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Clovis coach CJ Albertson garners national attention, finishes 10th at Boston Marathon

CJ Albertson was interviewed after his race at the Boston Marathon by CBS Boston WBZ 4.
CJ Albertson was interviewed after his race at the Boston Marathon by CBS Boston WBZ 4.
Posted: Oct 12, 2021

Clovis Community College head coach CJ Albertson likely won't forget his 28th birthday. Albertson, who leads the Crush cross country and track programs, gained national attention on Monday morning as he stormed out to a big lead at the 125th annual Boston Marathon.

Albertson got off to a fast start and separated himself from a pack of some of the top marathon runners in the world. He held that lead all by himself for around half of the 26.2-mile race and was finally caught and overtaken at the notorious "Heartbreak Hill" near the 20-mile mark.

He went on to finish in 10th place in the men's professional division race with an official time of 2:11:44. Spectators along the course, social media, as well as the media covering the event were all asking, "who is this guy?" He was interviewed by media outlets after the race and was highlighted in numerous news stories online.

The Clovis and Fresno community know him well. Albertson, a native of Fresno and Buchanan High School graduate, launched the Crush men's and women's cross country programs in 2018 and did the same with track and field teams a year later.

On the course, Albertson continues his climb towards being recognized as one of the top competitors in the United States.  In 2020, he placed seventh in the marathon at the US Olympic Trials with a time of 2:11:49, nearly earning a spot of the Olympic team. He currently holds world records in the indoor marathon (2:17:59) and 50K (2:42:30).

Albertson will make his return to the cross country course, this time as head coach for the Clovis cross country teams, on Saturday (Oct. 16) at the Ryan Nunez Bobcat Invitational in Merced.