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Vol. XXXIV No. 7, July 16-31, 2024
When Olympians blessed a Madras stadium
Now that the Olympics are just around the corner, we showcase a stadium in the city whose inauguration was blessed by three Olympians.
It was in 1889 that the Madras Government constructed the Pudupet Reserve Police Lines – a series of quarters for the constabulary, at a cost of Rs 31,336. The land fronting it became the Pudupet Maidan. During the plague outbreak of 1900 it was used as an open-air hospital but at all other times it was given over to the police. The Governor invariably inspected the police parade here and this was where the police personnel exercised, rode, practised drill and participated in parade rehearsals. In 1919, the then First Lady of Madras, Lady Willingdon gave Rs 5,000 for the establishment of a Madras City Police Sports Club at the Pudupet Maidan. The building was complete in 1925 and declared open by Lady Willingdon.
With police sports meets becoming sporadic in the 1930s and Vellore being the location as and when they were held, it was only in 1954 that plans once again gained ground for a police stadium. As a result of the decision taken by the Inspector General of Police the Annual State Police Sports of 1954 was held in Madras for the first time ever. That meant a cinder track had to be prepared at the Pudupet Maidan. This was done by the police themselves by October. For this purpose a huge depression measuring about 100 yards by 50 yards on the southern end of the ground was first filled and levelled up. It was an immense task which was, however, tackled efficiently and speedily by the officers and men of the City Police. That it was well done was proved by the fact that despite heavy rains the level of the track remained unaffected.
The track was inaugurated by the Rev Bob Richards, World Olympic Pole-Vaulting Champion. He cut a tape and then ran on the track, accompanied by applause from the spectators. At the end of his run he complimented the police on preparing “one of the fastest tracks in India.”
A little prior to this, Richards also delivered a talk at the City Police Recreation Club. And it is best we quote from Arul himself –
Jesse Owens. Picture courtesy: Wikipedia.“A little earlier Reverend Bob Richards, who has been humorously described as the parson who is trying to jump to heaven on his own efforts, gave a most enlightening talk on athletics in the City Police Recreation Club. He said that one of the most important things for men and women to learn in sport is to discipline desires; such discipline would give them the power to live a clean life. Secondly, sports taught the principle of hard work. He himself had put in 8000 hours of pole vaulting since the time he began jumping as a boy of 12. He believed in the saying that “Genius is 99 per cent perspiration and 1 per cent inspiration”. Thirdly, he called upon all athletes to have faith in themselves. Even though the so-called experts had told him that he lacked the height, strength and speed to jump even 14 feet he had by faith in himself jumped 15 feet 43/4 inches to create a new world olympic record. He concluded his address with an inspiring appeal to athletes to rely on The Power greater than their own.”
The Annual State Police Sports Meet began on October 17th but was dogged by bad weather right through, resulting in many postponements of events. It was only by mid-December that all competitions concluded. It was at the valedictory that talk turned towards a stadium, chiefly propelled by the then IG – VR Rajarathinam. Work began thereafter and the City Police Stadium was complete by 1957. By the early 1970s, the stadium was named after the IGP who mooted and pushed for its construction – V.R. Rajarathinam.
Even while work was in progress, the cinder track notched up further claims to fame – in 1955, Jesse Owens and Bob Mathias ran on it as well. Owens is of course too well known to need an introduction here. Robert Bruce (Bob) Mathias was an American decathlete and won two gold medals at the decathlon, one each in the 1948 and 1952 Summer Olympics. He later took to politics and served for four terms as a Republican in the House of Representatives. – Reproduced from Kaaval, A History of the Tamil Nadu Police, by Sriram V.
