Russian Athletics Championship 1914

The championship was attended by 264 athletes. The tournament was remembered for its very poor organization and lack of spectator interest. The competition was accompanied by a sweltering 35-degree heat. Running disciplines passed along the track dug after the races taking place at the hippodrome; even the fact that it was rolled up and watered before the start of the races did not save. Another problem was the time limit, which was imposed on the athletes by the leadership of the arena, which led to confusion with the schedule. So, on the fourth day, the 400-meter run was postponed several times and was carried out only closer to midnight, as a result of which one of the favorites, Kiev Fuchs, refused to go to the start.

As far as possible, the organizers tried to repeat the program of the 1912 Summer Olympics . However, in a number of disciplines, the level of technical training of the participants left much to be desired. In the 3000 m walk, the first two finish participants were disqualified for running, and in the hammer throw, none of the athletes had any idea about the correct technique. According to eyewitnesses, the majority of the judges who served the competition were also unprofessional.

However, even despite such conditions, several Russian records were set. Muscovite Vasily Arkhipov scored 100.8 in the semifinals - 10.8, he also repeated the national achievement in the 200 meters race - 22.4 in the preliminary run. Johann Willemson regained the record for 1500 meters (4.16.0) and set a preliminary record for 800 m in the preliminary run - 2.02.2, and Nikolai Shvedrevits, in a bitter struggle with Nikolai Neklepayev, became the champion in javelin throwing (52.98 m). For the first time in the history of the country, Bernhardt Abrams took a height of 1.80 m, Theodors Sukatnek improved his result in discus throwing by 5 cm (41.15 m). The hosts of the competitions from Union won both relay races with Russian records. Erich Wangag set a country record in high jump from a place - 1,485.

The culmination of the championship was a marathon (running 38 miles). Due to organizational turmoil, the athletes started 1 hour late and finished already in the dark, lit only by the glow of a grandiose fire in oil depots near the hippodrome.

• Khinchuk-Mikhailova G., Seleznev V. At the beginning of the century. Last peace season: Year 1914 // Athletics. - 1991. - No. 9 (436) . - S. 22-24 .
• Russian Olympics - article from the Grand Olympic Encyclopedia ( M. , 2006)