At the age of 7, Justin Easter '03 predicted that he would be an Olympic athlete. Twelve years later, Easter -- who competes in cross-country, Nordic skiing and outdoor track -- pursues his Olympic dreams on the Bates training ground. His athletic skills, combined with some fierce determination, have brought him both recognition and honor in collegiate circles. For every season he's competed, Easter has qualified for the NCAA championships. In the spring of 2000, he received his first All-American honors in the steeplechase, an outdoor track event.

Though his future ambitions are lofty, Easter, an English major from Jay, Maine, is careful not to get ahead of himself. "I'm just trying to be a better athlete right now," he said. One of his immediate goals is to improve on his NCAA performances. "I want to win a national meet terribly bad," he explained. "I've got great teams and great coaches supporting that goal. With their help, it's something I could possibly do."

Winning a national meet would be the first step in achieving his ultimate goal: the one he set at age 7. Whether or not those Olympic dreams are actually realized, Easter hopes to be considered one of the better athletes to have graduated from Bates. "It's important for me to know that I when I leave here, people will recognize the fact that I wore a Bates uniform and worked as hard as I could to represent our school."

- by Jennifer Giblin '01