None of the 10 best of all-time was present for the Antwerp final, and
only Murphy – winner of the US Trials with 1.936 – and Ekelund with
1.93 in 1919 had jumped as high as 1.93. While this seemed an indica-
tion that the standard was not high, constant rain had forced the organ-
isers to move the high jump site and use a soggy turf run-up.
The decisive stages saw three men clear at 1.90 – Ekelund, IC4A
Champion, Landon and American football player Muller, a powerful
though not enomous (1.86/86kg) jumper. Muller had cleared 1.90 first
time, but only Landon, using the still prevalent Eastern cut-off style,
could clear 1.935. The French jumper Lewden later noted with horror
in his autobiography that as Ekelund began his run-up on one of his
attempts at 1.935, an American official moved Landon’s marker – next
to that of the Swede, an act which must have affected Ekelund’s con-
centration. There was a tie for second and fourth places, decided by
jump-offs. Muller cleared 1.88 against 1.85 for Ekelund – while
Whalen and Murphy both cleared 1.89 before Murphy failed at a lower
height. Baker, who was an international in soccer and water polo, had
declined to take part in the fourth place jump-off.
United States
Germany
Sweden
Great Britain
France
Belgium
Greece
Czechoslovakia
Luxembourg
Canada
