What’s better: racing or meeting Usain Bolt?

Members of the Harvard men’s and women’s track team will decide for themselves this Thursday through Saturday as the team competes at the University of Pennsylvania’s 116th Penn Relays. A squad of thirteen women and ten men left earlier today to take part in the oldest and largest track and field carnival in the United States.

The Penn Relays, which normally draw an audience of 100,000 or more, ranks third behind the World Championships and the Olympics in size and prestige.

While the Crimson’s first race begins tomorrow afternoon with freshman Melissa Bellin competing in the 400-meter hurdles event, the main highlight of the event will take place on Saturday as Bolt and team Jamaica takes on team USA in the 4x100 meter relay.

While Harvard will not be racing in that event, the Crimson looks to challenge over 11,000 athletes from other colleges in the country. Top events for Harvard include senior Jack Brady’s performances in the shot put and discus throws on Friday, and the hammer throw on Saturday.

The men and women’s 4x800 teams will also prove to be exciting events. The women’s squad, consisting of junior co-captain Thea Lee, sophomore Meghan Looney, junior Hilary May and freshman Carlyle Davis, will see top competition from both the Ivy League and track powerhouses like the University of Tennessee, which broke all four records in last year’s event and returns two of its four runners.

The men’s side will be no less challenging for the Crimson’s freshman Jeffrey Homer, junior Brian Hill, and sophomores Darcy Wilson and Brian Paison, as 15 teams enter the competition with times under 7:20.