Elite Profile
There, he linked up with coach Roberto Solano and a cadre of international triathletes, including Costa Rican standouts Leonardo Chacon and Rom Akerson. He remains there still.
“Miami will always be ‘home,’ but it’s great to train in Costa Rica,” says Huerta. “There are mountains, flats, oceans and forests. Plus, I’ve found a great support crew in my coach and the new friends I’ve made.”
The move, he says, made a direct, positive impact on his career as a professional triathlete. In early 2010, Huerta burst out of the gates with a pair of top-10 finishes at the Monterrey and Ishigaki World Cups, followed by a 13th place finish at the ultra-competitive Hamburg ITU World Championship Series race in July. But then, an injury suffered on the run in Hamburg forced Huerta to scrap the remainder of the season. He quietly returned to Cartago, focusing on healing and coming back stronger than ever.
So far, the plan is working. During a training block in Argentina in February, Huerta enjoyed what he calls his “best preseason build-ups,” picking up a win at an Olympic-distance triathlon in Puerto Madryn, part of Argentine Patagonia, and sweeping a trio of endurance races at another event in Viedma. He then finished runner-up to training partner Chacon at the inaugural Rev3 Costa Rica triathlon, a come-from-behind performance in which he out-ran top U.S. athletes including Brian Fleischmann and Matt Reed.
Now back in Costa Rica, Huerta is prepping for a full season of globe trotting to ITU races in Australia, London (which serves as the first U.S. Olympic qualifier) as well as the USA Triathlon Elite Race Series. And though he spends a majority of his time these days outside the U.S., Manny never takes his adopted home for granted — and couldn’t be more thrilled about the prospect of representing the Stars and Stripes on the Olympic stage.
“America opened its doors to my family. And I realized that if you work hard, there are tons of opportunities we never had back in Cuba,” he says. “My determination and tons of great people here in the U.S. are the key to my success.”
54 USA TRIATHLON SPRING 2011
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