If I remember right, Roger Bannister had to do his 3 x 1.5miles @ 5k pace sessions at dusk for this reason, and why Cambridge didn't appreciate Harold Abrahams training with Mussioubini. It fascinates me how guys in 1896 ran things like 12 for 100m and a 3ish hour Marathon off of that sort of predicament, considering the old ash tracks, shoes, and other technology of the time. Anybody else who'd like to chime in on this topic? Thanks for reading.
No, maybe in upper class British culture but not for the world at large
I wonder why that was? It wasn't "neat/classy" or something? To me, sport and physical exercise is the closet to experiencing that child-like fun feeling as an adult. I'm sure upper-class Brits had showers in the 20s-50s. Beats me anyways.
Just think about how the world worked before "leisure" time and pay for play existed. Most young athletes worked in factories or farms, or went to college, but had to pay their own way, as limited scholarships, especially in minor sports and no "need based" government aid. Best was getting money from the government after you served in the military during WW2.
We live in a much better world where sports not only pays the bills, but also can be done, since time is more readily available and work, if done, is less manual in nature.
Just think back to professional baseball players prior to the 70's. Most had winter jobs to help pay the bills. Many grew up in with little extra change and played with sticks and taped up baseballs, using terrible gloves with paper inside to protect their hands.
I don't think track and field was much different. Many of the great sprinters and hurdlers struggled to even get on a track to work out. Even in the 60's I remember Vince Matthews having to jump over locked gates at his old high school to get in a track workout.
Finally, women were thought too delicate to train hard. That thinking really didn't change until almost the 80's, as more and more women got interested in track and field and didn't break from doing hard training.
Nonsense. Bannister didn't hide his training, he ran at lunch time.
Some of the old-time Boston marathoners like Johnny Kelly ran to and from their blue collar jobs.
Back then, people thought they were seriously crazy or at the least, weird and made fun of them.