19 Sep HU Alum Sets Training for 2016 Olympics

After graduating from Huntington University in 2009 with degrees in exercise science, Nick and Lauren (Davenport) Johnson graduated moved to Eugene, Ore. There, Lauren turned her running talent into a career…and has set her sights on the US Olympic team.

After a few months of training, Lauren competed in the 2010 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She also enticed Nike to become her sponsor. Her main event has been the mile. At HU her events included the 400 meter hurdles, 400 meter dash and 4×400 relay, and she set the HU record in the 800 meter run.

Lauren began running with the Oregon Track Club, an elite track and field team sponsored by Nike and comprised of Olympic competitors and medal winners. It was simply a good career move.

“I had missed being part of a team and wanted to surround myself with other elite athletes with the same focus and goals as myself,” she said.

But joining the team opened other doors. Nick, an accomplished runner himself, began volunteering with the team as much as possible, and those connections helped him become director of operations and assistant coach for the Oregon Track Club. Nick now manages the budget, arranges travel plans, organizes medical care, and maintains community relations. He also assists the head coach in creating workout plans for each athlete.

“I can’t think of a better way to make a living than by participating in the sport that my wife and I share a passion for,” he said.

Lauren is working to be in the best shape possible for the approaching season.

“I have had some bad luck with injuries the last two seasons and have yet to be able to race to my full potential,” she said. “Right now, I am beginning my preparation for the 2014 indoor track season, and hope to stay healthy and race a full 2014 schedule.”

Lauren Davenport was recruited out of Huntington North High School to play basketball for Huntington University, and went on to a stellar career there. She was named to the All America Third Team in NAIA Division II. She says she always viewed herself as a basketball player who also ran track and cross country to stay in shape. But now, running is first.

The former Foresters’ plans for the future are all focused on the 2016 Olympics in Brazil. To make the USA Olympic team, Lauren must finish in the top three at the U.S. Olympic Trials, which will be held in June 2016 in their hometown, Eugene, Ore.