Glance finished first in the 100 m at the 1976U.S. Olympic Trials.[5][6] At the1976 Montreal Olympics, Glance was a disappointing fourth in 100 m, as the United States failed to win a medal in the event.[7] He then ran the opening leg in the gold medal winning American 4 × 100 m relay team.[8] At the 1979Pan American Games, Glance was second in 100 m and won the gold medal as a member of American 4 × 100 m relay team.[9] He was also second in 4 × 100 m relay at the1979 Athletics World Cup. Glance was also in line to replaceJames Sanford in the individual 100 m race if Sanford had not recovered in time from a muscle injury.[10]
Glance again qualified for the team for the Olympic team for the1980 Moscow Olympics, finishing second in the 100 m.[5] However, due to the boycott, he did not compete at the Olympics but competed in theLiberty Bell Classic (Olympic Boycott Games) instead, winning silver in the 100 m and gold in the relay. He was a recipient of one of 461Congressional Gold Medals created especially for the spurned athletes.[11]
Glance worked first as assistant coach at Auburn University (1990–91) and then became their head coach.[12]
In 1997, he became head Men's track and field coach at theUniversity of Alabama.[13] While there, he established the 'Crimson Tide' as one of the USA's best college teams, and was able to attract many top athletes to the university includingKirani James (World 400 m champion in 2011 and Olympic 400 m champion in 2012).[14][15]
At the national level, Glance assumed the following roles:
2009 – men's head coach for Team USA at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, Germany.[12]
In recognition of his achievements, in 1996 he was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, and, most notably, he received in 2008 theCongressional Gold Medal of Freedom.[12][16]
In April 2011, Glance announced he was to retire from his role at Alabama at the end of the season.[14][17] Following his retirement, Glance continued to work as the personal coach ofKirani James, assisting in his journey to become an Olympic champion.[18]
Glance was born inPhenix City, Alabama, the son of Wheeler and Ella Glance,[19] and was educated atCentral High School in Phenix City.[20] There he was mentored in track by coach Joe Henderson,[19] who had recognized Glance's special talent.
After high school, he earned a degree in Health & Human Performance at Auburn University.[12]
Glance always recognized his potential as a coach and volunteered to work as one in Arizona whilst still an athlete.[14] Always aware of the importance of public relations and civic responsibility, Glance was a regular visitor as a student to a veterans hospital and was selected as one of five student-athletes from the 1976 Olympics team to be invited to anNCAA Honors Luncheon with thePresident of the United States.[21] His coach,Mel Rosen, was proud to state "Harvey's what I call world-class – as an athlete and as a man."[21]
Glance died of cardiac arrest at a hospital inMesa, Arizona, on June 12, 2023, at age 66.[20]
Glance was ranked among the best in the U.S. and the world in both the 100 and 200 m sprint events over the incredible spread of 12 seasons from 1976 to 1987, according to the votes of the experts ofTrack & Field News.
^Tom Caroccioli; Jerry Caroccioli (May 2008).Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. Highland Park, IL: New Chapter Press. pp. 243–253.ISBN978-0942257403.
^"Harvey Glance". rolltide.com. Archived fromthe original on January 15, 2010. RetrievedMarch 2, 2012. University of Alabama Crimson Tide – Harvey Glance.
