蜜柚直播

Unlike most teenagers who cringe at the thought of waking up at 5 a.m., Caldera doesn鈥檛 mind because, for him, running is in his blood.

鈥淚 started (running) because my uncle was a marathon runner and he always used to tell me to run because I was a soccer player,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut then it turns out, I quit soccer just to run.鈥�

The 16-year-old began running in middle school while he lived in Nevada. When he and his family moved to 蜜柚直播 two years ago, he continued his running journey at Catalina High School, where he currently competes in cross country and track and field.

As a freshman, he completed 5ks around the 20-minute mark, but over the last two years, he鈥檚 improved his time to 16 minutes. He aims to run sub-16 by the end of the season.

Although it鈥檚 early in the season, Caldera is currently ranked sixth in the region and 23rd in the school鈥檚 division, Class 3A.

At the Desert Twilight Men鈥檚 5k Championships on Sept. 27 in Mesa, Caldera placed 32nd out of 287. He was the only runner from a 蜜柚直播 high school to crack the top 35.

Just like running, things can change fast in cross country. Last week, Caldera was ranked fourth in the region and 27th in the school鈥檚 division, according to Chelsea Duran, Catalina High School鈥檚 cross country and track and field coach.

鈥淓mmy (Emiliano) is kind of a once-in-a-lifetime type of athlete as a coach,鈥� Duran said. 鈥淗e started as a freshman and it was really like, 鈥楬ey, I鈥檓 getting in shape for soccer.鈥� He told me he was a sprinter but I saw that talent right away. So, it鈥檚 been cool to watch his progression from 鈥業 think I鈥檓 a sprinter鈥� to being one of the top distance runners in the state. But it鈥檚 more than that. It鈥檚 the dedication, the discipline. If I tell him, 鈥業 want you to go run four miles in the morning,鈥� he will run four miles in the morning no matter what, on top of all the extracurriculars and everything that he does.鈥�

After his regular school days on Tuesdays and Thursdays, he spends his nights learning about anatomy and physiology at JTED healthcare classes. The night classes are a stepping stone toward his career goal of becoming a physical therapist.

During the rest of the week, you can find Caldera working hard to maintain his 3.8 GPA, in addition to his extracurricular duties as president of Catalina鈥檚 Future Business Leaders of America club and treasurer of the school鈥檚 Future Health Professionals club, HOSA.

Although it can be difficult at times to balance cross country, academics and extracurriculars, Caldera says it鈥檚 all worth it because it allows him to grow, receive more scholarship opportunities and get his name out there.

Duran describes Caldera as disciplined, motivated, a little goofy and a great leader. She says she鈥檚 enjoyed watching his maturity level grow both as an athlete and a young man.

鈥淎fter his first year, we went through a time of a lot of doubt, (where he was) not thinking he was good enough, things like that, even almost quitting, to a point where he鈥檚 all in leading the team. He鈥檚 the captain of our team,鈥� she said.

Even when Caldera isn鈥檛 in school, participating in extracurricular activities or running 5ks, his mind is always on running. During his free time, he enjoys reading running books, including his favorite book, 鈥淏orn to Run鈥� by Christopher McDougall.

Once he graduates in 2026, he plans to continue his education in northern 蜜柚直播 and, of course, keep running.

鈥淚鈥檓 hoping to go to NAU for cross country and because they also have a really good physical therapy program there,鈥� Caldera said.

Duran, who has coached cross country for several years, says Catalina hasn鈥檛 had an NCAA scholarship athlete yet, but she thinks Caldera has a 鈥減retty good shot at that,鈥� since NAU is Division I and has become the most dominant school in the sport the past decade.

鈥淚鈥檓 hoping that this year is going to get him some looks and maybe even to the point of getting early signing next September,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd then, who knows, maybe see if he can get to the point of World Championship trials or Olympic trials, he鈥檚 looking at maybe competing for Mexico.

鈥淚鈥檓 just excited to see someone like this, from a school like Catalina that鈥檚 small and has had maybe not the best reputation over the few last few years, to actually see some of these athletes just step up and change the perspective and show what Catalina is now. We鈥檙e rising up. We鈥檙e growing.鈥�

Get to know Emiliano

What鈥檚 your favorite running shoe?

HOKA Mach X.

What type of music is on your running playlist?

Afrobeats, Mexican and Dominican music.

If you could run anywhere in the world, where would you like to run?

Buffalo Park in Flagstaff.

What鈥檚 your favorite pre-run snack?

Oatmeal or a (brown sugar and) cinnamon Pop-Tart.

What鈥檚 your favorite class?

History or English.