Champion Allison looking for more victories at Texas state meet

By Mary Albl for DyeStat

Champion Allison might not know much about the origins of his name, but it hasn’t stopped him from living up to it.

The senior from George Ranch High School, in the Houston suburb of Richmond, knows what it is to be a champion. And he’ll try to become a Texas state champion again this week at the UIL Track and Field Championships in Austin.  

Allison’s siblings all have “regular” names, he said.  

“People always ask, ‘Your name is Champion? That's cool,’ and stuff like that,” he said.

Champion was named after a grandfather who he never knew and is no longer living. He’s not sure exactly why he got the name or if there is a deeper meaning in family lore.

All he knows is that he’s got it and has been a Champion for 18 years.

“I feel like if you have that type of name, it’s kind of like you have to live up to it,” Richmond George Ranch track coach Todd Dutch said. “And it's rare to have a type of kid named ‘Champion,’ or along the lines of being a winner, and for him, he’s just being the kid that is actually living up to his name.”

Allison won the New Balance Nationals Outdoor titles in June in the 100 and 200.

He’ll enter the state track meet May 11-13 at Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin with a chance to leave as one of Texas’ all-time high school greats. He’s qualified in the 400 meters, 4x100 and 4x400 relays at the 6A level. He has the fastest 400 seed time (46.30) by nearly a full second.

“I think when it comes to being a sprinter it’s not only your physical aspects, but you’ve got to have that ‘It’ factor, when it comes to your confidence,” Dutch said. “(Champion) exudes that confidence, that once he steps on the track, he wants to win so bad.”

Known by his teammates as “Champ,” he began running in the sixth grade. He started with the 800 meters, but slowly gravitated toward the sprints. Dutch said the transition from sophomore to junior year is when Allison’s athletic gifts really started to show.

As a junior, he won the Class 5A 400 meters at the Texas state meet (46.40) before going to Greensboro, N.C. to take national titles in the 100 (wind-aided 10.44) and 200 (20.71). Along with Union Catholic NJ senior and Olympian Sydney McLaughlin, he was named the athlete of the meet.

In between the state and national meets, he was runner-up in the 200 at the Caribbean Scholastic Invitational in Cuba. Allison finished his junior season placing third at the USATF Junior National Championships and ran on the winning 4x400 relay team that won the IAAF World U20 Championships in Poland in 3:02.39.

Dutch said Allison’s range is what sets him apart.

“It’s rare for them to be extremely good at all three runs (100 through 400), and for him to be an elite athlete in the 100, 200 and 400, that’s a rare feat,” Dutch said. “He’s one the few.”

A student of the sport, Dutch describes Allison as open-minded and inquisitive. Reserved at first, he blossoms into a social butterfly the more you get to know him. Allison said growing up with the name Champion was a little weird at first. But as he got older, it grew on him and others as well.

“He enjoys the name. It’s just like anyone else's name,” Dutch said. “I think all of his friend and teammates, they get used to calling him ‘Champ.’ It undoubtedly made him better, but it also made his teammates better.”

At this year’s state meet, the Longhorns will be competing at the 6A level for the first time. They come in having won the regional team title and have a good shot to contend for gold in the 4x100 and 4x400 relays.

Allison also would like to go under 46 seconds in the 400. His personal best came April 13 when he ran 46.15.

“I know he’s capable of doing it. It’s a matter of when and where it’s going to happen,” Dutch said. “He's not chasing the time. He’s chasing the process. Trust the process and the times will come.”

The Texas state meet will likely be Allison’s last as a prep. He is headed to the University of Alabama early this summer to start his collegiate career. He said he doesn’t have plans to defend his 100 and 200 New Balance Nationals titles. But what he does want is a shot at the Texas 400-meter record, which is 45.19, set by Aldrich Bailey in 2012.

And as he’s done all his life, he’ll have a chance this week to leave the high school track a winner.

“He’s the type of athlete that lives and thrives for having that target on his back because it makes him run that much better,” Dutch said.