“I played just about every other sport growing up. My mom ran in high school, so she made me try it out my freshman year. I didn’t want to, but she made me do it.”
Now-star senior runner Harrison Witt’s semi-reluctant start to his career isn’t uncommon. Two of the greatest American distance runners of all time, Grant Fisher and Galen Rupp, had to be poached from their high school soccer teams.
Nevertheless, Witt has found his calling in the sport. So far in his senior year, the Colorado native has run the fastest mile in Ivy League history — top 15 in the nation ever — and helped the Tigers continue their dominance of Ivy League cross country and track and field. He told the ‘Prince’ that he will exercise his remaining NCAA eligibility at the University of Virginia next year.
Entering Princeton thinking he was “a bit of a hotshot,” Witt experienced ups and downs in his transition to college athletics. However, the ultimate down would not manifest until his sophomore year.
“The first indoor meet in January, I broke my foot mid-race. Then, I raced on it again because I had a lot of adrenaline and wanted to help the team, so that broke it more,” Witt recalled.
He didn’t run for four months and missed two entire track seasons. But by his junior year, he was back to mixing it up with the Ivy League’s best and was primed for a stellar senior campaign.
Entering his senior year, Witt had never scored, i.e., finished as one of Princeton’s top five runners in a varsity cross country race. But in his final season on the grass, he arrived as a top contributor.
He placed fifth on the team at the Ivy League Heptagonal Championships, known as “Heps,” to clinch the squad’s fourth consecutive Ivy title, and he was the fourth orange jersey across the finish line at the Mid-Atlantic regional meet, helping send the team to nationals.
“This year we graduated a ton of guys, and the team needed me to step up. Part of the reason I broke through was just because I had to,” he explained to the ‘Prince.’ “I started to believe in myself more and more.”
Witt has not only grown into a more competitive role on the Tigers’ distance squad, he’s also taken on more leadership as well.
“Harrison’s like my big brother. I’m so grateful to have him as a friend and teammate,” junior Connor McCormick said to the ‘Prince.’ “Harrison’s consistently looking out for every guy on our team, making sure they feel supported and valued. He’s the best leader I could ask for.”
Highlighting this penchant for mentorship, Witt shared that his favorite moment in a Princeton jersey came not in one of his many wins, but in a loss.
In the 2024 indoor Heps 1000m final, Witt led the whole race but was overtaken at the line by first-year teammate Collin Boler. He was unfazed by the last-second change in the lead and the loss of a first-place finish.
“I [was] so happy that I was able to race hard with my teammate, and we got a lot of points for the team. I [was] so happy for [Boler],” Witt explained to the ‘Prince.’
While he’s stepped up in all areas this year, Witt has seen no greater leaps than in the mile.
This past indoor season, he eclipsed the iconic four-minute barrier four times — five, if you count a 3:51.58 1600m split in the distance medley relay (DMR). The 1600m is nine meters short of a full mile. At the Boston University Valentine Invitational, he introduced himself to the distance-running world, clocking a 3:52.87 time to earn the win over a field of 354 runners. This time made him the 15th fastest NCAA collegiate runner ever and is over three seconds clear of any other Ivy League mark.
Even when he’s not racing at his best, Witt still records strong times. He pushed hard from the front at the NCAA Championships mile and paid the price, finishing 10th, still the best Princeton finish in the event since 2012.
“It’s a great sweet spot. I have the speed from the 800 to be able to kick hard, but I have the endurance to be able to run the fast pace,” Witt said of the mile distance.
However, the 1600-meter race seems to be the sweet spot for many other runners too. You see, the indoor mile is in the middle of a revolution.
In February, the six-year-old world record was broken by Yared Nuguse at 3:46.63, and the new mark didn’t even last six days when Jakob Ingebrigtsen ran a 3:45.14. In fact, the three fastest times ever have all been run this year, as well as six of the top seven and 10 of the top 15.
In the NCAA, the story is the same. North Carolina’s Ethan Strand became the first collegiate runner to break 3:50, running 3:48.32 this January. Eight of the top 15 times ever run in the NCAA, including Witt’s 3:52.87, were produced in 2025.
But what is driving this surge in performances? Is it new shoe technology, or maybe a new sodium bicarbonate supplement that’s sweeping the distance circuit? Witt credits — and makes use of — both of these, but he also endorses another popular theory, the mental game.
“Part of my success, I think, is attributed to the fact that I saw guys around the league running 3:52 that I think I’m better than,” Witt told the ‘Prince.’ “When other people break that barrier, it makes you realize that you also can. There’s no reason that I should limit my potential.”
Distance running is one of the most mentally demanding sports, and it seems this barrier-breaking mentality is proliferating through the NCAA. The league’s top times aren’t just faster than those of yesterday’s collegians. Even as the pros chart new frontiers in the sport, the college kids continue to narrow the gap.
“The NCAA is basically a professional league at this point, which is really cool,” Witt explained. “It’s really special to be a part of as an American middle-distance runner.”
Witt is closer than ever to being a pro runner. After his next year of competition at Virginia, a professional contract is well within the realm of possibility.
“That’s the dream that everyone has when they’re a kid is to be a pro athlete. I’ve dreamed about that for a long time,” he said to the ‘Prince.’ “Right now, I’m a lot closer than I ever thought I would be to seriously considering a professional career.”
“I absolutely think I’m in the best shape of my life, and I can pretty much compete with the best guys in the world at this point,” he added.
Witt may be a revolutionary, pushing the boundaries of mid-distance running, but he is not a one-man army. His ascent to the NCAA’s upper echelon is primarily a product of years of hard work and consistency, but it’s also the result of those who surround and uplift him.
“These guys are the reason I race so hard,” Witt told the ‘Prince.’ “They make unbelievable sacrifices for our greater good that will never be recognized, and I want to honor their efforts every time I am lucky enough to wear our orange and black jersey.”
As he looks to take his next steps in the sport, his family and past and present Princeton teammates will surely provide crucial support along the way.
Luke Stockless is a staff Sports writer for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com
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