Running
Built for Greatness: Marcelo Mantecon on Pressure, Records, and Chasing National Titles in High School
THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST›
Jan 7, 202622:56
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Marcelo Mantecon is Florida’s all-time 5,000m high school record holder, a Nike Indoor National Champion, and an NXN finalist. And he’s only a junior in high school.
Marcelo joins the show after a soaring spring and fall season for Belen Jesuit Preparatory School in Miami, Florida, that saw him cap it off with a 4th overall finish at the Nike Cross Nationals (NXN) on December 6, 2025, with a time of 15:05.
In September, he etched his name into the Florida High School Boys XC record book, running a 14:35.25 at the Southern Showcase in Huntsville, Alabama, becoming the fastest boy to do so at the distance in the state. He then took that even lower in October by running a 14:33 in the New World Fall Spectacular.
As a sophomore last year, he was named Florida’s Gatorade 2024-25 Boys Cross Country Player of the Year. He won the 5000m National Title Indoors in March of 2025 as well.
His PRs include 4:15.83 for the mile, 8:16.86 for the 3000m indoor, 8:49.78 for the 2 mile outdoor, 14:14.38 in the 5000m indoors, and 14:33 in the 5000m for XC.
Records show you how fast he is. We’re here to dissect how he thinks; the discipline behind the breakthroughs, the pressure of carrying expectations, and what it takes to chase national greatness while still being a high school junior.
Tap into the Marcelo Mantecon Special.
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"Built for Greatness: Marcelo Mantecon on Pressure, Records, and Chasing National Titles in High School" is an episode of THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST. Runtime 22 min. Published January 7, 2026. Hit play above to stream it here, or open the free Spot Sports app for background play and offline downloads.
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- January 7, 2026.
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