Sport: Three for Four

All last week, Red Army athletes prepped diligently for a Big Four track meet in Berlin’s Olympic Stadium. Then, just before they were to step on the field against British, French and U.S. Army men, loudspeakers blared: “The Russian team … is not participating.” There was no official explanation. Unofficial explainers held that the Russians had merely made a belated discovery : that they would not have a chance, except possibly in the weight events.

Shorn of the Russians, the meet went on, with newsreel cameras grinding from what once was Hitler’s private box. The best performance was a 6 ft. 4 3/10 in. high jump by Sergeant Pete Watkins, ex-Texas A & M, who also won the no-meter high hurdles in 15.3 sec. The score: U.S. 94, Britain 43, France 25.