The javelin has been used for over 400,000 years. What began as a hunting instrument evolved into an athletic event in 708 BC. The long tradition of throwing a spear has been fine-tuned by generations of athletes now sharing their expertise on YouTube. Julius Yego, also known as Mr. YouTube, became an Olympian and African record holder with a personal best of 304-feet-2. Using YouTube to train has become a trend among young athletes, and Manny Chavez credits this as one of the components of his success.
A recent graduate of Portales High School and son of Lorena Chavez and Carlos Silva, 18-year-old Chavez stands six feet tall, weighing 190 pounds. He began throwing the javelin as a freshman at Portales High School. In addition to the coaching of Coach Berry, he found inspiration and direction by watching videos of Thomas Röhler, a German Olympian.
The mission statement on Röhler’s website reads, “Whether in sports, business, or life, I have a strong belief in the power of passion driven performance. Tackling challenges with a sense of ease to elevate in the long term.”
Chavez’s passion-driven performance is evident when he speaks about his training, which involves practicing most days for an hour and a half, as well as his independent workouts outside of the PHS track team. Chavez has never had private coaching, but instead has utilized what he has learned from coaches, his uncles, and watching Thomas Röhler’s videos to transform himself into a nationally ranked high school athlete through sheer drive and dedication.
Although javelin is Chavez’s main event, he said competing in running events helps keep him loose and develop the speed he needs for his takeoff in javelin. He placed seventh in hurdles, and his relay team took sixth at the state competition this year.
Born into an athletic family, Chavez credits his uncles, Lalo, Abraham, and Daniel Chavez, with giving him a competitive edge, helping him improve, and keeping him humble. Following in the mentoring footsteps of his uncles, he helps his younger brothers with workouts for their athletic endeavors.
Chavez expressed that getting help from others and being humble were important to him. And actions speak louder than words. When competitors ask him for help, he is happy to give them advice. He knows the smaller schools sometimes don’t have the advantages that he has at a larger school. Chavez said he would rather compete with an athlete who is at 100%, even if it means he is the one helping them get there.
Breaking his first record as a freshman, Chavez threw 177 feet, beating the 2019 record set by Trevor Rawdon of 161 feet. He went on to break the record every year. At the Tucumcari track meet this year, Chavez became first in the nation with a throw of 208 feet, beating the previous record of 191 feet. He held the rank of first in the nation with a throw of 211-feet-10 until recently, when he was pushed into second place. Currently, first place is held by Hunter Loesch from Corvallis, Montana, with a throw of 219-feet-11 according to milesplit.com, but as track meets are still happening, the national rankings can still change. But Chavez holds the NM overall and NM 4A record.
This standing led to his invitation to the Nike National Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, “Tracktown, USA” June 19-21. A manager with the NSAF Nike Development Track and Field Team reached out to Chavez via Instagram. Athletes who are ranked in the top five in the nation from every event are invited to compete. For some, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to compete at Hayward Field, where the Olympic trials are held. Chavez hopes to return for those trials someday.
Nike will supply Chavez with a jersey, shorts, spikes, javelin spikes, and a backpack. But Chavez is responsible for his airfare, hotel, and food. A GoFundMe has been established to help him with these costs.
To help with nerves, Chavez said that he separates himself from everyone and thinks about how he needs to compete at a level higher than everyone else. If headphones are allowed while they practice, he will listen to “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”.
“You still need another person, even if you think you know it all,” Chavez said, referring to his coach, uncles, and Olympians he models himself after. But there is another person he needs, and that is his best friend, Fernando. This will be Chavez’s first time flying or using rideshare services, and he plans to bring Fernando, who has more experience traveling. The two recent graduates will make the journey on their own to Oregon for Chavez to compete on the biggest stage of his life. He’s just hoping to land safely first.
The Nike Championships are just one step in Chavez’s plans. He will be attending ENMU in the fall as part of the track team, living on campus, and will continue to work at Sonic. He expressed that staying close to family was important to him. But, with big goals, he knows there will be a time when he has to take that next step and is looking to transfer to the University of Arizona after two years.
For now, he is excited to compete at the collegiate level and hopes to break ENMU’s current record. “I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish in high school, and now I want to achieve bigger and new things,” Chavez said.
There are many new adventures in his future and he would like to show his gratitude to those who have helped him get this far.
“Thank you to all the people who have helped me reach my goal. Been a dream to compete at this level for Portales. Not a lot of athletes who have been able to do this in their career,” Chavez said.
If you would like to support Manny Chavez, you can make a donation to his GoFundMe at https://gofund.me/b3dd002f.
