IC4A

Sabin Carr of Yale University raised the pole vault world record to 4.26 (14-0) at the 51st IC4A Intercollegiate Championships. To be precise, the distance between the bar and the ground was 4.267 metres, or exactly 14 feet in old English units. The result was initially ratified as 4.26, but for some reason, it was elevated to 4.27 in 1945. The previous record of 4.25 was held by Norwegian Charles Hoff, who had been declared a professional in 1926.

Carr's competition, apart from the final result, was difficult. He cleared the record height of 4.26 only on his third attempt. He also managed the lower height of 3.96 (13-0) on his very last try. In the qualification round, he struggled considerably, making unnecessary misses at lower heights. 

When the other events at Franklin Field were already concluded, the bar was raised to 14 feet. Harvard University coach Jaakko Mikkola described Carr's record jump in his competition report sent to a Finnish newspaper:

Carr started his run lightly, then faster, and for the last ten meters, he seemed to fly. The pole went into the box smoothly from his right foot, and he rose into the air like a feather, legs high above the bar, a powerful push, and Carr glided over the bar in a high arc.

It was a good competition in Philadelphia, as Paris Olympic champion Lee Barnes, who finished second, also managed to clear over 4.20 (13-9½). Ward Edmonds placed third with the fifth-best pole vault result of 4.12 (13-6¼) in 1927. Carr and Barnes did not compete in the NCAA Intercollegiate Championships, which took place a couple of weeks later. Barnes, however, did go on to claim the U.S. championship at the end of the season, a competition that did not interest the new world record holder.

Borah the Fastest

Charley Borah, the fastest man of 1927, was crowned a double winner. He sprinted to victory in the 100 and 220 yards. In the longer distance, he clocked a time of 20.9 seconds (straight track), which was the second-fastest run in the world that season. On a curved track and for 200 meters, this corresponds to a result of 21.3.

Philadelphia also saw the season's fastest lap. Fred Alderman of Michigan powered to victory with the sixth-fastest time of the season, 48.3. Yale's musician Lancelot Ross was a tenth behind, the future 400-meter Olympic champion, the "Brooklyn Bull," Ray Barbuti, was three tenths behind, and according to coach Mikkola, the African American Cecil Cooke, who had put on weight, was four tenths behind. The level of the competition is evident from the fact that Cooke fell out of the medal positions, even though he clocked the 12th fastest 440 yards of the season.

The top four in the lap did not compete in the NCAA championships or the U.S. championships. Only Alderman made it to the final Olympic trials in 1928, where he was eliminated in the semifinals.

Penn Boys Take Double in Long Jump

Robert King of Stanford, who had recorded results of 1.98 earlier in the season, was seeing a decline in his form. The Stanford athlete only managed 1.915 (6-3½) and finished in a tie for second place. The victory went to Tom Maynard of Dartmouth, who excitedly improved his personal best by a couple of centimeters to 1.943 (6-4½)

The Penn State University lads secured a double victory on their home field. Alfred Bates soared 7.53  (24-8½) from the oak board and claimed the IC4A championship. This result ranked him third in the world statistics for the season. Theodore Mathias reached 7.46 (24-5¾) and took the silver. Stanford's favorites, Thomas Meeks, Fred Zombro, and Kimball Dyer, were defeated by the Penn duo.

In the discus ring, Biff Hoffman showed his mastery, winning his event with a routine throw of 45.89 (150-7). In the shot put, he had to settle for silver. Biff's energy might have been waning at this point in the season, as he did not compete in the NCAA championships.

IC4A is considered an East Coast collegiate competition. However, the powerful duo from Stanford and the University of Southern California, who traveled to Philadelphia from the Pacific Coast, caused complete havoc. Stanford University won the team competition, breaking Southern California's two-year winning streak.