Manteo Mitchell (born July 6, 1987) is an American sprinter who competes in the

200m The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a Sprint (running), sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run th ...

400m The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics (sport), athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor runn ...

, and relay. He was a member of the USA team that won the gold medal in the Men's 4×400 metres relay (splitting 45.7) at the

2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics was the 14th edition of the global-level indoor track and field competition and was held between March 9–11, 2012 at the Ataköy Athletics Arena in Istanbul, Turkey. It was the first of four ...

Early life

Mitchell was born in Shelby,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

to Dianna Ellis. He attended Crest High School, being named all-conference, all-region, and all-state his junior and senior years. He then enrolled at

Western Carolina University Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...

on an athletic scholarship, setting school records in the

, relay, and relay. Mitchell also led the Catamounts to 5 indoor and outdoor championships, being named the MVP multiple years.

Professional career

At the 2012 United States Olympic Trials, Mitchell qualified for the Olympic team by finishing fifth in the 400 metres with a time of 44.96, which qualified him to run in the 4x400 metres relay as a member of the U.S. relay team. At the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

held in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, Mitchell ran the first leg of the heat for the 4x400 metres relay and revealed afterwards that he broke his left

fibula The fibula or calf bone is a leg bone on the lateral side of the tibia, to which it is connected above and below. It is the smaller of the two bones and, in proportion to its length, the most slender of all the long bones. Its upper extremity is ...

at the 200m mark. Despite this, Manteo finished his lap and clocked a time of 45.7, and the American team was able to qualify for the final. Mitchell later earned a silver medal after the American team placed second in the final. He is also a bobsledder for Team USA, seeking to become just the 6th person in history - first African-American male to medal in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games.

Personal life

Mitchell currently resides in Asheville, North Carolina. He has one son, Khi Avery, born in 2012.

Personal bests

*100 m: 10.04 s (wind: -0.1 m/s) –

Cullowhee, North Carolina Cullowhee
, from the North Carolina Collection website at the

2010 *200 m: 20.20 s (wind: +1.7 m/s) –

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

2012 *400 m: 44.96 s –

, 2012

References

External links

* 1987 births Living people American male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners World Athletics Indoor Championships winners {{US-sprint-athletics-bio-stub