NCAA Veteran Haro Leading Wolverines on Magical Ride
4/22/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics, Features
University of Michigan junior captain Jose "LaLo" Haro will make his third consecutive appearance at the NCAA Men's Gymnastics Championships when the Wolverines travel to Lincoln, Neb., this weekend (April 22-24). Only this season Haro decided to do something different -- he decided to bring some of his friends along with him.
Two weeks ago, Haro scored a 57.450 in the all-around to pace the Wolverines to a second-place finish at the NCAA East Regional meet in Champaign, Ill. In doing so, Haro helped Michigan accomplish something it hadn't accomplished since 1975 -- qualify for NCAA Championships as a team.
To give some understanding as to how long its been since the Wolverines last qualified for nationals, none of the current Michigan competitors were alive at the time, save one -- LaLo Haro. At 25 years old, Haro is the "old man" of the team. And now his vast experiences will be more valuable than ever as the Wolverines are legitimate contenders to win their third NCAA team title and their first since 1970.
Haro, a native of Puebla, Pue., Mexico, is no stranger to high-level competitions. He has competed at the NCAA meet as an individual qualifier the last two seasons. Beyond those, LaLo has competed in numerous Mexican national and international events. Haro, the reigning Mexican national champion, has been his country's national champion six times in his career. He has also competed in the World Gymnastics Championships, Pan-Am Games, World University Games and other international events.
In 1997, as a freshman, Haro qualified to the East Regional as an individual. At the regional meet he carded a 57.400 to move on to the national meet. At the NCAA meet, LaLo finished 11th in the all-around, but it was a learning experience. "I went (to nationals) my freshman year with my ex-teammate Tim DeGraw," Haro said. "It was a good experience as an individual competitor."
Last year, as a sophomore, Haro led the Wolverines one step farther as the team qualified for regionals for the first time since 1994. At regionals, LaLo again qualified for nationals, where he earned All-America honors in the all-around and on the vault at the 1998 NCAA Championships. He earned these honors as an individual competitor, claiming fourth place in the all-around (57.100) and fifth place on the vault.
Haro came to the United States and the University of Michigan in 1996 as a freshman to compete for the Wolverine men's gymnastics team. After completing his first semester at Michigan, Haro had a situation arise that could have forced him to return to Mexico. Through long interviews, a lot of retrieval of records and a visit to the US Embassy of Mexico, he received a visa. "The academic and athletic experiences I have gained from being a part of the Maize and Blue are worth the effort I gave to remain a member of the University of Michigan," Haro says.
Head coach Kurt Golder considers Haro a very valuable asset in building the team to a leading competitive squad. Golder's first recruit, Haro has led other talented gymnasts to be a part of the Michigan team.
This weekend Haro returns to compete in the top collegiate gymnastics competition. This time he is not only competing as an individual, but he is also competing for the team championship. Haro commented, "I'm very excited to travel to the national championship as a member of a competing team, and I will contribute my best for the team."
Players Mentioned
