Sophomore Manu Tanzambi is a multi-sport athlete participating in the 4×100-meter, the 100-meter, and the 200-meter during the track season and is a running back and linebacker for the football team. 

Tanzambi got into track because one of his friends in sixth grade encouraged him. “I never knew track was a thing and one of my friends told me ‘oh, you should do track because you are really fast’ and I was like ‘okay, I’m gonna give it a shot,’” he said. 

After that, he has been running track ever since.

Tanzambi started to play football during his freshman year towards the end of the season. “I had an interest, but I was really scared because of injuries,” he said. “Then I just went for it.” 

Tanzambi describes his football team as a tight-knit community. “I wouldn’t consider them as my team, I consider them as a family,” he said. “We’re like a family and we’re always there for each other.” 

Junior Grant Ellison is Tanzambi’s role model during the football season. “I love his work mentality,” he said. During the track season, Tanzambi’s role model is junior Milan Cieslak “who’s really fast,” he said. 

Two memories that Tanzambi remembers vividly are feelings of his first touchdown and winning his first race. “My first touchdown, it was really nice,” he said. “I felt really good. And winning my first race felt really nice.” 

Tanzambi loves football for many different reasons. “I love the crowd. I love how they hype us up,” he said. “We need more of that.”

He also encourages more people to try out for football. “The seniors are leaving, and we need more people to fill in positions,” he said. He has similar feelings regarding the track team, as he hopes more people will join.

Track is Tanzambi’s favorite sport out of the two, as he has a passion for running. “I [run] really often, like three times a week,” he said. 

For future seasons, Tanzambi is working to improve on his 100-meter time. “I’m trying to run a sub-twelve like running in the elevens,” he said. He also is aiming to improve his track performance in other ways by increasing his speed overall, and working on his form while running.

After a win during the football season, Tanzambi enjoys celebrating with his team. “We have a weird tradition where we play ‘Mo Bomba,’” he said. “Every time we win, that’s how we celebrate winning.”