe Newport H2.19.48
1974 Flag of Japan.svg Akio Usami Japan2.15.16
No race in 1975
1976 Bernie Plain Cardiff AAC 2.15.43
1977 Ian Thompson Luton AC2.14.32
1978 David Francis Westbury H2.19.05
1979 Mike Gratton Invicta AC2.19.53
1980 Tony Byrne Salford Harriers 2.22.23
1981 Bernie Plain Cardiff AAC 2.24.07
1982 Graham Ellis Holmfirth H2.23.28
1983 Alan McGee Southampton & Eastleigh AAC 2.22.55
1984 David Catlow Cheltenham H2.26.02
1985 Terry Donaghy London Road Runners2.33.02
1986 Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Hugh Jones Ranelagh H2.26.11
1987 Mick McGeoch Les Croupiers2.28.49
No races from 1988 to 1991
1992 Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Hugh Jones Ranelagh H2.22.58
1993 Jonathan Hooper Bridgend AC2.25.55
1994 Chris Buckley Westbury H2.21.57
1995 Flag of Russia.svg Valery Zolotkov Russia2.20.46
1996 Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Marc Verrdytt Belgium2.23.43

Women

YearWinnerClubTimeNotes
1978 Gillian Adams Aldershot, Farnham & District AC 2.54.11
1979Jane DaviesEpsom & Ewell H3.21.23
1980 Gillian Adams Aldershot, Farnham & District AC2.45.11
1981Caroline Rodgers Highgate Harriers 2.51.03
1982 Kath Binns Sale Harriers 2.36.12
1983Val HoweBracknell AC3.05.39
1984Sarah FosterWoking AC2.50.00
1985Pamela Davies Belgrave Harriers 3.22.28
1986Frances GuyBelgrave Harriers2.51.15
1987Christine GrayPortsmouth J3.18.50
No races from 1988 to 1991
1992Karen BowlerHailsham H3.08.28
1993Elaine FlatherSouthampton RRC2.51.21
1994Elaine FlatherSouthampton RRC2.51.51
1995Eryl DaviesBridgend AC2.49.23
1996Helen Grimshaw Hounslow AC 2.57.56

References

  1. "The (sometimes) vexed history of the Sporting Life marathon trophy" . Retrieved 28 September 2018.
  2. 1 2 Lambie, James (2010). "A Marathon Trophy". The Story of Your Life: A History of the Sporting Life Newspaper (1859–1998. Leicester, UK: Troubadour Publishing Ltd. pp. 276–278. ISBN   978-1-84876-291-6 . Retrieved 29 September 2011.
  3. "Permanent Course Records". Archived from the original on 3 August 2004.
  4. The Polytechnic Marathon 1909–1996 by Ian Ridpath