Plodders' Plight

If the loneliness of the long-distance runner is poignant, consider the ostracism of the long-distance walker. These stiff-legged striders, who have competed in the Olympics since 1908, are facing their last stride for the gold. The International Olympic Committee recently dropped the 50-kilometer walk from future Games and scheduled one last 20-kilometer walk in 1976. The awkward walkers, say officials, create traffic problems as they fan out through city streets. Moreover, referees despair of ever properly policing the prescribed form (one foot must always be in contact with the ground, one knee must not bend at a certain moment of the stride) over a long course. Now the walkers are organizing a campaign to save the walk. "We realize it will be a long plod," admits John Lees of the British Race Walking Association. "But we are used to long plods."

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