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Not
too many people picked Texas freshman, Leonel Manzano to win the
1,500m at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships
at Sacramento State University's Alex Spanos Sports Complex in Sacramento,
California, on June 11. But with 300 meters to go, the diminutive,
long-striding Manzano used his deceivingly quick finish to tear
past the field and win going away. His winning time of 3:37.13 was
the second-fastest time by an American this year.
Manzano's
prodigious talent is no surprise to those who have followed him
since his sophomore year at Marble Falls (TX) High School. Then,
the Mexican-born Manzano raced to a splendid 1,600/3,200 double
of 4:11.36 and 9:07.18 at the Texas Relays. The following year,
he ran even faster time posting a time of 4:06.29 in the 1,600m.
His senior year, Manzano fell under the radar in the mile in part
due to sickness and lack of training, but still posted a personal
best time of 1:50.48 for the 800m. In all, Manzano collected nine
Texas state titles in track and cross country.
MensRacing.com
caught up with Manzano in his hometown of Granite Shoals, Texas,
on the evening of Wednesday, June 22. He's currently taking a break
from running and working a Ford dealership before resuming training
for the upcoming cross country season.
MensRacing.com:
What have you been doing since NCAAs?
Leonel Manzano:
Actually, I'm back home and holding down a little job right now.
Today, was my first day at this Ford place. I'm a 'runner' right
now. I take people wherever they need to go.
I'll
be working here for two to three weeks before I head back to Austin.
I start training pretty soon. Probably in about a week and a half.
MR:
Do the [customers] you drive around recognize you?
LM:
There have been a couple of people who do know me and say 'Hey,
you the runner?' and I say 'Yeah.' That's kind of cool.
MR:
Marble Falls is a pretty small town from what [Texas] Coach [Jason]
Vigilante tells me.
LM:
Yeah, it's small. Not that small, but small enough so that everyone
knows everyone else.
MR:
Looking back on your 1,500m race at NCAAs, what do you remember
the most about it?
LM:
I guess the most memorable part of the final was the last 120 meters,
when there were a couple of guys in front of me and they were going
'lactate.' Everyone was all lactate with about 300 meters to go,
but I just remember the last 120m, I started passing people and
feeling really good. I felt like my legs were really going. I just
kept thinking to myself, 'Stay strong, finish strong and you
got this.' That's what made it memorable for me.
MR:
Early on in the race, did you feel confident? There were a lot of
guys up there.
LM:
No. I went into the race knowing I had to stay strong. Not strong
physically, but mentally. That race was more of mental race more
than anything else. I was really concentrating on staying mentally
focused.
There
were times in that race where I was starting to lose it, but I kept
telling myself to stay strong. I really tried and focused and everything
came through like I had hoped.
MR:
Were you surprised by how much you had left the last 300 meters?
LM:
Yes, I was because of the guys in the field. The guy from Georgetown
[Chris Lukezic] took it out so fast. Especially, in the last 300m.
He had a big ol' lead. I just remember everyone just moving with
him when he first started and then they went really lactate. I really
didn't think I was going to catch him. Like I said, the last 120m,
I looked at him and he was just done. That's when I said to myself,
'Let's go.' I felt really good.
MR:
What was the last 400m?
LM:
I would say the last 400m was about a 55-55.4, or something. I would
have to say that it was the toughest race I've ever run, just because
of that mental [aspect].
MR:
Had you and Coach Vigilante talked about your strategy going in?
LM:
He told me to just go with my instinct, and right before he told
me to be the last guy to kick. That helped a lot because he respects
my kick and he said that I could outkick them all.
MR:
Now that you have had time to think about it, what do you think
about your winning time of 3:37.13?
LM:
I think it's pretty good, but I still think that there is room for
improvement. I definitely think I can [run faster].
MR:
Would you call your race at nationals a perfect race?
LM:
I wouldn't call it a 'perfect race,' but a good race. It was a very
good race. It was a mental race, but I don't know if it was perfect.
MR:
Not too many people picked you to win the NCAAs. How does it feel
to be at the top now?
LM:
It feels pretty good now. I definitely feel I still have to prove
something to people and make sure I stay on top. Just really improving
and making sure I do [it] right.
