I feel much more confident in both my sport and my academics. I feel very set and ready to go for entering the physical therapy program and knocking it out of the park at North Central.”

Gabrielle Harding

Former Rochelle student-athlete Gabrielle Harding wasn’t ready to let her track and field career end after what she felt was a challenging senior season at Concordia University Chicago. 

Harding graduated in the spring and received her bachelor’s degree in pre-physical therapy. As she looked for schools to continue her education, Harding felt a strong desire to return to track and field for one more season. Her search led to a visit at North Central College, where she was offered an opportunity to pursue her doctorate in physical therapy and continue her throwing career. Now preparing for her fifth and final season, Harding is eager to prove herself.

“My intention was to get into a doctoral program for physical therapy,” Harding said. “I told myself that I wanted to do a fifth year because, as an athlete, I didn’t feel that I was done… North Central checked so many boxes for me academically and that’s when I started looking into doing a fifth year. I found out they’re already working with an athlete on the track team who’s also doing a fifth year and is in the doctoral program… I wasn’t sure I’d be able to do this, but it was a blessing to hear that their program is willing to adhere to whatever goals I had.”

Harding spent four years with the women’s track and field team at Concordia. She set a personal record of 49.93 meters (163 feet 10 inches) in the hammer throw during the 2023 NACC Outdoor Championships, where she finished first. The RTHS alum also concluded her four-year stint at Concordia with personal bests of 15.15 meters (49 feet 8 ½ inches) in the weight throw, 38.81 meters (127 feet 4 inches) in the discus throw and 12.20 meters (40 feet ½ inches) in the shot put. Harding currently specializes in the discus and hammer throw.

“Concordia was a small school and our track meets were small,” Harding said. “I knew everyone on my team and all of my teammates knew me. What I really loved was being together with my teammates after each meet and I loved that all of my teammates were there for me. There were times when I would be competing and then suddenly I’d have 10-to-15 teammates cheering one on. We had a connection and my teammates pushed me as much as I pushed them. The community we had was one of the best things that I experienced over the last four years.”

Although Harding didn’t establish a new personal record during her senior season, she was once again named an All-NACC thrower, finishing third in the hammer throw at the 2024 NACC Outdoor Championships. The former Lady Hub standout was also one of only three Concordia student-athletes to be selected for the CSC Academic All-District team for the 2023-24 season. Harding described her senior year as one of personal growth and overcoming challenges.

“My senior year was a learning curve,” Harding said. “I didn’t feel that I was proving what I could do, but my coaches pushed me and showed me how much I’ve accomplished. I worked a lot on my technique in the hammer throw and I spent my whole senior year practicing with a four-turn throw instead of a three-turn throw… I feel more comfortable in the ring than I was as a junior and I feel that my technique has grown so much despite that not showing in the record books. I’m happy with where I’m at now and I’m excited for the upcoming season at North Central.”

Among Harding’s strongest outings during her senior year were a second-place finish in weight throw at the 2024 Margaret Bradley Invitational in Chicago as well as second-place finishes in both the discus and hammer throw at the 2024 Green & White Invite in Milwaukee. Harding also recorded third-place finishes in hammer throw at the 2024 Warrior Invitational in Milwaukee and the 2024 ONU Tiger Open in Bourbonnais. As she moves on to North Central, Harding said her goal is to graduate in May 2027 with her doctorate and pursue a career as a physical therapist.

“I feel much more confident in both my sport and my academics,” Harding said. “I feel very set and ready to go for entering the physical therapy program and knocking it out of the park at North Central. I’m hoping that my confidence keeps growing as I enter my fifth year of track and field. Even though I’ll only be with the team for one year, I want to help them in any way I can.”