According to Plan

On the sideline at the Chicago Daily News Relays, trim, balding Track Coach Mihaly Igloi stood with a slip of paper clenched tightly in his fist. Scrawled on the paper was a series of digits: 1:02, 2:04, 3:09, 4:14, 5:19, 6:24, 7:29, 8:31. These were the times at which jaunty Jim Beatty, 28, the best U.S. distance runner and holder of the world indoor record for the mile, was to complete each segment of a precisely planned assault on the indoor two-mile record (8 min. 34.4 sec.) held by New Zealand's Murray Halberg.

"The part that worried me," said Beatty, "was the first quarter-mile. I was skeptical about my ability to run that in 62 sec., because I am so used to running a mile pace, which calls for about a 58-sec. first quarter." His time for the quarter: 1 min. 1.5 sec., just .5 sec. ahead of plan. At the halfway mark, his last challenger, Canada's Bruce Kidd, fell 15 yds. behind. All by himself, Beatty continued on--pat, pat, pat, his feet making almost no sound on the board track, his elbows wide, wrists dangling loosely, body starchly erect.

With a half-mile to go, Beatty's lead grew to half a lap, and 16,759 fans suddenly came alive. Throughout the last two laps, the stamping, clapping, cheering followed Beatty's steady course around the Chicago Stadium like a series of breakers rolling onto a beach. Beatty sailed through the tape, crossed himself, continued jog ging, and waved happily to the crowd. The judges announced his time: 8 min. 30.7 sec.--almost exactly according to plan and a new world record, by nearly 4 sec. Coach Igloi paid Beatty his supreme compliment. "He does," said Igloi, "what I tell him to do."

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