PAT ON THE BACK

Herewith a salute from the editors to men and women of all ages who have fairly earned the good opinion of the world of sport, regardless of whether they have yet earned its tallest headlines

Hazel Wightman (above), most durable champion in tennis if not of all sport, is still a fine player at the age of 67. This year the Newton, Mass. grandmother won the national senior doubles championship for her 44th American title. Since 1923, when she first established the Wightman Cup for international competition with England, Hazel Wightman has been America's queen mother of tennis. In recent years, a Junior Wightman Cup squad has been named to honor the brightest young women tennis stars. The 1954 JUNIOR WIGHTMAN TEAM (right) consists (from left) of Darlene Hard, Janet Hopps, Karol Fageros, Patricia Stewart, Ruth Jeffry, Judy Devlin, Barbara Breit and Belmar Gunderson. The Misses Fageros, Stewart and Hard are repeaters from the 1953 team. This year, pretty Karol Fageros has won the Canadian national singles championship, 16-year-old Barbara Breit the national girls' title. Darlene Hard, still a junior in tennis ranks, startled experts by reaching the semifinals of the nationals at Forest Hills before losing to Louise Brough, 1947 national singles champion.

Carl Hovgard, president of the Research Institute of America, is a dedicated yachtsman. When told the famed old Nevins yacht yard on New York's City Island would have to close due to low-cost competition from foreign builders, Hovgard bought the yard, plans to maintain it as one of the last remaining centers for servicing big sailing yachts.

Freydis Leaf, 32-year-old brunette six-footer from Kensington, England, is the first woman ever to win the British air-racing championship. A wartime ferry pilot with 2,300 flying hours, Freydis now serves as air advisor to the Women's Junior Air Corps. The former debutante flew her Miles Hawk Major to victory against a tough 16-man field.

FOUR PHOTOS