Men's and Women's Gymnastics
vs. Ohio State
Saturday, 8 p.m.
Crisler Arena
SPORTS
Men's Volleyball
vs. Miami of Ohio
Friday, 7:30 p.m.
CCRB
rhe Michigan Daily Wednesday, January 14, 1987 Page 9
61% Ra
The Comeback Kid:injry.
isher grapples with
comes out on top
By ERIC MAXSON
Some athletes bounce back from
devastating injuries, but few regain
all of their skills. Then there are the
great athletes, like John Fisher.
As a senior in high school at
Flint Northern, Fisher was a state
champion wrestler, finishing the
season with a perfect 54-0 record.
He then rolled onto the Big Ten
scene with Michigan, completing a
brilliant rookie year with a record of
45-10. He finished third in the
Wonference and fourth in the country
en route to being named freshman
of the year.
In his sophomore season, Fisher
picked up right where he left off the
year before. After 10 matches he
was 9-1 and ranked third in the
nation, certain to become an All-
American and in possible
contention for the Big Ten and
national championships.
AT THAT point, however,
things turned sour. A shoulder
injury that had first bothered Fisher
in high school resurfaced and
wouldn't go away. He was forced
to undergo surgery to remove
damaged cartilage and tighten some
ligaments.
But after rehabilitating his
shoulder with weights, Fisher has
returned this fall to stardom. He is
now ranked sixth in the nation and
rising. As a redshirt sophomore, he
has two years of eligibility .
remaining after this season, and his
future looks as bright as it did
before his surgery.
Fisher is one of those rare
athletes who combines great
physical skill with that famous,
indefinable quality called
"intangibles."
His muscles are long and thin,
not bulky, which helps explain his
extraordinary quickness. Wrestling
coach Dale Bahr calls him "the
quickest I've ever seen. He can
have you down before you know
what's going on." Bahr also cites
Fisher's "excellent balance."
They both agree, however, that
something else separates Fisher
from the others in his weight class.
"He went through painful
surgery," said Bahr. "You don't
know how kids will come back."
Though Bahr says that such injuries
can be mentally damaging, the
coach added, "(Fisher) didn't allow
that to happen."
THE hardest time, Fisher says,
was at the beginning of this season,
when he had trouble working out
the kinks after nearly a year away
from competition.
He was disappointed with his
performance in the first three meets,
and said he was getting depressed.
At that point Fisher found the
support he needed in his girlfriend
and his parents, Troy and Nancy.
"When I'm feeling down, I just
call my mom, and next thing you
know, I'm feeling good," he says.
"I called my mother and she said,
just have faith, don't worry about
it."
ranked second in the country, at the
OSU Quad in Columbus on
January 3.
After that performance, Fisher
expects to improve on his sixth
ranking. And, while All-America
honors are almost certain, Bahr
says, "We both have higher goals
than that."
Those higher goals are reachable
because of Fisher's intangibles. He
calls it determination. Bahr says
he's "really organized and an
excellent worker."
"He has a tough mental
approach," the coach added. "He
knows exactly what he wants to
achieve and how to do it. In the
worst way, he wants to be national
champion."
It was toughness, desire, and
faith that pulled Fisher through hard
times, and those qualities are
making him a winner now.
If those intangibles don't bring a
national championship to Ann
Arbor this season, Fisher has two
more years to show his greatness.
FOLLOWING his
advice, Fisher turned
around, and won at the;
Open in Orlando, Florida.
he was all the way back
beat Ohio State's Robby
mother's
himself
Sunshine
He knew
when he
Johnson,
Ourthree-year and
two-year scholarshipswon't
make college easier.
Just easier to pay for.
Even if you didn't start college on a scholarship, you
could finish on one. Army ROTC Scholarships
pay for full tuition and allowances for educational
fees and textbooks. Along with up to $1,000
a year. Get all the facts. BE ALL YOU CAN BE.
APPLICATION DEADLINE IS FEBRUARY 5, 1987
SCHEDULE YOUR NO OBLIGATION INTERVIEW NOW!
CALL CAPTAIN GALLAGHER AT 764-2400
ARMY RESERVE CFFICERS' TRAINING CORS
Daily photo by SCOTT LITUCHY
Michigan wrestler John Fisher relaxes during practice, having successfully
recovered faomshouldersurgery that sidelines him formost of last season.
our
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