16A - The Michigan Daily_-_Thursday,_April_15, 1999 D'ESINED TO BE A 9WoVRN M' gymnast will compete one last time By DAN DINGERSON mDaLY SPORTS WRITER Football games in Michigan Stadium are one of the best recruiting tools for the foot- ball team. The thought of playing in front of more than 100,000 fans entices some of the best athletes in the country to come to Ann Arbor. It would probably surprise many people though, that a football game in the mid-1980s would bring the co-captain of the 1999 men's gymnastics team to Michigan. Randy D'Amura first came to Ann Arbor with his dad when he was 7-years-old to see a Michigan football game. At that moment, he fell i' love with the school and decided that he want- ed to be a part of that tradition. "Ever since then I have been a fan, a total Michigan Wolverine," D'Amura said. "I always wanted to be a student-athlete here - well, I didn't know what a student-athlete was then, but an athlete. "Since I had done gymnastics for 16 years, it was a natural fit as soon as I found out that there was a program here." "Student-athlete" is a term that has entered into the country's conscience in recent years. Prior to that, there was a clear distinction between the two. Still, many people don't realize exactly what goes along with being a student-athlete at Michigan. Most people think that it involves occasionally attending Kinesiology classes and going to practice. For some, this is undoubtedly true, but not for all. Some student-athletes use the opportunity to help the University and the community. D'Amura is one such athlete. Most people on campus probably don't know who this senior from Texas is - he doesn't play a sport that gets any television coverage or much thought on this campus. The people within the Athletic Department certainly do. He is heavily involved in the stu- dent-athlete advising council, he is the chair of the special events committee-and helps with vari- ous community service causes. - One activity that he is particularly proud of in his four years at Michigan is the team's work with school children. D'Amura has organized a program where a couple of the gymnasts go to local elementary schools and perform gymnas- tics. The program not only gives the kids an interesting performance, but it helps to spread D'Amura's love for gymnastics and the Michigan program. "We did the program last year too, and one time we had this whole kindergarten class come to our meet. Their teacher brought a whole pack- et full of kindergartners thank you letters," D'Amura said. "It was great, little things like that make it great. It's another thing where you can make an impact as a student-athlete. It makes you feel like you are doing the right thing." D'Amura also takes his academics seriously. An economics major, D'Amura, like other seniors, is going through the interview process right now. He says that he didn't really realize just how great being a University student was until he started interviewing this year. D'Amura is using his experiences as an athlete and as a captain to help himself in the professional world. "Its all about relating your experiences and putting it in their words," D'Amura said. "I tell them about how gymnastics has taught me to pay attention to details, and then I apply that to academics. Also, I have learned how to lead peo- ple and work with different personalities and mesh them together." Despite his future plans, D'Amura is a stu- dent-athlete first and foremost, and athletics have played a great role in his life at Michigan. Probably no one on this campus, or maybe even in the country, can understand exactly what D'Amura has gone through. Four years ago, Michigan was seriously considering dropping men's gymnastics as a varsity sport. When D'Amura came to visit campus he was told that, although there were no scholarships to give, the program would continue. "We weren't sure if the team was only going to be here for my freshman and sophomore year or if it would continue." His first year on the gymnastics team, the team was winless, and considered by some to be the worst team in the country. After that season, the department made a coaching change, and D'Amura started to see a turnaround. "When the program made a commitment to us, it made me proud to be a Michigan Wolverine," D'Amura said. "Leaders and best - all of those words that people associate with being a Wolverine - they started to ring truer for me. Then when they brought Kurt in, you could tell that they made a commitment." In the three years since Michigan hired Kurt Golder as coach, the Wolverines have been the talk of the gymnastics world. This year they have arrived at the forefront of the NCAA gymnastics world, eaming a number one ranking and quali- fying for national championships. Very few collegiate athletes have ever been a part of such a turnaround. From going winless as a freshman to being Big Ten champion as a senior - and possibly national champion. In addition to experiencing this great revolution of a program, D'Amura is the only senior, and thus the only gymnast left from the pre-Golder era. He is also the floor leader of Michigan's resur- gence, something that hasn't gone unnoticed by his coach. "He was really important for me. He does a great job at relating things between the team and the staff," Golder said. "His peers respect him, and I respect him." As the only senior on the team and having endured the program's tough times, it may seem obvious why D'Amura is team captain. It only becomes obvious why he is a captain after listen- ing to him talk about his role on the team. "Being a leader is really important to me. I want the young guys to be able to lead when they get older so that the program can continue to succeed," D'Amura said. Although leadership is always important in athletics, it is even more crucial to young, inex- perienced teams. Michigan is a young team this year, with nine freshmen and sophomores on the roster. "It would have been nice to have a classmate who would understand what I have been through with this team," D'Amura said. "Being alone though has brought out my leadership qualities though because it has put me in the forefront." D'Amura has made the journey with the Michigan gymnastics program, but it is all com- ing to an end soon. After giving 16 years of his life to the sport, D'Amura only has one more competitive meet. The NCAA Championships in Lincoln, Neb. will be the final time that D'Amura takes the floor as a gymnast. 0 0 Since the age of sever, Michigan gymnast Randy D'Amura has been a Michigan fan. D'Amura, a senior, will compete in his last meet this weekend at the NCAA Championships. * "I have been so happy and proud of this team that I haven't been thinking about the end. We still have a job to do, so its not over yet," D'Amura said. "I don't see it as a negative, though. This team has done some things that I will always be proud of, I'm also excited to get on with my life and see what its like on the other side without gym- nastics." The men's gymnastics team will not be losing its best competitor or its best scorer when D'Amura leaves. The team will be losing a beacon of spirit and history, though. No one in the department will have been with the program before Golder, and probably no one will be able to match D'Amura's spirit. "It's great to have Randy on the team," Golder said. "Not only is he a great gymnast and a great leader, but I really enjoy just talking to him, "We always talk about Michigan football, or basketball or hockey. We can always talk about the other Michigan sports because we both love them so much. Being an alumnus of the school, it is nice to have that kind of spirit on the team," Golder said. if any athlete on campus can understand what it really means to be a Wolverine, Randy D'Amura is that athlete. He has been in love with Michigan for more than 14 years, longer than some freshmen can remember. "I feel like I'm maize and blue," D'Amura said. "I would do anything for this team and this school to help it succeed." DANA LINNANE/Daily This season D'Amura and the Michigan men's gymnastics team has had its most successful season in recent history. ...... .... . .... ... ............ ................ .. .. .. ... . SHOW YOUR PRIDE! . CollgePride Diploa Framing Proudly ofers the very finest Custom Handmade Frames with Tree-Dimensional Deep Cut School Logos. Any repl? .ion of this prod7ct is prohibited by Lic=nsmg Assations. 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