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 An 1836 illustration of a "Walking Wager", from Peter Piper's Practical Principles of Plain and Perfect Pronunciation, by Anonymous, Philadelphia | |
| Presence | |
|---|---|
| Country or region | British Isles |
| Olympic | No |
| Paralympic | No |
| Obsolete | Yes |
Pedestrianism was a 19th-century form of competitive walking, often professional and funded by wagering, from which the modern sport of racewalking developed.
During the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, pedestrianism, like running or horse racing (equestrianism) was a popular spectator sport in Britain and Ireland. Pedestrianism became a fixture at fairs – much like horse racing – developing from wagers on footraces, rambling, and 17th-century footman wagering. [1] Sources from the late 17th and early 18th century in England describe aristocrats pitting their carriage footmen, constrained to walk by the speed of their masters' carriages, against one another. [2]
The first notable exponent of this long-distance walking is generally considered to be Foster Powell (1734–93) who in 1773 walked 400 miles (640 km) from London to York and back, and in 1788 walked 100 miles (160 km) in 21 hours 35 minutes. [3] [4] By the end of the 18th century, and especially with the growth of the popular press, feats of foot travel over great distances (similar to a modern Ultramarathon) gained attention, and were labelled "pedestrianism".
One of the most famous pedestrians of the day was Captain Robert Barclay Allardice, called "The Celebrated Pedestrian", of Stonehaven. [5] His most impressive feat was to walk 1 mile (1.6 km) every hour for 1000 hours, which he achieved between 1 June and 12 July 1809. The feat captured the public's imagination and around 10,000 people came to watch over the course of the event. [6] During the 19th century, attempts to repeat the athletic challenge were made by many pedestrians, including George Wilson who attempted to walk 1,000 miles (1,600 km) in 480 hours in 1815 but was arrested after 3/4 of the distance for disturbing the peace. [7] Emma Sharp was thought to be the first woman to complete the challenge of 1,000 miles (1,600 km) in 1000 hours on 29 October 1864. [8] Later racewalkers proved to be more successful, especially Ada Anderson, who after walking 1,500 miles (2,400 km) in 1000 hours was labelled by the press 'Champion Lady Walker of the World', [9] This feat had been achieved by a man in 1852. Thomas Hicks, from Leeds, walked 1500 miles in 1000 hours at the Royal Oak Grounds, on Barking Road, Canning Town. He started on Monday 22 March and finished at 22 minutes past three on the morning of Monday 3 May 1852. Despite the early hour, upwards of 4000 spectators were there at the finish, and "the last mile and a half was walked in procession with lighted torches, a band of music and a large bonfire blazed forth to welcome the accomplishment of this unprecedented feat." [10] [11] [12] [13] Ada Anderson's trainer, William Gale, is also alleged to have completed the feat. [14] Another popular goal was for competitors in long-distance events to walk 100 miles (160 km) in less than 24 hours, from which they earned the nickname "centurions". Enormous cash prizes were offered for the races and they were a popular activity for the press, crowds of working class spectators, and the betting public until the 1880s. [15]
Interest in the sport, and the wagering that accompanied it, spread to the United States, Canada, and Australia in the 19th century. By the end of the 19th century, pedestrianism was largely displaced by the rise in modern spectator sports and by controversy involving rules, which limited its appeal as a source of wagering and led to its inclusion in the amateur athletics movement and eventually the creation of racewalking.
Pedestrianism was first codified in the latter half of the 19th century, evolving into what became racewalking, while diverging from the long-distance cross country fell running, other track and field athletics, and recreational hiking or hillwalking. [16] By the mid-19th century, competitors were often expected to extend their legs straight at least once in their stride and obey what was called the "fair heel and toe" rule. This rule, the source of modern racewalking, was a vague commandment that the toe of one foot could not leave the ground before the heel of the next foot touched down; however, rules were customary and changed with competition. Racers were usually allowed to jog in order to fend off cramps, and it was distance, not code, which determined gait for longer races. Newspaper reports suggest that "trotting" was common in events. [17]
The longer form of "ultra marathon" walking featured in the popular press and in the decade after the American Civil War in the United States was a source of fascination. In 1867 Edward Payson Weston, a reporter for the New York Herald, won a $10,000 prize by walking 1,136 miles (1,828 km) from Portland, Maine, to Chicago in 30 days. [18] In the United States a series of women's competitions were staged, special indoor tracks were built in some towns, and intra-community long distance pedestrianism came into vogue. American Elsa von Blumen competed as a pedestrian in events where she would walk 100 miles. [19] Frank Hart was among the first African-American national sports celebrities for his achievements in the sport, such as setting a new 565 mile record in the 6 Day Race distance. Along with sensational feats of distance, gambling was a central attraction for the large, mostly working-class crowds which came to pedestrian events. [20] [21]
In the United Kingdom, member of Parliament Sir John Astley founded a "Long Distance Championship of the World" in 1878, staged over six days, which became known as the "Astley Belt Races". [22] While marking a peak in press coverage of such races, the Astley Belt Races allowed a wide interpretation of rules, with trotting, jogging, and even some running allowed. The competition was partly inspired by a desire to clean up the perception of the sport as corrupted by gambling interests and led to a push amongst some to codify pedestrianism as an amateur sport. The same process was happening to British track and field athletics and gave rise to the modern Olympic Movement.
Walkers organised the first English amateur walking championship in 1866, which was won by John Chambers, and judged by the "fair heel and toe" rule. This vague code was the basis for the rules codified at the first championships meeting in 1880 of the Amateur Athletics Association in England, the birth of modern track and field. With football, cricket and other sports codified in the 19th century, the transition from professional pedestrianism to amateur codified racewalking was part of a process of regularisation occurring in most modern sports at this time.
