GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (BVM) — Isaac Harding has moved around a bit since starting his career in track and field. Harding’s father, James, was a track and field athlete himself who in 1976 ran cross country for the Grand Rapids Junior College team. 

As a result, Isaac and his twin brother Grayson would keep on the tradition by becoming involved in the sport as well. Growing up, Isaac played other sports outside of track, but would eventually make it his go-to sport for good. 

“I competed in wrestling and basketball up through middle school,” Isaac said. “After my freshman year cross country season, I found I had a lot of talent and potential in long-distance running and decided to forgo other sports and train for cross country and track and field year-round.”

At Rockford High, Isaac would compete alongside his twin brother in meets ranging from the 4×800-meter relay to 3200-meter relay race. 

Grayson was more focused on his musical talents during his earlier years in high school while Isaac trained for distance running throughout the year. 

“I was more interested in sports in high school, and my brother was more musically talented,” Isaac said. “However, near the end of high school and during college, Grayson definitely began to focus even more on running and put together a really great career at Aquinas College and is a school record holder at Aquinas.”

Isaac proved to be one of the best cross country runners in the state, leading his team to back-to-back Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) titles during his sophomore and junior seasons.  

His high school accomplishments include winning regional championships in the 1600-meter relay, the 4×800-meter relay, and twice in the 3200-meter relay race. 

His success on the state level would lead him to become one of the only players in the country to qualify for both the Nike and Footlocker national meets where he’d finish third and 23rd respectively.

It took a lot of hard work to compete at this level individually, however, Isaac attests that it was the exceptional running from his teammates that helped him become a top runner. 

“It definitely took a lot more work than what your average runner would do to make it to the top in high school,” Isaac said. “I was lucky to have great teammates to chase my freshman year that set the tone for what it takes to be at the top of the state level.”

Isaac would continue his career in distance running at the collegiate level at the University of Michigan in the fall of 2016. He redshirted, which helped him improve his overall skill before entering meets starting Jan. of 2017. 

It took an uncanny amount of dedication for Isaac to compete at the collegiate level, since every runner on his team for the Wolverines were also top runners at their prospective high schools.

“When I started my collegiate career at the University of Michigan, virtually every runner on the team was the best at their high school,” Isaac said. “It was difficult at times, because even though I cut nearly a minute off of my high school 5k time by my junior year, there were still probably over 100 college athletes who were far faster than me.”

Despite this, Isaac still showed enough dedication and confidence in his running ability to get better at his craft. 

“I am very goal-oriented towards winning races and titles,” Isaac said. “I have to say that my deepest motivation is to maximize my potential and become the best that I can possibly be. Regardless of whether or not I am in the position to win races or not, I can always be motivated by the idea of giving my hardest effort.”

He displayed this effort at the USATF in 2017, where he placed second in the Junior Cross Country Championship meet with a time of 14:33.6 in the 5000-meter relay; this meant that as a freshman in college, Harding qualified for the national team. 

Isaac would be selected to represent Team USA in the International Association of Athletics Federations World Championship game in Kampala, Uganda; where he placed 61st with a time of 26:37 in over eight kilometers (4.97 miles) in the event.

“Competing for Team USA was an amazing experience that helped validate my confidence in distance running,” Isaac said. “It was amazing to get experience competing internationally while I was still a teenager and meet many amazing athletes.”

Isaac’s career-best numbers at the University of Michigan includes a finish of 3:50.56 in the 1500-meter relay race that landed him third place at the Len Paddock Open. Along with that, he would also finish third in the Power Five Invitational that saw him post a time of 8:10.6. He was also a member of two top-ten NCAA cross country championship teams finishing tenth in 2017, and second in 2019. 

Harding would go on to transfer to Grand Valley State after the pandemic forced the University of Michigan to cancel their 2020 outdoor meets. At GVSU, Harding arguably had his most successful season in 2021, leading the Grand Valley State Lakers to their first-ever NCAA track and field Championship. 

He had an individual performance of 14:13.78 in the 5000-meter relay earning himself an individual first-place trophy, but his second performance in the 10,000-meter relay race catapulted his team into first place as well. 

“In the previous three national championship races, I had finished in second place by a very slight margin,” Isaac said. “So, to be able to put together both a national individual title and a team national title in my hometown was surreal.”

Isaac brought a level of leadership to this team by giving maximum effort, even if the scoreboard didn’t reflect it. 

“I have to say that my deepest motivation is to maximize my potential and become the best that I can possibly be,” Isaac said. “Regardless of whether or not I am in the position to win races or not, I can always be motivated by the idea of giving my hardest possible effort.”

Now that Isaac will be going into his final season as a runner on the collegiate level, the expectations of his great running has only risen, and he understands that. Putting in maximum effort, along with the drive to be the best, is what pushes Isaac Harding at all times. 

“I know that God has given me this great gift to be able to run at an elite level, and I don’t want to waste anything he has given me and feel any regret,” Isaac said. “Whenever I do finally hang up the spikes, I want to do so knowing that I gave it everything I possibly had.”

With expectations high, Isaac is expected to come out and produce at a high level once again as the leader of this team. His past success makes it apparent that he will continue to prove that he is one of the best runners at this level. 

For now, Isaac is determined to do what he does best, which is dedicate himself to being his best, something he’s proven thus far. 

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