As a boy, Phil Harrington, Zeta Beta/Adrian 2007, had dreams of playing in the NFL. But after four years of playing college football and some time playing semi-pro arena football, he decided that he needed to find a sport that better suited his build.
“I was first introduced to the sport of Bobsled and Skeleton through a colleague late in 2011,” said Harrington. “That is when the goal became the 2018 Winter Games. I decided that Skeleton would benefit me better than bobsled due to my physical build, (5'8 170 lbs). Average build for bobsled is about 6'2”, 220 lbs, while skeleton is about 5'9”, 175 lbs.,” he continued. “Originally, I was to start sliding during the fall of 2012 but decided to hold off due to my commitment of coaching college football,” he added.
Harrington recently put his coaching commitment on hold to pursue his Olympic dreams. In August he completed a Skeleton Combine (single man bobsled) at Lake Placid, N.Y., and did so well that he has been invited back to participate in another combine in November if he can raise the necessary funds.
“During the off season, I am training 5-6 days per week, (roughly 15 hour per week). Training consists of Plyometrics, Power Cleans, Squats, Over Head Presses and lots of Sprints,” said Harrington. “In Season the amount of weight room training is dialed back to allow more ice time,” he added.
To reach the 2018 Olympics, Harrington will need to work his way to the top, a journey he feels he is ready to take.
“If I get the funding needed, I should be starting the Developmental program in January,” he said. “That will be the first of four levels, so I have my work cut out for me,” Harrington continued. “There are competitions each year to decide who slides at what level. I plan on being at the top level come 2018 so that I can compete for a spot on the 2018 Winter Team,” he said.
When asked how being a Theta Chi had assisted him in his goals, Harrington had this to say…
“To be completely honest, I’m not sure I would be the person I am or have the life that I live if it were not for Theta Chi and college football,” said Harrington. “I attended Adrian College, and was only planning on staying the first semester so I could transfer,” he continued. “I joined Theta Chi that fall and everything changed, I graduated in 4.5 yrs, played 4 yrs of college football and even went on the earn a Master’s degree. The two biggest lessons that I took from my time as an undergrad were 'Extending the Helping Hand', and 'Adding to the fire.' When adding to the fire, always expect to make sacrifices. The greater the dream, the greater the sacrifice and trust me it’s not always easy as I made a professional sacrifice in stepping away from coaching college football to slide into the 2018 Winter Games,” he said.
If you would like to help Brother Harrington achieve his Olympic Dream by making a donation, visit https://www.rallyme.com/rallies/271