Leo Manzano returns to Marble Falls cross country meet

GRAPHIC BY BRENDA GONZALEZ/MARBLE FALLS HIGH SCHOOL

The Marble Falls High School cross country program hosts the annual Leonel Manzano and Rick Edwards Memorial Invitational Saturday, Sept. 28.

The first race is at 7:30 a.m. and Manzano himself will be there to cheer on the runners and meet fans for autographs, photos and to give attendees an up-close look at the Leo the Lion gear.

“I’ve had the apparel line for awhile,” he said. “I wanted to really start going full throttle on it. A lot of times, there’s not a lot of support for these types of events. What better place than to come back where it all started? It does take a little time. A lot of events don’t get the support they need to. I’m excited to be there.”

Before Manzano, a 2004 Marble Falls High School graduate, won the 2012 Olympic silver medal in the men’s 1,500 meters, he was up early in the morning training in his Granite Shoals neighborhood.

Those who know him best say they had never witnessed a talent in person like his. Former Marble Falls Middle School girls athletic coordinator and running coach Karen Naumann said she knew immediately that Manzano was a special runner because he could beat any time she challenged him with.

As he became a middle school runner then a high school athlete, the community rallied around him by raising money to pay for entry fees and travel expenses to compete at the top meets around the country. And the more Manzano competed, the better he became. By the time he graduated from high school, he had earned nine state medals in track and field and cross country and accepted a running scholarship to the University of Texas at Austin.

As a freshman, he won the 2005 NCAA 1,500 meters championship and added another in 2008. He also won two indoor mile titles in 2005 and 2007.

He ran his way onto his first U.S. team as a professional in the summer of 2008 when he finished second in the 1,500 meters at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials and went to Beijing. For 10 consecutive years from 2006-2015, he finished in the top 3 of that event at the USA Outdoor Championships.

And though he’d have to wait until 2012 to get to the Olympic podium, Manzano hasn’t forgotten how he got his start. He has made donations to the Marble Falls cross country program, has worked out with the runners, and has tried to do for the younger athletes what was done for him – pave the way to the starting line to give them a chance at success.

“It does take a community,” the Mustang said. “If I hadn’t had that support, perhaps I wouldn’t have had that success.”

But to look at Manzano, who stands 5 feet and 5 inches, “professional athlete” isn’t the first thought most have. That’s why it’s important to him to be accessible to youngsters and athletes who may be in sports that may not draw large crowds or have large followings.

In other words, he strives to be the role model that he may not have seen when he was growing up.

Manzano retired from professional running in 2019. Since then he has been a running coach and registered as an athlete agent and manager and is a public speaker. He also makes it a point to attend events featuring young runners.

“When I was running professionally, it was hard for me to attend these events,” he said. “Now that I’m on this side and launching my company, I get to be present at these meets. Running has been life changing for me. It allowed me to get a college education. It allowed me to travel the world and see the world. I was able to take people I grew up with.”

Now that he has the time to attend events, Manzano said he is enjoying the view from the sidelines.

“It’s a lot of fun getting to watch the development of athletes,” he said. “(Retired Marble Falls coach Chris) Schrader had been doing a really good job that (new head coach Brenda) Gonzalez is continuing. I’m ecstatic to support them. I ran for a total of 27 years. The silver medal was the epitome. There are a lot of athletes in similar situations. They look for motivational stories. It’s an overwhelming feeling of gratitude to be able to support them. I’m really grateful and excited.”

As for the apparel line, it includes clothing for exercising and working out as well as going to work. It has jerseys, V-neck embroidered shirts, polos and running singlets.

Go to LeoManzano.com to see the apparel and learn more.

“How cool to have your own apparel brand,” he said. “It’s a locally-owned running brand from Texas and being able to support events. It’s clothing to wear on the track and off the track. We have the polos so people can take them into the classroom and office as well.”

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