The codified racewalk was included when the International Olympic Committee formed in 1893. In the 1904 Olympic Games the "all-rounder" event, father of the decathlon, included an 880-yard (800 m) walk. It was only in the unofficial "Interim Olympic Games" of 1906 that racewalking became a separate event and since the 1908 Olympic Games in London, it has been an official event in every summer games.
Foot racing was a form of competitive running and walking of the 17th and early 18th centuries. Usually it involved feats of endurance which would now be classified as ultramarathon. It evolved into pedestrianism. [23]
Walking is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an "inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults over the stiff limb or limbs with each step. This applies regardless of the usable number of limbs—even arthropods, with six, eight, or more limbs, walk. In humans, walking has health benefits including improved mental health and reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and death.
Athletics is a group of sporting events that involves competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross-country running, and racewalking.
Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least 3 km (1.9 mi). Physiologically, it is largely aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength.
A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In modern times, the term usually refers to someone walking on a road or pavement, but this was not the case historically.
An ultramarathon, also called ultra distance or ultra running, is a footrace longer than the traditional marathon length of 42.195 kilometres. Various distances, surfaces, and formats are raced competitively, from the shortest common ultramarathon of 31 miles (50 km) and up to 3100 miles. World Championships are held by the International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) for 50 km, 100 km, 24 hours, and ultra trail running. The Global Organization of Multi-Day Ultramarathoners (GOMU) holds World Championships for 48 hours and 6 days. World Records are ratified and recognized by World Athletics, the IAU, and by GOMU.
Race walking, or racewalking, is a long-distance discipline within the sport of athletics. Although a foot race, it is different from running in that one foot must appear to be in contact with the ground at all times. Race judges carefully assess that this is maintained throughout the race. Typically held on either roads or running tracks, common distances range from 3,000 metres (1.9 mi) up to 100 kilometres (62.1 mi).
Robert Barclay Allardice of Ury, generally known as Captain Barclay, was a notable Scottish walker of the early 19th century, known as the celebrated pedestrian. His most famous feat was walking 1000 miles in 1000 hours for 1000 guineas in 1809. He is considered the father of the 19th-century sport of pedestrianism, a precursor to racewalking.
Fell running, also sometimes known as hill running, is the sport of running and racing, off-road, over upland country where the gradient climbed is a significant component of the difficulty. The name arises from the origins of the English sport on the fells of northern Britain, especially those in the Lake District. It has elements of trail running, cross country and mountain running, but is also distinct from those disciplines.
Multiday races are ultramarathon running events which are typically either segmented into daily events of a specified distance or time, or staged so that runners can run as far as they want, at their own discretion, over a set course or over a set number of days. Multiday races can range from continuous 48-hour track events to staged transcontinental treks.
Edward Payson Weston was a pedestrian, who was largely responsible for the rise in popularity of the sport in the 1860s and 1870s.
The 6-Day Race became a standard footrace distance in the 1870s and was a popular form of entertainment with up to 70,000 paying visitors during such a Pedestrians event. However the widespread use of the bicycle from 1890 caused it to be replaced as spectator sport by cycle races of the same duration. It was in two forms: strict "heel-and-toe" racewalking, or "go-as-you-please" combination of walking, jogging, running.
The Brotherhood of Centurions is a club for which racewalkers are eligible who have completed a distance of 100 international miles (160.9 km) in Britain within 24 hours. Its name derives from a popular title from those competitors achieving the feat in the 19th century British long-distance walking sport, called Pedestrianism.
Len Hurst was renowned as a British long-distance athlete, both running and pedestrianism, although he started life as a brick-maker, and spent his last 29 years as a pub landlord.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to running:
Athletics has a long history in Wales, with many events recognised today codified during the Victorian period. The first amateur athletic clubs in Wales were formed in the 1870s, while the first championships began in the early 20th century. Wales began competing as a country in international athletic events in the 1920s and has since produced a notable number of world class sportspeople including many medal winning Commonwealth, World, Olympic, Paralympic and European champions. Wales competes in the Commonwealth Games under its own flag but at the Olympic Games, Welsh athletes compete alongside those of Scotland, England and Northern Ireland as part of a Great Britain team.
George Littlewood (1859–1912) was a professional pedestrian known as the Sheffield Flyer who still holds the 6-day world record for walking. This was achieved in Sheffield, England, between 6 and 11 March 1882, on a 13-lap to the mile track, 531 miles.
Race walking events at the Summer Olympics have been contested over a variety of distances at the multi-sport event. There were three race walking events in the 2020 Summer Olympics: a men's and a women's 20 kilometres walk, and a men's 50 kilometres walk. The races were held in a final-only format.
Charles Rowell (1852–1909) was an English athlete: a famous runner and celebrated exponent of the sport of pedestrianism race-walking.
Emma Sharp (1832–1920) was an athlete famous for her feat of pedestrianism completing a 1000-mile walk in 1000 hours, the event first completed by Robert Barclay Allardice in 1809. She is thought to be the first woman to complete the challenge, which lasted from 17 September to 29 October 1864. This 'arduous task' was reported in the newspapers of the day, in which she was described as having a medium build but an active frame, dressed in male clothing with the exception of her straw hat which was adorned with 'feminine ornaments'.
Ada Anderson, née Nymand was a British athlete famous for her feats of pedestrianism in the latter half of the 19th century. She set various records for distance covered in a given time period, becoming known as ‘Champion Lady Walker of the World’. After becoming the dominant pedestrian in the United Kingdom, she participated in similar events in the United States to great acclaim.