One of the first high jumpers to use the straddle technique, Dave Albritton had a long career that spanned three decades and numerous titles. He also had a number of similarities with all-time great Jesse Owens. Both were born in Danville, Ala.; both attended East Technical High School in Cleveland; both competed in the 1936 Olympic Games; and both are members of the National Track & Field Hall of Fame. As a sophomore at Ohio State, Albritton won the National Collegiate Athletic Association championship in 1936. At the Olympic Trials that year, he and Cornelius Johnson both jumped a world-record height of 6' 9 3/4" and tied at 6' 8" at the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) championships. At the Berlin Olympics, Albritton finished second to Johnson with a leap of 6' 6 3/4". He claimed the silver medal in a jump-off after he and two other jumpers cleared the same height. Albritton won two more NCAA titles, in 1937 and 1938; was AAU champion in 1937, 1946 and 1947, and tied for the title in 1938, 1945, and 1950; he also tied for the AAU indoor title in 1944. He later became a politician and served in the Ohio House of Representatives.
World Record: High Jump - 2.08 m (July 12, 1936 - )
1936 Olympics: High Jump (2nd) 1936 AAU: High Jump (1st) 1937 AAU: High Jump (1st) 1938 AAU: High Jump (1st) 1944 AAU: High Jump (1st) 1945 AAU: High Jump (1st) 1946 AAU: High Jump (1st) 1947 AAU: High Jump (1st) 1950 AAU: High Jump (1st) 1937 NCAA: High Jump (1st) 1938 NCAA: High Jump (1st)
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives