And by finishing on a fractured fibula, Mitchell emerged as one of the feel-good stories of London.

“My coach and I talked about leaving a legacy at the Games,” Mitchell said in a phone interview. “Of course, I didn’t intend on leaving my name in such a fashion, as far as my breaking leg. But I did want to leave it all on the track — and I literally did just that. I gave all I could.”

Fully healthy and running fast again, Mitchell is eager to make as much of an impact on the track this season as he has away from it. He’s hoping to run this weekend at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore., but is on the waitlist for both the 200- and 400-meter races.

“I’m probably in the best shape of my life again,” said the 25-year-old Mitchell, who’s from Shelby, N.C. “Just have to put it all together at a race.”

Even now, he remembers each painful step of his race in London: Not feeling quite right early and starting to heavily favor his left side 150 meters into it. A few meters later, he heard a pop that nearly crumpled him to the track.

Only, he refused to stop — just kept right on running, wincing inside with each step.

“I kind of let out a (scream) and just said, ‘OK, I can either stop right here or keep on going and do this for my team,'” said Mitchell, who was on the sideline the next day in the final when the Americans finished second behind Bahamas. “I was determined to get to the finish line, even if it could’ve ended my career. I kept doing what I did for my team.”

At the time, he downplayed his injury, telling anyone who saw his limp that he had a cramp in his ankle.

He knew, though. He finished his heat in 46.1 seconds — respectable without a broken leg — as the U.S. tied the Bahamas in 2 minutes, 58.87 seconds, which was the fastest time ever run in the first round of the relay at the Olympics.

That accomplishment momentarily dulled the pain.

As the adrenaline of the day wore off, his foot throbbed more and more.

A visit to the clinic confirmed what he already knew — it was indeed broken. He went back to the village to rest and recover.

Only, he couldn’t. Everyone kept approaching him — not so much to congratulate him, but out of concern since his time on the track that day wasn’t his best.

“They were like, ‘What happened to you? Why did you run so slow?'” he said. “I was like, ‘Look down.’ That’s when they saw the boot. I told them I broke my leg while running that lap. That’s when everybody went crazy, saying, ‘You’re a hero.’

“The world’s best athletes were coming to where I was staying in the village and just wanted to shake my hand.”

Usain Bolt actually went a step further, seeking out Mitchell to snap a photo with him.

“That uplifted me, made me feel what I did was the right thing,” Mitchell said.

The highlight, though, was after he got back, when President Barack Obama asked for him by name during a September visit to the White House with the U.S. team. The funny thing is Mitchell was so absorbed in taking photos that he didn’t even hear Obama call out his name.

Sprinter Sanya Richards-Ross had to elbow Mitchell to get his attention.

“I slyly put my phone down,” Mitchell said, laughing. “Michelle Obama was like, ‘Here he is, honey.’ Then President Obama goes into his spiel of what happened, how inspirational it was to him.

“Now that was crazy.”

Afterward, the president signed a book for Mitchell. The sprinter also posed for a picture with the first lady.

Then, it was back to work.

After all, he doesn’t want a broken leg to be his only track memory.

Mitchell spent eight weeks in a boot before gradually easing back into running on the campus of Western Carolina and under the close supervision of his college coach Danny Williamson.

“Even now, it still gets sore every once in a while,” Mitchell said.

He’s competed in a few meets this spring, helping the 1,600 relay team to a win at the Penn Relays.

This weekend, though, he will give the foot its first true test in either the 200 or the 400 at Pre, provided he’s given a lane. He may not know until the last minute if he gets to race.

“Physically, I feel great,” said Mitchell, who became a father in November when his son, Khi, was born.

These days, he’s in high demand off the track. He’s frequently invited to corporate events, school classrooms and wherever else to recount what happened in London, never tiring of telling his tale. So far, he’s had 56 speaking engagements.

“Everything that happened in London was a downfall for me at first, but it’s inspiring now to lots of people all over the globe,” he said.

Soon after his return, Mitchell had a unique tattoo inked on his left leg: Broken Olympic rings that are still connected. It represents, “being broken but not being defeated.”

“I want to inspire a generation,” Mitchell said. “To set an example, you have to be the example.”

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Online: www.manteomitchellusa.com