Danny Lee Harris is an American former track and field athlete who specialized in the 400-meter hurdles. He won silver medals at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and the 1987 World Championships in Rome, both behind Edwin Moses. His time of 48.02 in 1984 at age 18 is still the current world junior record. Harris's greatest moment came at a meeting in Madrid in 1987 where he defeated Edwin Moses—who had been undefeated since 1977. Later in the same year, Harris came very close to defeating Moses again in a dramatic final at the World Championships, but Moses defended his title by 2/100 of a second. Harris could not take part in the 1988 Olympics, just finishing fifth at the 1988 United States Olympic trials in Indianapolis. Danny Harris is an alumnus of Perris High School in Perris, California, where he grew up. In 1983, he won the CIF California State Championship in the 300 hurdles, and ran a thrilling anchor leg vs Hawthorne High School's Henry Thomas in the team's second place 4×400 metres relay team, leading Perris to its most impressive showing at the event. He returned to coach the boys' track team in 2001, and he led them to their first League Championship since he ran for the school almost 20 years earlier. Harris competed collegiately at Iowa State University. He collected three national championships and four Drake Relay titles while at Iowa State. He was never beaten by a collegiate athlete in the 400-meter hurdles during his time at Iowa State. Harris helped lead the Cyclones to three outdoor Big Eight team titles and two indoor crowns during his three-year career, collecting 12 Big Eight career titles. Harris set Big Eight records in the 400 hurdles, 600 yards and 4x400 relay. He was inducted into the Drake RelaysHall of Fame in 1995, the Iowa State Hall of Fame in 2000, and the Iowa Sports Hall of Fame in 2005. Harris' personal best for the 400 m hurdles is 47.38 seconds, set at Lausanne in July 1991. That time still ranks him the #12 performer of all time.
