Managing the rigors of competing in one varsity sport is difficult for most student-athletes on campus, but the increased demands does not discourage some Big Green athletes, like Steve Mangan '14, from competing year-round. Mangan has not taken a term off from athletics in his first year at the College, running for the cross country team in the fall, switching to Nordic skiing in the winter and coming back to race track during the spring.
Throughout his freshman year, Mangan has found a way not only to participate in three different sports, but to succeed in all of them. In his final race of the outdoor season, Mangan took second in the 1,500-meter run at the second of four Twilight Meets in Waltham, Mass., an event that features many semi-professional post-collegiate runners in addition to college athletes.
Mangan continuously lengthened his list of accomplishments during the latter part of the spring season. Coming off a sixth place finish that earned the Big Green a point at the 2011 Outdoor Ivy League Heptagonal Championships, Mangan hit a personal record time in the 1,500-meter at the first Twilight Meet before placing second on Saturday. He ran a 3:50.54 in the 1,500-meter event just a week after setting his record time of 3:49.1. "I ran really well at Heps and scored a point," Mangan said. "That gave me the confidence to do well this past weekend."
Mangan was able to make such a late season charge largely due to his increased exposure to running after a season of skiing, he said. Cross country and track and field team coach Barry Harwick said Mangan has been able to knock a considerable amount of time off of his high school marks this season.
"He got off to a good start in cross country," Harwick said. "He was one of our better freshmen. He's already running significantly faster than he was as a senior in high school, so I think he's made a lot of progress."
But for Mangan, transitioning between multiple sports brings several challenges.
"[For ski season], I had to gain some upper body strength," he said. "Going into skiing [was tough] because you need a lot of strength to ski fast and the ski motion is a lot less natural than running, so it was a harder transition."
Although he jumped back into form fairly quickly when starting the spring track season, Mangan acknowledged that there was a tough adjustment period between skiing and running.
"I had to start really slow with running and was feeling really sore for a month," he said. "Once my legs got used to running though, I was happy with where I was at."
Harwick said the transition took several weeks but noted that Mangan adjusted quickly.
"It probably took him a week or two but he gained his stride fairly quickly," he said.
Being a member of different varsity sport teams often creates an interesting dynamic, according to Mangan.
"I really enjoyed being on two teams that are really different in terms of personality," he said. "In high school the same kids did all three sports, so it's nice to get a season in the middle doing something different."
Mangan said he has learned a lot from his freshman season and hopes to balance his teams even better next year.
"I think for next year it's really important to stay in contact with both coaches year round," he said. "If I talk to both, I can blend both and make a program that works so I'm not too far behind in either sport."
Harwick said he hopes to see Mangan play an important role on the cross country and track team next season.
"He's certainly someone we're counting on heavily next fall," he said.
