He looks old but remember he's only 31. IF his body holds together, AND his will/focus remains, he could try for Tokyo as a 35 year old.
He looks old but remember he's only 31. IF his body holds together, AND his will/focus remains, he could try for Tokyo as a 35 year old.
"Wrong. Manzano is proud of his Mexican heritage, but he is prouder to be an American. La Raza he's not."
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Which begs the question?........Will Estrada do a "south of the border" and run for 'El Guey' in order to get to Rio?
And he didn't have a sponsor for a while.
I first met Leo when I was a freshmen in High School and he was a senior. Thanks to an older brother who ran the year before, I had the privilege to watch Leo dominate the UIL Region III-4A XC meet as an 8th grader and was a fan from that day forward.
When we arrived at the Regional meet my freshmen year, I was an absolute nobody who had yet to break 18:00 for 3 miles. But, as a fan of the sport, I recognized the Marbel Falls ISD school bus in our hotel parking lot as a clear indicator I might bump into Leo. After checking into my room, I walked out and there was the legend himself in the room next to me. I thought for sure the guy wouldn't give me the time of day; after all (if memory serves correct, he'd run 4:06 that spring as a junior) he was one of the biggest names in Texas distance running and I was just a dorky 14 year old that wanted to become better.
Leo stood out on that balcony in Huntsville, TX for nearly 30 minutes fielding questions from me without batting an eye. He talked about his training, his family, his goals. He was honest, open, and incredibly humble. Before he headed off to check out the course with his coach, I grabbed a pen and paper out of my bag and asked for an autograph.
To this day, I'm thankful I held on to it. In true Leo fashion, he didn't make it about himself. He simply wrote out "Work hard, and never be afraid to chase your dreams. -Leo Manzano"
I graduated high school a 6-time regional, 2-time state champion and the simple lessons of caring less about self, more about others, working hard, and dreaming big that Leo imparted to me that day stuck with me. I owe a debt of gratitude to him for taking the time to inspire a kid most others would have never given 30 seconds of their time to say hello to.
It's safe to say the state of Texas and those who have had the privilege of meeting him over the years have been thrilled to see such a class act be as successful as Leo has and wish him the best of luck as he continues in the sport he's gained so much from but, undoubtedly, has given much more back to.
Got to hang with him out on Sunday night. Gained even more respect for him. Nicest guy you can imagine.
A phenomenal talent. Didn't he take the entire summer off from running when he was at UT (to work in a restaurant, as I remember it -- could be wrong), and that spring win the NCAA 1,500-meter title? Phenomenal.
Red Blood Cells wrote:
Manzano is the epitome of a championship racer. He will look awful all season finishing last or close to it in every race, but when it comes time to race for a medal he is suddenly a totally different runner.
I've always been a fan of Leo but I was very happy to see who I believe the legitimate top 3 1500M men are in the U.S. qualify for Rio.
I believe that Clayton Murphy is probably the 2nd or 3rd best US 1500 runner, but he couldn't afford to chase the standard at the trials with the 800 standard already in hand.
A great athlete and a true American. Big fan.
disgraceful_admin wrote:
This guy has had such an amazing career. 10 years of never finishing out of the top 3 in USAs. An OLYMPIC SILVER MEDAL! And still going strong, just barely missed this Olympics.
What struck me in the recent FloTrack interview was how eager he sounded to get back to training and getting back into top shape after these Trials, following months of injury and setbacks. Doubtless he was disappointed, but I think he's honestly excited to get back to working hard, and is happy with how he managed to find his form again after what he calls a terrible off/preseason.
He went 4th for the first time in 10 years, and he calls it "motivation". That's an incredible mentality, an example of the will that carried him to medals time and again despite often looking out of form before championships.
The LetsRun forums aren't a place for respect, but it seems that many here really understate just how accomplished and rare of an athlete Manzano is.
Agreed. I think most people expected him to fade in the final and be 7-10th. He's a wildcard who's always been consistent, but 4th in these trials was incredibly impressive. He had one of his weakest "seasons" of buildup races coming into this and still threw down.
On behalf of Texas... wrote:
I first met Leo when I was a freshmen in High School and he was a senior. Thanks to an older brother who ran the year before, I had the privilege to watch Leo dominate the UIL Region III-4A XC meet as an 8th grader and was a fan from that day forward.
