"He wanted to make sure the program was in good hands with all the big changes made before he left," said John Kerr, the men's soccer coach. "He improved many facilities and got all of us coaches full time assistants, which in today's world is an increasing necessity if you want to compete with other programs."

Cleary's performance as athletic director was consistent with his national reputation as one of the foremost advocates for amateur athletics. In 1956, he was part of the silver medal-winning U.S. Olympic hockey team. He won a gold medal four years later. He was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1989, and he received the Lester Patrick Award in 1997 for contributions to hockey.

Under his leadership, Harvard has also worked to offer more opportunities for women athletes. There are more women's programs at Harvard than in any other school in the nation, and its teams have achieved national success.

In 1998, the women's hockey team won the national championship and the basketball team became the first No. 16 seed in the history of the NCAA tournament--men's or women's--to knock off the top seed. In May, the softball team advanced to the NCAA tournament and just this past November, the women's soccer team made it to the NCAA quarterfinals.

"Cleary was really a proponent of athletics for all," said Jenny Allard, the women's softball coach. "The JV women's hockey program started under his tenure. The kids came together and proposed it, and he said sure. If there was interest, he was all for it."

The only major criticism that has been leveled against Cleary over the past 10 years has been his inability to hire minority coaches. Despite efforts to extend feelers into black coaches' organizations, virtually all of his appointees to top positions have been white.

Moreover, while athletes and coaches have had access to him, his policies have not always been transparent to the greater student body. Cleary declined to be interviewed for this story, as has been his policy over the past several years towards The Harvard Crimson.