PARIS, France — At North Mason High School, CJ Allen won a state title in the 110-meter hurdles as a junior and another state crown in the 400-meter hurdles as a senior.
Now a Paris Olympics representative for Team USA, Allen's fan club made the trip all the way from Allyn to support him.
"It's been super special. We've been in this track family for a lot of years. He's been hurdling for 19. I started him off as his coach in elementary school and from there he's just excelled," Allen's father Jeff told KING 5.
After North Mason High School, Allen went to Washington State University, where he became a two-time Pacific-12 Conference champion.
"I wouldn't trade that for anything. My Washington State coach is out here with me right now. So we've been together for 10 years, best coach I could have ever asked for," Allen told KING 5 of his experience as a Cougar.
In 2023, he broke the American national record for the 400m hurdles. Now, he's going up against the best in the world at his first Olympics.
"I talked to my agent last night on the phone, and he was a world champ 200m sprinter. His advice to me was just to enjoy this, enjoy this moment. This has been 19 years of my career's hard work coming here and this has been my dream since fifth grade," Allen said.
While Allen has relocated to the Atlanta area and works as a chiropractor, he hasn't forgotten his roots in the small town of Allyn, located southwest of Bremerton on the Kitsap Peninsula.
Allen will run in the 400m semi-finals at the Paris Olympics on Wednesday.