Harvard Swimmers Seeing Wave of Faith After Olympic Visitor
The men’s swim team at Harvard University is seeing a wave of faith take place, spurred in part by a recent visit from Olympic gold medalist Josh Davis. In the months since Davis spent a few hours on the campus for an event organized by Athletes in Action campus director Darin McFarland, at least two young men have come to faith in Christ and others are moving in that direction.
Davis was a student in McFarland’s AIA group while he served at the University of Texas in the early 1990s. With work already going 
on in the men’s swim program, McFarland knew Davis’ visit could be key to growing the work God was doing there. Davis did a 45-minute swim clinic with both the men’s and women’s swim teams at Harvard, then gave a 45-minute message from the bleachers.
“He gave a talk about his seven steps to success. The last few steps, he mentioned his faith a lot and how it helped him get through school and swimming and excelling in both,” says Greg Roop, a junior who has been leading the AIA Bible study for the swim team. “His reputation as a swimmer and his ability as a speaker really got people’s attention.”
Leaders seeing growth on team
Roop has been involved with AIA since his freshman year at Harvard, coming to college as a pastor’s child from Chattanooga, Tenn. Looking for a place to get involved with other believers on campus, he was invited to the Bible study by a teammate and got plugged into the larger weekly group meetings as well. Now, as a junior neurobiology major, Roop is excited to be part of the spiritual movement that is taking place.
“It’s thrilling for me. I’ve never been a part of anything like this before,” says Roop, who competes in middle-distance freestyle and butterfly events. “I’ve never seen that many people come to Christ and be transformed. As athletes, we don’t usually have a lot of time to talk about spiritual things with others, so it’s been great to see the work that God’s doing on our team.”
Roop has been working with McFarland to encourage and follow-up with students who indicated more interest on comment cards passed out to participants. Among the first visits were two seniors on the team, including team captain Matt McLean, a distance freestyle swimmer. Roop joined a dinner meeting with McLean, who the next day indicated he had prayed and received Christ. He is now attending Roop’s study group.
“I’m a little more focused and leading a better life now,” said McLean. “Talking to these guys at the Bible study on Sunday helps me too. Just hearing some of these guys I train with every day talk about their faith gives me a boost for the week.”
Visit having ripple effect
McLean said his involvement in AIA is helping him see how his faith can integrate into every area of his life, especially his sport. He’s also seeing how he can open doors for McFarland with other campus athletes and use his influence and platform for positive impact.
McLean’s roommate and teammate, Dave Lynch, began to notice the changes taking place. That spurred a renewed sense of importance for him in his own faith.
“My faith was really put on the back burner at Harvard, and part of me was really embarrassed about that,” Lynch says. “I really want my faith to be large part of my life from now on.”
Lynch, who swims the backstroke and individual medley, is preparing to graduate and work in investment banking on Wall Street. He sees the importance of building his faith foundation back up before he leaves the college environment.
Davis said the visit to Harvard was a highlight for him since he connects so well with collegiate swimmers given his past experiences.
“What happened that day was really fun and fruitful,” says Davis. “I came away with such a wonderful feeling of teamwork with God and the Holy Spirit. I was able to come in as an Olympic medalist and have an immediate audience with the whole swim team. I wanted to share with them everything I know about how to maximize their swim career.”
Davis credited a strong foundation of both McFarland’s work on the Harvard campus and the swimmers who were already faithful Christ-followers with helping his visit make the greatest impact. McFarland says he is just trying to capitalize on the momentum that Davis’ visit started on campus.
“His visit accomplished more than I could have done with the swim team at Harvard in 20 years,” McFarland says. “Athletic ministry makes such an impact when Christian athletes understand that they are stewards of their talents and abilities. Good stewardship then gives them tremendous opportunities to glorify Christ.”
For a separate feature on Josh Davis, click here.
By Teresa Young, AIA Communications
Photos courtesy Darin McFarland, AIA: Above, Harvard swimmer Greg Roop models Josh Davis’ gold medals. At top, Davis gives a clinic on technique for Harvard swimmers.
by teresa young
20. January 2012 12:08
Campus Ministry | News