THE QUESTION: Is the official AAU attitude toward amateurism outdated?

GEORGE R. BENEDICT
Evansville, Ind.
Business manager
Courier & Press
Yes. A large segment of the people feel that the AAU rules are too stringent, that they draw too fine a line between amateurism and professionalism, that they do not make clear what money a man can receive and still remain an amateur. A star athlete should get enough to permit him to live at a top hotel.

KELLUM JOHNSON
Dallas
Former president
AAU
No. The people who understand the rules and their purpose are very much in accord. We permit a $15-a-day allowance for room and board. That's plenty, and we oppose the payment of larger sums. In colleges, officials deny that they give athletes any more than their conference allows. I believe them.

AVERY BRUNDAGE
Chicago
President
International Olympic Committee
No. Amateurism, or the love of and devotion to the task at hand rather than the reward, is the quality which is essential to success in every field. It is a thing of the spirit. The world would be a sorry place without it. Amateurism is not always understood but it cannot be outdated.

HOWARD MITHUN
Vice-president
Minneapolis Star and Tribune
The rules are not outmoded, they're out-maneuvered. I'd like to see the athletic scholarship eliminated. Athletes should be treated like all students. They should go out and fight for the honor of making the team. The best football team I ever saw at Minnesota was made up of pure amateurs.

ANDREW B. SHELTON
Abilene, Texas
Executive vice-president
Reporter-News
Sure, it's outdated. I compare the public attitude towards amateurism to that towards Prohibition, when the sale of liquor was prohibited, but everyone bought what they pleased. Amateur rules, as set down by the AAU, are as unrealistic as the Prohibition law, and people don't hesitate to violate them.

ROGER H. FERGER
President and publisher
Cincinnati Enquirer
Yes. Those who are making and enforcing the amateur rules are doing so with the view of a bygone era. These rules are no longer realistic. Enforcing them is akin " to living in the past. They should be changed through an agreement with other countries to coincide with the views of the majority.

SEVEN PHOTOS