Harry Gissing

Harry Gissing was an American middle-distance runner, who competed for the New York Athletic Club, the Mohawk Athletic Club, and the Irish American Athletic Club. His first major achievements were the junior AAU half-mile championship and the second place in the senior championship, both in 1908. He won the 1,000 yd national AAU Indoor Championship in three consecutive years from 1908-10 and was placed in the top eight in the world rankings in these years. In 1909, he claimed silver at the AAU championships in half mile and the mile after winning the New York Metropolitan AAU championship over 880 yd. He ran his best-ever time in the 800 m in June 1912 and was selected for the Olympic team over this distance but did not start.

Together with Jim Rosenberger, non-Olympian Harry Schaaf and Mel Sheppard, Gissing was a member of the Irish American Athletic Club 4 x 440 y relay team that set the first IAAF-recognized world record for this relay race in 1911, with a time of 3:18.8. He also ran the anchor leg regularly with the New York Athletic Club relay team.

Gissing married three times: Mabel Frances Lewis, Mary V. Gissing, and Helen Donahue. He had one daughter with his first wife.