Consistent Effort Paying Off for Richardson

For Claire Richardson, living life in the fast lane has always been easy.

And though this sophomore cross country standout makes it look pretty painless on the course, seemingly gliding her way to the finish line, her success so far hasn’t come without a price.

“The primary reason why she is so successful is because she is incredibly consistent,” junior captain Kelsey LeBuffe said. “She really puts in the effort every day by doing extra exercises and really giving her all, whether it’s just on a training run or on workouts.”

Seen by all of her teammates, coaches, and the people around her, Richardson’s hard work has definitely paid off. This past Saturday, Richardson had perhaps the highlight of her early collegiate career. Placing fourth overall in the Ivy Heptagonal Championships with a time of 17:43.0, Richardson prevented a traditionally-powerhouse Princeton team from sweeping the top six in the 5K event.

“It was a positive experience; it was definitely better than I expected,” Richardson said. “Coach just told us to work hard and have some fun.”

Her fourth place finish in the Championships also marked the best individual finish by a Harvard runner since Karen Goetze '97 placed fourth over 13 years ago.

Humble in nature, Richardson credited luck and chance to her success last Saturday.

“It’s really exciting, I guess. It’s kind of a surprise,” Richardson said. “I just tried to do the best I could for my team, and it just turned out that way, which was lucky.”

Cross country coach Jason Saretsky and LeBuffe thought differently.

“She has a tremendous work ethic, loves to compete…and as a result, Claire had a great day at the Heptagonal Championships,” Saretsky wrote in an e-mail.

“She’s incredibly passionate about it. There are few people out there who love it as much as she does and that passion’s definitely seen on the course,” LeBuffe said.

For Richardson, however, it was not love at first sight with cross country. Growing up a swimmer, Richardson caught the eyes of her middle school cross country coaches after running the mile.

“I just ran the mile at my school, and the coach said I should come out and do it, and I had nothing better to do,” Richardson joked.

After a successful prep career, in which she raked in eight all-state selections in cross country and track, as well as four consecutive top-five state finishes, Richardson entered Harvard as a decorated athlete. Not surprisingly, she has maintained a high level of excellence in cross country from the beginning of her freshman year.

During her rookie track campaign, Richardson placed seventh in the 3K meter race at the Outdoor Heptagonal Championships. More notably, she ran a season and team-best 9:57.41 in the 3K meters at the Outdoor ECAC Championships.

Unlike many athletes, it is quite obvious that Richardson has yet to suffer from a sophomore slump. Yet, while the number of accolades increases by each season, Richardson realizes that she still has quite a long way to go, in terms of polishing her skills as a runner.

“The mental aspect is something that every runner has to keep an eye on,” Richardson said. “It’s really important in racing to stay calm and do your best when you’re under pressure, to keep an eye on the race when you’re in physical pain.”

Richardson is not only regarded by her teammates and coaches as one of the best runners in the program, but also as one of the most amiable characters they’ve ever met.

“Claire is always bubbly, happy and well adjusted,” Saretsky wrote. “Each day, she shows up to practice with a big grin from ear to ear and is excited about whatever we have in store that day.”

Though she’s only a sophomore, Richardson has taken on a leadership role among her teammates, organizing multiple team dinners and always asking about the well-being of her teammates.

“She’s an outstanding role model, not only for the underclassmen, but also for the upperclassmen,” LeBuffe said. “She’s one of the most caring people I know. She’s definitely willing to go the extra mile for her teammates, and that makes a huge difference, and [its] really reflected in the relationship she has with all of our team.”