Paul Gompers

He is up every morning at 6:30. Before breakfast he has already run 10 miles, and by sundown, he has boosted his daily total by another eight or so.

Yet running approximately 125 miles a week is only part of the routine of Paul Gompers, the men's cross-country team's freshman sensation. He devotes the non-running time in his days to being a Harvard student.

Gompers, a native of Belleville, III., had already made a name for himself by setting the national 18-and-under record for 15 kilometers last year in the Dannon Yogurt 15-Kilometer Road Race in St. Louis.

At Harvard, Gompers will participate not only in cross country, but in both winter and spring track as well.

"He's off to a great start," said Frank Haggerty, coach of the cross country team, "and there is no doubt that he will be a dominating force in the Ivy League."

Gompers takes his academics as seriously as his running. Hoping to become involved in sports medicine, he labels himself as a Pio-Chem major and a Pre-Med candidate.

It is obvious that he means business; his courses include Chem 20, labeled "the most competitive course in the college" by the CUE Guide.

Asked how he can keep up his running and still handle the heavy course load, Gompers said, "I keep myself organized by setting up a daily routine, which leaves me enough time to study."

His routine includes: the 10 miles before breakfast; classes from 9 a.m. to noon; running errands (or giving interviews) from noon to 3 p.m.; practicing with the team from 3-6; and studying from 7-11 at night. Then comes bedtime.

Gompers started running when he was in junior high, and he began to train seriously freshmen year in high school. He has progressed steadily since that time.

As a high school freshmen he was, in his words, "decent" when it came to running. By his sophomore year, he was the best runner in his school; junior year he was the best in the region; and he led all of Illinois in his senior year.

When it came to selecting a college, he was heavily recruited by all the Ivy school.

"The Yale coach kept calling me and gave me the big hype," he stated, "but Harvard is where I wanted to go all along."

Already it appears as though this choice has been worthwhile for both school and runner. In two of the first three meets of the season, Gompers placed first of all Harvard runners, and in the others he placed second.

"Distance is where I show myself," he says, and he is pleased that the cross country team fits his style of training, concentrating mainly on heavy mileage workouts rather than short, faster runs.

Overall, the school has more than met his expectations. His experience here so far, he says, has been "fascinating."

"What I really find exciting is going to class, and there in front of me are the professors who I've heard so much about and whose books I've read."

For the future, he is looking toward the Greater Boston Championships later this fall, and from there he hopes to qualify for the nationals.

"Being in the East is a great asset," he says, "since there are a lot of special distance events held which give me better opportunities to compete."

Celebrity status--and national prominence--has in no way been a detriment to Gompers' adjustment to Harvard.

"Sometimes I get poked fun at because I'm a freshman and because I've done so well, but it's all good-natured ribbing," he says.

"He's treated like everyone else on the team," adds Haggerty.

Gompers has found the team's spirit to be the most impressive aspect of Harvard's cross-country program, and likes the fact that "everyone pulls for one and other.

"I honestly can't think of a place I'd rather be," he says, heading off to afternoon practice.

For Paul Gompers, it was back to the daily routine.