UNITED KINGDOM; DAVID BEDFORD OF BRITAIN STAGES COMEBACK IN 10,000 METRES EVENT AT AAA CHAMPIONSHIPS.

Record ID: 190109

  • Title: UNITED KINGDOM; DAVID BEDFORD OF BRITAIN STAGES COMEBACK IN 10,000 METRES EVENT AT AAA CHAMPIONSHIPS.
  • Date: 12th July 1974
  • Summary: 1. GV Crystal Palace track - 100 metres start, with Williams winning 0.16 2. LV Williams (centre, No.29) and other placegetters walking along track 0.22 3. GV Crowd 0.26 4. GV Start of 10,000 metres 0.48 5. LV Officials 0.50 6. LV Bedford (in second place) and others through rain drenched track 1.09 7. GV Bedford overtaking leader (14) in last lap... through to finish, with Bedford winning and gesturing to Press box 2.00 Initials OS/024 OS/037 SPORT: ATHLETICS Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 27th July 1974 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
  • City:
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Reuters ID: LVA8VAFCYJWXUQWXYNHE2T5QXK0X
  • Story Text: World record holder David Bedford, of Britain, bounced back into winning form at the AAA Championships at the Crystal Palace London on Friday night (12 July). Bedford, the world record holder, won the 10,000 metres - and that was the only surprise of the evening.

    Bedford took four months off, after a disappointing performance at the Commonwealth Games in New Zealand last January. He was coaxed by friends to compete in the championships and decided to do so only on Thursday night (11 July).

    Bedford departed from his usual style and settled back with the pack. He shot to the lead with only 300 metres to go. His final time of 28 minutes, 14.8 seconds was his best in Britain this year but well outside his world record of 27 minutes, 30 seconds. That time was set at the championships last year, when Bedford led all the way.

    Britons Bernio Ford, Tony Simmons and Jim Brown took the next three places and Belgium's Gaston Roelants was fifth.

    In the 100 metres, Steve Williams from the United States, won his heat in a time of 10.6 seconds, outside the world record of 9.9 seconds, which he equalled recently. Williams, described as the fastest man in the world, hopes to break the record during the championships, but that is expected to depend on weather conditions. The finals will be conducted on Saturday afternoon (13 July).

    SYNOPSIS: The Crystal Palace athletics track in London on Friday evening...the AAA championships....and the start of the first one hundred metres heat, which was run in dark, drizzling conditions.

    The event was won by Steve Williams from the United States, who has equalled the world record. His heat time....ten point six seconds.

    The only real surprise of the evening came in the ten thousand metres. In the field, Britain's Dave Bedford, the controversial world record holder, who won the event last year. Bedford took four months off competition after his dismal showing in the Commonwealth Games last January. He decided to compete in AAA titles only on Thursday.

    Bedford departed from his usual race strategy...and was content to settle back in the field for the first stage of the race.

    However, with only three hundred metres to go, he applied the pressure and shot to the lead.

    Bedford's time was twenty-eight minutes fourteen point eight seconds, well outside his record time of twenty-seven point three-on. Back in winning form, Bedford was jubilant...and he expressed his feelings...by gesture...to newsmen in the Press box.
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