Manuel Huerta

Manuel "Manny" Huerta (born March 22, 1984), is a Cuban-born triathlete. After emigrating from Cuba to the United States as a young man, Huerta began training as a professional triathlete. For the United States he won the silver medal in men's triathlon at the 2011 Pan American Games and in 2012 qualified as a member of the United States Olympic Team. In 2013, he left the US Olympic Team to compete for the Puerto Rico Olympic Team.

Early life Huerta was born on March 22, 1984, in Havana, Cuba. He first began training as an athlete in Cuba, waking before 5:00 AM each morning to swim at the Marcelo Salado pool in Havana. At age six, after practicing alongside the Cuban national swimming team, Huerta first began to think of competing in the Olympics himself, and two years later watched on television as Cuban athletes participated in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. At age 13, he competed in his first triathlon, placing first in the Cuban IronKids national championship. Soon afterwards, in November, 1997, Huerta left Cuba along with his sister and mother to emigrate to the United States. Arriving in Miami, Florida, the family joined his grandmother, who had herself come to the United States during the Mariel boatlift.

During high school, Huerta joined a triathlon club and competed in cross-country. He received a scholarship to attend Florida Atlantic University. At age 20, he became a naturalized United States citizen.

On May 12, 2012, Huerta qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London during the United States Olympic Team trials in San Diego. After finishing fourth during the swimming portion, he posted strong times in the biking and running portions of the race. Both prior to and after qualifying for the Olympics, Huerta trained on the side of an active volcano in Costa Rica.