Mannie Dookie
1915-1968
MANNIE, THE
MARVELOUS MILK BOY
People of the
Century
By Michael Anthony
Part 1
Express
April 26, 2000
Pages 48 & 49
One
of the unforgettable heroes of Trinidad athletics of our 20th
century was the marvelous milk boy, Mannie Dookie.
In
these days when Trinidad and Tobago's participation in international athletics
is so common that no one wonders when it all began, it is good to repeat the
story of Mannie Dookie - the boy who blazed the trail for other men to follow.
The
story of Magnificent Mannie goes back to 1930, on the occasion when he left his
milk-pail at home and took on renowned runners in a road race.
Mannie
Dookie, who was born in St James and lived there, was only 15 at the time.
That
race, coincidentally, was 15-1/2 miles around the Saddle Road - and the
experienced runners who faced the starter must have been amused to see the
frail, insignificant boy beside them.
But
they later had the humiliating experience of seeing Mannie Dookie show them the
way home. He completed the distance in
one hour and 39 minutes, a fine mark at that juncture.
One
of the peculiar things about Mannie Dookie, was that however rough the course,
he never liked running in shoes. So
competing barefoot in that 15-1/2 mile race around the Saddle Road, he became
known as the barefoot runner.
But
running without shoes was only a little distraction to Mannie Dookie's
greatness. The amazing milk boy went to
the Queen's Park Oval the next year, 1931, and at those grand Empire Day games,
which came to be called "Championships," he lined up for the
three-mile event.
To
most people Mannie was going too far.
While, it was amazing to see the frail youngster coming home in front of
big, burly men in a 15-1/2 mile road race, how could he dare to go to the
starting line, at "Championships" with Trinidad's renowned
three-milers?
How
could he survive at all in that company - especially with the champion Francis
Dinzey?
On
that day, May 24, 1931, the barefoot milk boy did not only survive, but running
a sensational race, and spurred on by the thunderous applause of the crowd, he
defeated Dinzey and the rest of the field to win in a time of 17 minutes 35
seconds.
In
1932 Dookie again held the attention of the sporting public when he beat all
comers in a road race from St James Bridge to Teteron Bay. But it was in 1933 that he accomplished one
of the greatest victories of his career.
Now
known as a three-miler and a runner of road races, Dookie turned up at the
Queen's Park Oval for 'Championships," and went straight to the one-mile
starting point.
There,
at the line-up, were the one-mile stars, two policemen: Alwyn Forde and
Hypolite Sosa. At the sound of the
pistol Dookie lunged ahead of the field, and yes, he was never to be caught.
Running
the race of his life, he put distance between himself and both Sosa and Forde,
winning the race in four minutes, 43 seconds.
And
that very day, just to prove that he was still king of the three-mile event, he
took part in that too, and crushed, not only Sosa and Forde, but also Francis
Dinzey.
Part
of his glory was that he could not have beaten them at a better point of time.
What
was it that was so important and special about 1933? Well, it was the eve of the British Empire Games at White City in
London, and all the athletes were trying to be at their best, hoping against
hope that the Trinidad Amateur Athletic Association would send them to
compete. Such a thing had never
happened before.
Dookie
maintained the spotlight in 1933, when, at the West Indies Olympiad held later
that year in Georgetown, British Guiana, he again won the three-mile, this time
setting a new West Indian record of 15 minutes 8.4 seconds.
He
also won the mile, thus achieving a brilliant middle-distance double.
Dookie
was now a sensation, not only in Trinidad, but also throughout the West
Indies. And so at this time there rose
the agonizing cry: "Who will send Mannie Dookie to the British Empire
Games? Who will give Trinidad a chance
to clash with the best of the British Empire's long distance men?"
While
the plaintive cry in favour of Mannie Dookie rose all round, Mannie, between
delivering milk, was minding his own business by training hard.
The
year 1934 had already dawned, and when "Championships" came that May,
the milk boy, now one-mile and three-mile champion, again defeated the cream of
the island's three-milers, lowering the Trinidad three-mile record to 15
minutes 19 seconds, not far outside the standard of international games.
So
the cry became even more strident: "Who will send Mannie Dookie to the
British Empire Games?"
The
games were to be held that August, and time was beginning to get short.
The
Trinidad athletic authorities could not come up with an answer, maybe because
of financial reasons. Could anything be
done?
Section 2
May 3, 2000
Pages 22 & 23
This is Part II of the story
“Mannie the marvelous milk boy”,
which appeared last week.
At
last the answer came although at the proverbial eleventh hour. The leading Trinidad newspaper of the day
published the following notice on July 1, 1934: Inspired by Dookie’s excellent
record we are sending him to the British Empire Games.
This
was great news for the country and for Mannie Dookie. Since no one had ever been sent to an international sports
meeting, people were excited to see how the Trinidad runner would fare.
Mannie
Dookie boarded the SS Coronado on Tuesday, July 11 1934, with large crowds on
the wharf cheering him. Whether the
name of the ship Coronado Spanish for Crowned brightened his spirit,
there is no way of knowing, but the departure for London of the 19-year-old
hero was one of the most emotional of the time.
Mannie
Dookie arrived in England as a sort of curiosity in certain circles because
word had already been put out that he ran without shoes. For running without shoes was unknown at
international games.
Those,
in whose care Dookie was entrusted, apparently asked him not to let them down
by changing his mind and running in shoes.
And this may have been the key to what eventually transpired.
After
the parade of athletes which opened the games, Dookie, the Trinidad flag-bearer
and sole representative, told a reporter: I’ll keep the flag flying for
Trinidad. But if he had meant that
figuratively, he could not have been thinking of the granite hard track he was
going to meet later that day.
It
was Sunday, August 5 1934, and when Dookie struck out in front in the
three-mile race the 40,000-strong White City crowd broke into a roar for the
barefooted boy. But before many laps
his feet started to leave a trail of blood.
The cinder-sharp track so cut him, that he soon trailed the field and
then retired to tears.
But
even in such agony, when the six-mile event was due to start the next day,
courageous Mannie faced the starter. On
setting off he got a thunderous ovation from spectators. But of course, he had not recovered, and in
any case the cinder track was such a razor to his bare, sore feet that he
rallied until the 14th lap, then limped off.
And
that was to be the extent of Mannie Dookie’s participation at the British
Empire Games of 1934. He was due to run
the marathon also, but he was obviously in no fit physical state, and certainly
in no mental state even to try.
One
is left to wonder whether the milk boy would have brought us our first
international sporting medal had he been advised to run in shoes.
Yet,
as we look back, the ship that took Mannie Dookie to England had the right
name, SS Coronado. For the Magnificent
Milk boy has been duly crowned. Even in
his failure, when he returned huge crowds were on the waterfront to pay tribute
to him, and the Port of Spain City Council gave him a civic reception.
And
today we remember him as one of the outstanding people of our 20th
century. For he had done it. He had blazed the trail, not only by being
the first to represent Trinidad and Tobago at an international sports meeting,
but by showing the athletes of his time, what loyalty and courage mean.