On Dec. 14, Boardman native Michael Mannozzi had toed the line in Santee (Greater San Diego), Calif. with the top men and women walkers in the Unite States, along with Olympians and national team members from Ecuador, Sweden, Mexico and Canada for the USA 50k Race Walking National Championships.
      The 50km is the longest footrace in the Olympic Games.
      Mannozzi moved his way up the field and was in sixth place by the 30k mark of the race.
      He said he began thinking about his roots and various struggles in Boardman, all of which led him to that moment in the race and helped him to endure the pain and suffering that the 50km inflicts.
      Mannozzi finished fourth among the American men which is his highest finish (ranking) in the USA at an Olympic distance. In 2012, he finished fifth at the USA Olympic trials in the 20k and ninth in the 50k respectively.
      His finish in San Diego qualifies him for the 2016 Olympic trials in the 50km distance. Only the top 18 in the entire USA bettering a time of 4 hours and 45 minutes (4:45) are invited to compete in the Olympic Trials. In San Diego, Mannozzi walked a 4:32.14 (a 8:46/5:27 mile/kilometer pace), which is a personal best by 9 minutes and 14 seconds in the 50k distance. This pace would put him in the top half of finishers of almost any marathon...walking!
      As a result of his lifetime best performance in the 50km, Mannozzi has been named to the USA Pan-Am Cup Team and he will compete in Chile this May. He is also the alternate to the Pan-Am Games team which will take place in July in Toronto, Canada.
      Just 13 days after the 50k, Mannozzi and his coach, Stafford Whalen, decided that he could race in Rochester, New York, where he competed in the USA 5k Racewalk national championships on Sat., Dec. 27.
      After being boxed-in during the first lap, Mannozzi worked his way up to sixth place in the first kilometer, working to stay with the lead pack. Throughout the race, his former coach Mike Rohl was instrumental in coaching and instructing Mannozzi. He moved-up the field that included two Olympians and multiple national record holders among the competitors.
      When friend and Shore AC teammate Jonathan Hallman flew past Mannozzi with just under 2k (1.25 miles) to go, Mannozzi almost caved but to his surprise Hallman, challenged him by saying, “How bad do you want it?” and “Come get me,”
      Spurred by those comments, Mannozzi worked to close the gap and stay with Hallman as they worked together to overtake the leader.
      With three laps to go, Mannozzi found another gear and made a powerful surge that lasted the final 600 meters of the race.
      As he crossed the finish line Coach Rohl yelled “Now that is how you win a national championship!”
      Following the race, during the awards presentation, Mannozzi noted, “I am humbled that my former coach Mike Rohl stepped-up to help me out today. Ironically, what he was coaching me to do was right in line with what my coach Stafford Whalen had planned.
      He said when challenged by Hallman, “He dared me to fight the pain to stay with his quick pace which forced me to dig deeper and helped me to hit another gear that I did not think I would have so soon after a 50k, and with no speedwork for this type of a distance in over six months.”
      Among Mannozzi’s sponsors is Pizza Joe’s, 6810 Market St., operated by Mario LaMarca.