The record wasn't chiseled in stone. But it might as well have been.
Back in 1961, Leon DeLassus of Helias won the Class B 440-yard dash state title with a time of 49.9 at Memorial Stadium in Columbia. That broke his previous school record of 50.4.
The record stood. And stood. The 440 became the 400-meter dash. The record stood. And stood.
Fifty-one years later, Griffin McCurren made it his goal to break it.
"I worked hard in the off-season and worked really hard in practice all year to try and get it," McCurren said. "I really wanted to get to state and break the record."
Done and done. McCurren ran a 49.33 at the district championships to establish the new mark and will run at the Class 3 state championships starting today at Dwight T. Reed Stadium.