When we arrived at the Regional meet my freshmen year, I was an absolute nobody who had yet to break 18:00 for 3 miles. But, as a fan of the sport, I recognized the Marbel Falls ISD school bus in our hotel parking lot as a clear indicator I might bump into Leo. After checking into my room, I walked out and there was the legend himself in the room next to me. I thought for sure the guy wouldn't give me the time of day; after all (if memory serves correct, he'd run 4:06 that spring as a junior) he was one of the biggest names in Texas distance running and I was just a dorky 14 year old that wanted to become better.
Leo stood out on that balcony in Huntsville, TX for nearly 30 minutes fielding questions from me without batting an eye. He talked about his training, his family, his goals. He was honest, open, and incredibly humble. Before he headed off to check out the course with his coach, I grabbed a pen and paper out of my bag and asked for an autograph.
To this day, I'm thankful I held on to it. In true Leo fashion, he didn't make it about himself. He simply wrote out "Work hard, and never be afraid to chase your dreams. -Leo Manzano"
I graduated high school a 6-time regional, 2-time state champion and the simple lessons of caring less about self, more about others, working hard, and dreaming big that Leo imparted to me that day stuck with me. I owe a debt of gratitude to him for taking the time to inspire a kid most others would have never given 30 seconds of their time to say hello to.
It's safe to say the state of Texas and those who have had the privilege of meeting him over the years have been thrilled to see such a class act be as successful as Leo has and wish him the best of luck as he continues in the sport he's gained so much from but, undoubtedly, has given much more back to.
Thanks so much for sharing that. Sounds like a really great human, and he's certainly had a fantastic career.
+!
JPNATUREVALLEY365 wrote:
Leo is the epitome of the American dream, he is the nicest runners I've ever met. Nothing but best wishes for Leo in his future!!!
USA and proud wrote:
Duel Dual wrote:Won't be a surprise to see him represent the Mexican flag at the next Olympics if age starts to catch up with him.
Wrong. Manzano is proud of his Mexican heritage, but he is prouder to be an American. La Raza he's not.
LOL. That's why he ran around with the Mex flag at the '12 Games. He was making his racial statement. You cucks are idiots. And then he filed his crybaby protest, cuck lies to the contrary. Wahoooooooooooo! Three AMERICANS representing the US in Rio.
ck3237 wrote:
And he didn't have a sponsor for a while.
Yea but remember that was by choice. He chose not to be sponsored because he thought he was worth more than what the market offered him. Big mistake in my opinion. You are only worth as much as someone is wiling to pay.
Great post from Texas.
I'll miss Leo in Rio. That's for sure.
Really hope he gets the London gold he deserves at some point.
William Clinton wrote:
USA and proud wrote:Wrong. Manzano is proud of his Mexican heritage, but he is prouder to be an American. La Raza he's not.
LOL. That's why he ran around with the Mex flag at the '12 Games. He was making his racial statement. You cucks are idiots. And then he filed his crybaby protest, cuck lies to the contrary. Wahoooooooooooo! Three AMERICANS representing the US in Rio.
He identifies as an American, he has run in the American singlet numerous times, and you're being a crybaby because he ran around with a Mexican flag for a couple of minutes to acknowledge the other part of his heritage?? Get over yourself.
Having watched Leo develop over the last 10 years, I can say he is one class act. One month after the 2012 London Olympics Leo spent 30 - 45 minutes with three of us describing and physically demonstrating all the types exercises needed to become a complete runner. He was quite open about how he handled the races in London. It was just an impromptu moment after completing a workout. Again, I am a hack runner old enough to be his father. This was an incredible act of kindness and just showed the depth of his character. Leo always approached his training in a very systematic manner with such a calm demeanor. At the same time Leo gives so much to the local area kids and shares his time with the Central Texas runners. This is truly a gift to the Austin running community.
To read posts complimenting Leo’s body work is reassuring and very much appreciated. For those posting the garbage responses, you really should make a trip to Austin to see how the running community operates. Maybe some of these old runners will give you a surprise on a 5 - 10 mile tempo run. Leo is an incredible athlete and a very giving person. Thanks for the post………
Seriously people, embrace the fact that people identify with more than one culture. That's why this great country of ours is so set back in thinking in very linear and biased ways. Just because you have one culture doesn't mean other can't be part of two.
I was super impressed by Leo's performance in the final after he struggled in the preliminary rounds. But that effort was tarnished a bit by his coach filing the protest. Incidental contact where both runners drifted towards each other.
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