Track teams headed opposite directions

Men look for success at Terrier Classic Men's indoor track captain Chris Harper has always been gifted with great speed, but it took his high school gym teacher to make him realize it. After watching Harper routinely run from right field to left field to make catches in baseball games, the gym teacher, who also was a track coach, encouraged Harper to try out for the team. Harper agreed, mainly to see if he was really as fast as the coach said he was. He has come a long way since then. The ultimate goal for Harper this season is to qualify for nationals in the 200- and 400-meter sprints. This season, Harper is ahead of last season's times and has not been challenged in a race this year. That challenge could come at The Terrier Classic this weekend in Boston. The event will showcase 40 of the top schools in the east, including Penn, and should provide the competition Harper relishes. Harper quickly rose to be one of the top runners in his home city of Chicago. The summer of his junior year he competed in the Junior Olympics in North Carolina. Not knowing what to expect, Harper was defeated badly in his best event -- the 200-meter sprint. The Junior Olympics was a reality check for Harper. He realized he still had much to improve. From that moment, he dedicated himself to winning the Junior Olympic title the next year in the 200. His winning time of 21.10 seconds made him one of the country's most highly regarded sprinters. Harper had many scholarship offers coming out of high school. He was offered a full scholarship to the University of Arkansas, which has the top track program in the country. "I decided to come to Penn because it was the best place for me in the country," Harper said. From the moment he arrived at Penn, Harper has been a key contributor. He won the 200 outdoors at Heptagonals as a freshman and followed that by claiming the 400 title at Heps during the indoor season his sophomore year. It was at Heps last year that Harper had one of his finest meets. He won the 100 and the 200 and was a member of the winning 4x100 relay team. His final event was the 4x400 relay. "We were in fifth place when Chris got the baton for the anchor leg," Penn assistant coach Nathan Taylor said. "He just turned on the burners and we won going away." Harper has closed in on two school records, which he has a good shot of catching during the outdoor season. His time of 21.07 is only .16 seconds away from Ed James' 200-meter record set in 1976. He is also very close to the 400 record of 46.28, set in 1932 by Olympic Gold Medalist Bill Carr. Carr's mark stood as the world record for 10 years. Harper has an even greater role on the team this year as a junior captain. It was a sign of support and respect from is teammates that he was voted in after only two years on the team. Harper understands both the performance and leadership elements involved in being a captain. "I only differentiate myself from the rest of the team when asked," Harper said. "I just run the times and hope the attention will come."