Stamford Bridge, London, UK, July 6–7. 1923
Eric Liddell is unbeatable in the 220-yard dash.
The 54th English Open Athletics Championships were held at the beginning of July 1923. The traditional venue was chosen again: Stamford Bridge in London. The championships featured athletes from Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and other countries, affirming the status of the AAA meet as the unofficial European Championships of the 1920s. No Finnish athletes participated this time.
In the 100 yards, Scottish pastor Eric Liddell claimed victory, beating Wilfred Nichol. The timing team recorded a British record of 9.7 for Liddell (equivalent to 10.6 for the metric distance), placing him in a tie for second in the world rankings. Nichol’s time has been retrospectively estimated as the same 9.7, despite being two feet (about 61 centimetres) behind.
Future Olympic champions Liddell and Harold Abrahams met each other for the first time in the 220 semis. Liddell won. Abrahams withdrew from the 100 yards final the following day and participated instead in his secondary event, the long jump. Duncanson suspects that Abrahams did not dare to face the Scot (Duncanson, Neil, The Fastest Men on Earth. 2021).
A year later, at the Paris Olympics, Liddell did not compete in the 100 metres for religious reasons but instead entered his secondary event, the 400, which he won.
Liddell’s celebrations continued in the 220 yards, where he secured an overwhelming victory with a time of 21.6 (equivalent to 21.5 for the metric distance). This performance earned him a tie for third place in the world rankings.
Frenchman Pierre Lewden won the high jump for the second consecutive year, clearing 1.93 (6-4), tying for third in the world rankings. His second title of the year 1923 came cheaply, as there were no competitors in the pole vault from the host nation.
Fred Gaby also secured his second consecutive title, winning the 120-yard hurdles with 15.2, equalling the national record. He reached the semi-finals at the Paris Olympics.
Abrahams won the long jump this time with a distance of 7.23 (23- 8¾), ranking sixth in the world. A week earlier, Vilho Tuulos of Finland had set a national record of 7.31 (23-11¾), remaining ahead in the world list.
The triple jump was not particularly popular in Britain during the 1920s. John Odde disregarded this, setting a national record of 14.13 (46-4½).