Favourite walks to victory, first medal for Britain
ATHLETICS - For the third day in a row, London was blessed with a blue sky and hot temperatures. For the athletes competing in the 50 kilometers walk the conditions were extreme. They started at 1.15 in the afternoon and their event lasted almost five hours.
John Lunggren was the hot favourite as he was also the Swedish and European champion. He immediately took the lead and finished seven minutes clear of the rest of the pack. Second to enter the stadium was the little Swiss Gaston Godel. He was obviously very pleased with his result because he took off his sun hat to wave it at the crowd.
Less than 15 seconds later the Wembley crowd could celebrate the first medal for the home country. Tebbs Lloyd Johnson enjoyed his finest moment of his athletic career at the age of 48, finishing third.
Rex Whitlock, brother of the Olympic champion of 1936, didn't finish the race. A sunstroke prevented him from going any further than Elstrec. He was one of six athletes who didn't complete the race.
