Most college aspirations do not culminate with an opportunity to attend Harvard.
For Rogersville’s Gunnar Allison, he’s not just going to attend; he has a spot on the Harvard track and field team.
“Sometimes I don’t feel worthy to be going there,” said Allison. “After talking to the coaches, I could tell they were very invested in the athletes. We were on the same page, had the same goals and we want to accomplish great things and I immediately knew I wanted to be a part of it.”
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As a thrower in high school, Allison took home a silver medal in the shot put (56’01”) and bronze in the discus (182’02”) at the MSHSAA Class 4 state track and field championships this spring to cap off his senior year. The all-stater also held the top marks locally for both events this year (shot put, 57’10.25”; discus, 183’11”).
It didn’t all come easy for Gunnar this year, though. In the district meet, he was doing his best to qualify for sectionals when he suffered a torn hamstring.
“There was high stress at the end of senior year,” Allison said. “I was taking hard classes and filling my time. If I wasn’t studying, I was with my family or girlfriend. And after I suffered my injury, I didn’t experience the success I usually had. The hamstring injury just killed me. I barely qualified for state and it put into perspective that it is just a game. Any moment in time, one throw, or one hit in football, or one play in basketball can lead to an injury that can put you out for a while.”
Unfortunately this is something Allison knows about all too well. He was a three-sport athlete in high school before injuries derailed his football and basketball career.
His sophomore year, he developed tendonitis as a basketball player and decided to stay away from the hardwood.
Then as a junior, a brutal hit on the grid iron left Allison with a concussion that halted his football career and steered him in a different direction as a high school athlete.
“I suffered a bad concussion in week three of my junior year,” he said. “It hit me more than I expected. I decided to forgo my senior season of football for academics and to focus more on track and field.”
Perhaps it wasn’t the worst thing that could have happened. Now with a narrower focus, he could spend more time preparing academically for the Ivy League.
“Coming out of Rogersville, I hadn’t had the exposure that many kids had that are going to Harvard,” Allison said. “Many of them went to advanced schools and prep schools, took AP classes and AP tests, and some kids had over 40 hours of testing… I’ll be venturing into a new world of academics with a new level of expectations.
“The goal is not to compare myself to other students there. The goal is to pursue a level of knowledge and intellect that fits me, performing at a high level and meeting the expectations of an Ivy League student. I’m not just going in for the grades, but I want to commit to an education that’s on a totally different level that will stay with you throughout the rest of life.”
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Allison intends to study at the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard.
“It’s arguably the best engineering school in the country,” he said. “I’m not sure if I will pursue mechanical or civil engineering, and to be honest I won’t know for sure until I meet with my advisors.”
There will be plenty of challenges for the presumptive engineering major outside the classroom, too. In addition to honing his technique with the shot and discus, he’ll try his hand at the weight throw and hammer throw, two events that are not offered at the high school level in Missouri.
It shouldn’t be a problem for Allison. He’s been preparing to be a thrower since before he even picked up a shot or disc.
He credits his success on the field to his family and specifically his older sister, Carlie Allison. She competed in the same events as Gunnar in junior high and high school at Rogersville. She’s currently interning at the Olympic training center in Colorado Springs as a student at Missouri State.
“It started in fifth or sixth grade watching my sister throw in junior high,” said Gunnar. “I was a little kid going to watch her perform and I was like a sponge absorbing all of that knowledge. I credit my beginning to my sister and my dad.”
Allison is one of those guys who oozes with promise and capability. So when it comes to plans in the long term, beyond his days at Harvard and as a thrower, it’s no surprise that he has great perspective.
“I’ve been very blessed and want to give more time to other people,” said Allison, “whether it’s giving advice as an athlete, or coaching throws when I’m older, every day I can give more time to others because I have a platform.
“That’s the worth you get out of life: not what you do for yourself but what you do to help others. It’s kind of vague, but that’s the direction I want to take and that’s the outlook I want to have to shape my actions and behaviors.”
