Ogden Daily Standard | 1915-08-28 | Page 2 | Alma Richards and Club Spirit

ALMA RICHARDS AND CLUB SPIRIT Utahan Will Not Compete Again for an Athletic Club Says Clubs Show Poor Sporting Spirit. Alma Richards, decathlon champion of the Amateur Athletic Union, and Olympic high jump title holder, will never compete again for an athletic club, because of the squabble-over his eligibility to compete In tho national championships at San Francisco for the Illinois Athletic Club of Chicago. Tho great jumper tind all-round ath-leto ath-leto competed under protest of tho Chicago Athletic Association, which asserted that Inasmuch as he was not :i resident of Chicago, he was ineligible inelig-ible to carry tho Illinois colors. Richards Rich-ards contended that he did not live In Chicago. The Cornell man believes track and field athletics are injured by college men competing for clubs during their vacations, and on ,thi8 subject he recently re-cently said: "I am sorry that my residence in Chicago was protested, and it only goes to show that being a club member mem-ber and also a college athlete does not always work In harmony From my point of view the club competition has not been a success, and the knocks have been more than the game is worth. "Tho college athlete shows tho proper sporting spirit, and why tho same spirit is not manifested in club circles Is beyond me It appears to mo as If clubs are too anxious to win, and try for success at cost of this spirit "I intend to devote all my future athletic ability to college competition, and after my college course, if I decide de-cide to continue in athletics, I will compete unattached. All this squabbling squab-bling over my residence does not do athletics any good."