The 2026 NIKE Indoor Nationals entered day two with an extraordinary level of throwing, jumping and racing. This writer spent much of the time watching and enjoying trackside, interviewing some of the nation’s top sprinters, distance runners and throwers.
Such events require special skills. Some athletes are loaded, some stand up. At the NIKE Indoor Nationals we had some incredible improvements and many who rose to the occasion.
Several observations continued as themes. NSAF is changing the sport. It is not only the holding of national championships, but the coaching and support provided to NIKE NIL athletes, but also the sharing of information about such events between coaches, parents and athletes. In this digital world, we sometimes forget that human contact, interaction and discussion are central to our evolution in all pursuits. Here are my five takeaways from Day 2:
- Impressed with young winner Cadel Howardin the 400m, and his amazing 52.65 for the win. Caddell had a fight with Taylor-Nicole Overton. Howard took the lead on the last lap, which is pretty hard to do in the 400 meters. Cadels’ speed was evident as he won in 52.65 to 53.23. Sad to see Brooks Lloyd pulled out of his heat at the last minute because his parent didn’t like the zone assigned. Instead of using the experience as a life lesson, the young women were given, in my estimation, hard lessons about leadership. All I can think about is Jeremy Richards, the 400m silver medalist in Tokyo, who ran a massive PB out of zone 2. Or consider Angelo Taylor, who won the 400m hurdles in Zone 1 in Sydney in 2000.
Cadel Howard ran 52.65 for his brilliant 400m win. photo by Brian Eder for @cameraathletica’s RunBlogRun - Joshua Shelton won the boys 400 meters in 47.80 (his best this season is 45.91), running from the third heat. Joshua told me after the race that his legs were wiped out because the race had taken so much out of him. The thrill of victory was there. The supposedly faster warm-ups did not hold up in the boys’ 400 meters.
- Leah Starkey improved by 32 seconds in the 2 mile, running 9:48.02. Leah had run her 10:19 PB in the outdoor season. Leah grabs Aveni from Lowen and upsets her. Leah took a big PB and Aven with her in 15:32.94 5000m and 9:52.57. Finished #2 in high school history in the 5000m/2 mile dual meet. Defending champion Addy Ritzenhein finished third.
Girls Champs Start Line 2 Mile Photo by Brian Eder for @cameraatheltica RunBlogRun - Boys three split 2 miles: 8:59 for first, 8:54 for second and 8:47 for third. Casey Leonard, the leading U.S. miler (4:00.07), tried to challenge Marcelo Mantecon, who this writer thinks could run. Mantecone, who told this writer and coach Paul Laimer after the race, “I just love to run,” used a 4:12 last mile, 1:59 last 800 meters and 57.6 last 400 meters to win his second title. In an interview ten minutes after the race, Marcelo had recovered well. His 13:57 for the 5k and 8:47 for the 2 mile, both days, were good for his form. The 2 mile fast heat was exhausting. A 4:35 first mile that just played into the hands of a hitter like Mantecon.
- Remember this name. Joseph West III. Joseph, on his third jump, improved to 7.86 meters or 25’9.25 inches. With that jump, Joseph moved to 5th in the US and 6th in the world all-time. Joseph bettered his personal best by 13.5 inches.
