This Day in Track & Field, May 23, Dutch Warmerdam breaks own WR in PV (1942), Daley Thompson breaks own WR in Decathlon (1982), compiled and edited by Walt Murphy

Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service  (wmurphy25@aol.com)

This Day in Track & Field–May 23

1942—Dutch Warmerdam broke his own World Record in the Pole Vault by clearing 15-7  ¾ (4.77) at the inaugural “Northern California Relays” in  Modesto, California. This would be the last WR set in the event with a bamboo pole and would last until Bob Gutowski cleared 15-8  ¼ (4.78) in 1957 with an aluminum pole.

Warmerdam’s previous official World Record was 15-5  ¾ (4.72), while a later clearance of 15-6  7/8 (4.74) was never

ratified for administrative reasons. “Dutch” originally thought he had cleared 15-8 in Modesto, but the remeasurement, after an official accidentally knocked the bar off, showed the height to be 15-7  ¾.

Once the event was over, fans reportedly stormed the field to congratulate Warmerdam and broke apart the crossbar to take home pieces as souvenirs!

WR Progression: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men’s_pole_vault_world_record_progression

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-05-04-sp-932-story.html

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDjy8OGjrp8

1964—Dyrol Burleson (4:00.2) edged Tom O’Hara (4:00.3) in an exciting Mile at the California Relays in Modesto, but the big news was the 3^rd-place finish of 17-year old Jim Ryun, a junior at Wichita East(KS) H.S., who got closer to the 4-minute barrier with his clocking of 4:01.7. Ryun had set the previous H.S. Record of 4:06.4 at the Kansas state meet the previous week.

In the pre-internet age, when results from other parts of the country weren’t instantly available, senior Gerry Lindgren (Rogers.WA) had every reason to believe he was the new high school record holder, since he had run a solo 4:06.0 on the same day at the Washington state meet in Pullman!

Ralph Boston won the Long Jump with a leap of 27-2  ½ (8.29), breaking his own American Record of 27-2 (8.28). It was the 4^th of his eventual 7 ARs.

1969—Arizona State sophomore Mark Murro threw the javelin 292-8 (89.21) at the Western Athletic Conference Championships on his home field in Tempe to break Frank Covelli’s American Record  of 284-8 (86.77).

AR Progression(metric): http://trackfield.brinkster.net/RecProg_AllUSA.asp?RecCode=WR&EventCode=MF8&Gender=M&P=F

Metric Conversion: