James River Track Star Seeks First in States

BUCHANAN (WSLS 10 SPORTS) - Like many of us, as a kid, he was told not to play with the ball inside the house, but now one James River senior has found a way to put a ball and a disc to good use.

To the average person numbers like 55 and 170 mean nothing, but to Michael Albert they would mean the world. The shot put and discus thrower has had a stellar senior season.

"A couple weeks ago I broke the school record at the Joe Curcio Track Classic at Liberty. I threw 53 feet 6 inches. At Cosmos I threw 54 feet 4 1/4 inches. So I broke the school record again," said Albert.

He followed those performances by winning both the discus and shot put at the Knights Track Classic last Saturday. He sits at the top as the best in all of 2A.

"Michael is a blue-collar athlete. Michael takes everything as hard as he can go and goes all the time. He does the background work," said coach Greg Dyer.

Albert says it's all about footwork and technique. He makes it look easy but I can tell you it isn't. While at practice I walked through the spin technique and held the 12 pound ball just to see how heavy it is. It proved to be much heavier than most would think. As a result I let Mike do the throwing part.

Despite being successful, Albert admits it's hard to stay motivated at times since track is an individual sport. He mentally prepares by zoning out everything and everyone.

As for how his family feels about him throwing things now, Albert said, "I will be doing spin work around the house. I've even hit a couple of my siblings doing spins in the kitchen and in the living room it's so much fun."

Aside from winning the championship this year Albert says his other goal is to take his talents to the college level.


About the Author:

Eric is no stranger to the Roanoke Valley. He is a Roanoke native and proud graduate of William Fleming High School.