MR:
Not to say that your senior year of high school wasn't great, but
you didn't run as well as people thought after your great sophomore
and junior years. Can you talk about what happened during that year?
LM:
My senior year of high school, I don't know what happened. There
were a lot of factors. First of all, I was playing soccer and I
quit. A lot of my base training got cut down because that was the
only running that I was doing. Another thing was at the beginning
of the track season, I had really bad allergies. Every year I have
had them, but that year it was really bad. There was a lot of coughing
and sneezing. That really played with my head, I think. That was
another reason I didn't do so great. I was out of shape and I wasn't
running the way I should have been. I was running about 25 miles
a week when I should have been doing 50 miles per week or something.
MR:
At [the University of] Texas, did you have those allergy problems?
LM:
Actually, I did, but right when I started to feel it, Coach Vig
told me to go and get some allergy medicine. That really helped
me out a lot. I was able to stay fit and not get sick and push forward.
MR:
I guess your training has changed drastically.
LM:
[Laughing] Yes sir, it has. Like I said I went from doing 25 miles
a week to doing 70 to 80 miles a week. That's bigtime for me.
MR:
After NCAAs, you said that you were pretty tired from the season.
Did the mileage take its toll?
LM:
Yes, I think it has. My body was just wearing down. I really haven't
run this much ever, so my body just wanted a little bit of rest.
That's why I'm taking these two weeks off right now.
There
are people who want me to do [U.S. nationals] and Mexico has called
me to do the nationals there. I don't think I'll be doing any of
that. I'll just stay home, relaxing for another week or so, and
start training for cross country. We'll kind of go from there.
MR:
Coach 'Vig' is really into running and you had a top recruiting
class coming in this past year. How did it feel coming from a small
program into such a high-profile program with good teammates?
LM:
That first semester was really tough. I had never really had a team.
There were a couple of guys that were decent, but I never really
had any competition.
I
got killed in the first practices at Texas. The guys were running
for about an hour and I just had to run 20 minutes. Within those
first five minutes, I got dropped. I was trying really hard and
these guys were jogging really easily. After that, I wasn't sure
if I wanted to run. After a while, all that work I put in paid off
in the end. It was pretty exciting.
MR:
Did you do much summer training going into your freshman year at
Texas?
LM:
During the summer, I had run more than I had ever run any of my
previous summers. I would run summer track races and that was about
it.
Coming
into this past year, I was doing about 20-30 minutes every other
day.
MR:
Do you see yourself running well this upcoming year in cross country?
LM:
I have a good feeling about it. I just have to keep up my training
and my diet. I have a really good feeling about cross country. We'll
see how it turns out.
MR:
You were born in Dolores Hidalgo, Mexico, correct? Can you tell
us a little about your background?
LM:
Yes, Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato, Mexico. I came to the United States
when I was four years old. I moved to Flatonia for about six months
before moving to a town right outside of Marble Falls called Granite
Shoals. People think I'm from Marble Falls, but ever since I was
in kindergarten, I've been going to school in Marble Falls.
I
started school when I was five and because I have such an early
birthday, I turned six on September 12 of that year so I was [older
than most of the other kids]. My English wasn't that great. I didn't
know any English really, so they decided to put me in something
after kindergarten and before first grade. That's why I am kind
of behind on that.
I
have dual citizenship. The US doesn't recognize it, but Mexico does.
MR:
Having dual citizenship, which country would you compete for?
LM:
To tell you truth, I really don't know right now. I would really
like to compete for both nations, but I really haven't thought about
it. I'll have to decide pretty soon, or in the near future, but
I really haven't decided what I plan to do.
MR:
When did you start running?
LM:
I started running the summer of my fifth grade year. I want to say
it was one of my English teachers who got me running. He was a summer
track coach. He was looking for recruits. I told him I could run,
being a little kid. I tried out and I wasn't that good. I finished
in third, fourth, and sometimes fifth. I didn't really start developing
until my seventh grade year.
MR:
Are there any other runners in your family? Where do you get your
gift?
LM:
There are no [older] runners in my family, but I have a little brother
coming up. He won his district in the mile and a half as a seventh
grader. He got second in the mile so there might be another Manzano
coming up pretty soon. Hopefully, of he keeps at it [laughs].
(Interview
conducted June 22, 2005, posted June 29, 2005)
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