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Walter Hummel (athlete)

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Hummel in 1916

Walter Alvoid "Walt" Hummel (June 19, 1892 – May 1978) was an American track and field athlete. He was United States champion in the 440 yd hurdles in 1916.

Biography

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Hummel was born in Portland, Oregon on June 19, 1892,[1] and represented the Multnomah Athletic Club.[1] He took up track and field as a school boy and competed in a wide variety of events, including sprints, hurdles, jumps and throws, but he never tried his eventual specialty, the 440 yd (402.3 m) hurdles, until July 1915.[1] He had no coach, but self-developed an efficient hurdling technique resembling that of champion hurdler Robert Simpson.[1]

Hummel was selected as captain of the Multnomah A. C.'s track and field team in 1916.[2] That year he emerged as a serious challenger to world record holder Bill Meanix, who until then had been America's top 440 yd hurdler.[3] At the 1916 national championships Hummel first won the junior 440 yd hurdles, running a junior meeting record of 56.4 (the junior championships were not yet limited to athletes aged under 20).[1][4][5] The following day he also won the senior title, defeating Meanix; Meanix went out hard and led for much of the way, but Hummel caught him and won by two yards.[6] Hummel's winning time of 54.8 was a meeting record, and only 0.2 seconds off Meanix's world record.[6][7] Meanix beat him in 55.0 in a rematch the following week; Hummel had been ready to finish his season and asked for the rematch to be canceled, but was eventually persuaded to run.[8][9] Despite losing the rematch Hummel was named by the AAU as the year's top 440 yd hurdler, ahead of Meanix.[10]

United States joined World War I in 1917, and Hummel enlisted in the United States Army.[11] Like a number of other top athletes, he obtained a leave of absence to compete in the 1917 national championships;[12] he was one of three favorites for the 440 yd hurdles title, the others being Meanix and newcomer Floyd Smart.[13] However, he was sick before the meet and his training had been very limited,[14][15] and he placed third as Smart equaled his meeting record.[7][16] During the war he was a sergeant with the 364th Field Hospital Company[17][18] and assisted Simpson as a military track and field coach at Camp Lewis.[19]

Hummel later ran a hardware store in Eugene, Oregon, with baseball player Joe "Flash" Gordon as one of his business partners.[20][21]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Remarkable Rise of W.A.Hummel, Western Lad Who Won Two Titles" (PDF). Brooklyn Daily Eagle. January 7, 1917. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  2. ^ "Hummel Is Captain" (PDF). The Oregonian. March 6, 1916. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  3. ^ Jukola, Martti (1935). Huippu-urheilun historia (in Finnish). Werner Söderström Osakeyhtiö.
  4. ^ "Junior Title Meet Easy For N.Y.A.C." (PDF). The New York Times. September 9, 1916. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
  5. ^ Loomis, Jo Gilbert (August 5, 1915). "Great Interest Shown in Meets at Frisco Fair". Chicago Daily Tribune. Retrieved November 24, 2014.
  6. ^ a b "Bronder Makes Record Heave On First Attempt" (PDF). Brooklyn Daily Eagle. September 10, 1916. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
  7. ^ a b Mallon, Bill; Buchanan, Ian; Track & Field News. "A History Of The Results Of The National Track & Field Championships Of The USA From 1876 Through 2011". Track & Field News. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  8. ^ "Brundage Holds All-Round Title". The Boston Globe. September 17, 1916. p. 15. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
  9. ^ "Live Tips and Topics". The Boston Globe. September 19, 1916. p. 6. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
  10. ^ "All-American Field And Track Team Is Selected". The Cornell Daily Sun. January 2, 1917. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  11. ^ "Enlisted Man at American Lake Asks Furlough to Save Record". Tacoma Times. August 2, 1917. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
  12. ^ "Kelly Is To Compete In The A.A.U. Games". The Washington Post. August 24, 1917. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  13. ^ "New England Will Have Five Champions In Fight For National A. A. U. Titles". August 31, 1917. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  14. ^ Binswanger, Alvin Otto (1921). Chronological History of the 364th Field Hospital Company. 364th Field Hospital Publication Committee. p. 11.
  15. ^ Goodwin, Earl R. (March 31, 1919). "Multnomah May Be Represented Abroad". The Oregonian. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  16. ^ "B. A. A. Third in Senior Events". The Boston Globe. September 2, 1917. p. 13. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  17. ^ "Hard Training Soon". The Oregonian. April 7, 1918. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  18. ^ "Oregon Boy Tells Of Adventure In Crossing The Piave". The Oregonian. February 9, 1919. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  19. ^ "Bayonet Combat Soldiers' Sport". Bakersfield Morning Echo. March 10, 1918. p. 12. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  20. ^ "Joe Gordon Lands Steelheads". Santa Cruz Sentinel. February 7, 1947. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  21. ^ Strite, Dick (October 7, 1948). "Meet Joe (Flash) Gordon, Eugene's World Series Vet". Eugene Register-Guard. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
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