When Centreville’s Rickey Harris was entered in a race, it was almost a foregone conclusion that he was going to win.
"You almost got to the point where you didn’t watch him that much because you knew that he was going to win," said Centreville track coach Roy Ferri. "Your eyes snapped down to who is going to be second, third or forth."
Harris dominated the Northern Region during his four years at Centreville, placing first in the nation in the 400-meter dash, 400-meter hurdles and 110-meter hurdles during his senior year. Harris also set Virginia state records in the 110-meter hurdles, the 400-meter hurdles, the 55-meter hurdles and the 60-meter hurdles.
"I had every record," said Harris.
HARRIS BEGAN running track as a way to stay in shape for the football season. He soon learned that track was a more desirable sport to focus on.
"He started seeing that he was really fast and started thinking that his real gifts lay in track," said Harris’s mother.
Harris quit the football team to focus on track full-time.
"Track was just easier for me. Football practices were really grueling and time-consuming," said Harris. "What made track easier was that it was individual, so you didn’t have to rely on anyone else. The practices in high school were easier and I was doing so well in track that I left football."
Rickey was drawn to the individual aspect of the sport as opposed to the team dynamic of football.
"When you’re winning in track and field, you can take credit for everything," he said. "I’m a very competitive person and I like being able to beat people. When you beat people in track, you did it all by yourself."
AFTER HIS stellar freshman year, Harris said that he began to be recruited by college coaches. The idea of choosing a college was strange for Harris, who had just finished his first year of high school.
"It’s a weird kind of thing and you have these coaches coming up to you and telling you why you should go to their school," he said. "It’s difficult for me because I’m a very social person and I get along with everybody. I had a very hard time making a decision."
The recruitment process only intensified after Harris’ sophomore and junior years, where he broke the state records in the 110-meter, 400-meter and 55-meter hurdles. By the time Harris was a senior, he knew that he had to make a decision.
Harris knew that he wanted to go to an SEC school and was stuck deciding between Tennessee, South Carolina and Florida.
"The biggest reason that I chose Florida was because a lot of my friends from the area went to Florida. It was just natural to follow them," he said. "After that, all my other friends followed me. We had a family down there."
At college, Harris soon learned that his easy high school track practices had turned into a grueling training program.
"Track is not easier than football when you get to college," said Harris. "In high school, it’s unrefined – you basically go to practice and it’s not all that serious. Our workout is everyone else’s punishment. In other sports, when they do something bad, they have to go for a run. Our practice is running."
The new workouts helped Harris adjust to running at the higher level. He competed in 16 meets as a freshman – eight in indoor and eight in outdoor. He finished first in the SEC and seventh at the NCAA Championships in the 400-meter hurdles. He finished first in the 400-meter dash at the indoor NCAA Championships, tying the school record with a time of 45.78.
"I didn’t have any big expectations. I just let what happened happen. I just ran," said Harris. "I’ve always been competitive and I didn’t doubt myself."
The personal accomplishments continued for Harris throughout his college career. During his sophomore year, Harris won the NCCA title in the 400-meter hurdles and was second in the 400-meter dash. He was the first NCAA athlete since 1963 to earn All-American honors in the 400-meter hurdles and the 400-meter dash. His time of 48.16 in the 400-meter hurdles was a Florida school record and was the third-fastest time in the world at the time. He earned All-American honors again as a junior for his second-place finish in the 400-meter hurdles.
HARRIS CONTINUED his track career in 2004 by turning pro. He joined the ADIDAS track team and began competing professionally, until he tested positive for a banned substance and was suspended from competing for two years. In a press release, the United States Anti-Doping Agency said, "Harris, 24, tested positive for an amphetamine, a prohibited stimulant, at the Adidas Track Classic May 22, 2005 in Carson, Calif. Amphetamines are prohibited under the rules of the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF), the international federation for the sport of track and field, and USADA, both of which adopted the World Anti-Doping Code and the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) Prohibited List."
It was discovered that the amphetamine that Harris was taking was Dexedrine, a drug that Harris had taken since an early age to help with his attention deficient disorder.
"Rickey is so anti-doping," said his mother. "It’s been traumatic for him. He feels like it’s been a big embarrassment for him."
Harris, who was diagnosed with ADHD since the age of ten, filled out a Therapeutic Use Exemption Form to be allowed to take Dexedrine, yet USADA could not find the form.
"The drug doesn’t make you faster. I didn’t take it my freshman and sophomore year because I didn’t like the side effects. I need to take it because it helped me in school to focus and buckle down," said Harris. "I got drug tested, but I declared that I took it so it wouldn’t be a problem. USADA might have dropped the ball. That’s my personal opinion."
In May, USADA ruled that Harris was not "significantly at fault" and it reduced the suspension to one year, which ended on May 22, 2006. USADA maintains that Harris did not have prior exemption to use the prohibited substance.
With the suspension lifted, Harris is ready to get back on the track.
"I’m looking forward to reaching new goals and breaking my own personal records and running to the best of my ability," he said. "I think that I’m one of the top three runners in the nation. I just have to show it. I’m really excited about this year."
Rickey Harris is 23 in a survey of the area's Top 100 Athletes by Connection Newspapers in 2000.