Arizona jumper Diana Ramos sets Venezuela indoor high-jump record

Ten years ago, the University of Arizona was not part of Diana Ramos’ plan. Thoughts of competing in track and field, or setting a national record in the high jump? No way.

Ramos was dancing her way across the rhythmic gymnastics circuit in Venezuela. That’s a long way from Lubbock, Texas, where she found herself competing in the high jump in February.

The Texas Tech Shootout’s practice bar was set at 1.5 meters, and Ramos didn’t clear it once.

“I went to the bathroom and was like, ‘Hey, that was the warm-up; that’s not the competition. So get your stuff together and go jump,’ ” she said.

Ramos went on to clear 1.71 meters — or 5 feet 7.25 inches — and become the new Venezuelan national indoor high jump record holder.

“It was pretty nice, I was happy to be able to pull myself together,” Ramos said of the honor. “And the season’s going pretty well, actually.”

Ramos, 21, hails from Guatire, a 200,000-person city in the state of Miranda. She first took up rhythmic gymnastics at the age of 6. The sport is a variation of gymnastics in which gymnasts perform on the mat with a ball, ribbon, hoop or rope. It combines elements of gymnastics, dance and calisthenics.

Ramos forged strong friendships along the way, but gave up the sport at age 14 when all her friends stopped.

“They moved to track and field,” she said, “so I basically went to track just to be with my friends.”

The first event she tried on her very first day was the high jump.

“I just really fell in love,” Ramos said. “The next couple weeks, the coach was trying me in different events, but I didn’t like them. I didn’t like running, I didn’t like long jump. I only wanted to high jump.”

Ramos graduated from high school in 2016 and was accepted to a university in Venezuela.

“But because of whole the political and economic crisis, they were postponing me for one year. And then I waited and that year was up, and then they said another year,” Ramos said. “I was already waiting for so long.”

She spent her time training to make the national team, which she did, but then her personal voice of reason chimed in again.

“At some point, my mom was like, ‘That won’t last forever. You have to study and get a professional career,’” Ramos said. “My mom was putting a little bit of pressure on me that sports isn’t forever.”

Ramos began talking with her friend, Karla Teran — a high jumper from Nogales, Sonora who started at the UA in 2017. They talked about college. Ramos said she didn’t know track athletes even competed at the college level.

“I didn’t know anything about the NCAA or Pac-12; I didn’t have any idea about that,” Ramos said.

She emailed former UA assistant coach Matthew McGee about the process.

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In the years between graduating high school and coming to the UA in January 2019, Ramos dedicated herself to learning English, taking classes in between training and competing with the Venezuelan national team.

“But when you learn English in a different country that doesn’t speak English, it’s so different,” Ramos said. “So when I came here, I thought I knew English, and then in the airport and with border patrol, I was so nervous.”

Ramos’ freshman year was overwhelming, and taking all of her classes in English was more difficult than she had anticipated.

“I feel like I have to study double than my classmates,” Ramos said. “I have to read the books, but I also have to read it twice because I have to kind of translate.”

While it wasn’t easy, Ramos said she had a lot of support — including a private tutor who helped her with pronunciation and grammar and other tutors made available through the athletic department. By the end of the year, she had a solid GPA and was feeling proud of all she’d accomplished on the academic side.

Similarly, her first track season had its ups and downs: Ramos didn’t compete during the 2019 indoor season, but made seven appearances for during the outdoor season. She placed third during her season opener, with a high jump of 1.72 meters, and set a personal record later in the season, with a jump of 1.77 meters.

Ramos finished sixth at the 2019 Pac-12 championships with a jump of 1.66 meters and competed in the NCAA Division I West Region preliminary rounds.

She started off strong the following season, making three appearances and placing third at NAU Friday Night Duals before the remainder of the indoor season was canceled due to the pandemic, as was the subsequent outdoor season.

The pandemic was a struggle for Ramos, who found herself living alone after her roommate decided to move home.

“My passport expired, so I really didn’t have any options,” Ramos said. “My only option was to stay here.”

Ramos said she was so consumed with track and school her freshman year that she hadn’t been able to really connect with people and make friends. She worked out alone six days per week until some of her teammates returned to town in mid-July. Ramos partnered up with one of them and began training hard, albeit outside of the Wildcats’ traditional training facilities.

“You’d see me running in the park, in the mall. It was kind of like an alternative gym for us,” Ramos said. “We were using the rocks and doing squats with rocks, and just trying to be creative.”

Ramos developed a love for running, something she never enjoyed in the past.

She’s also excited about her prospects off the field. She is completing a bachelor’s degree in journalism and is eyeing a master’s in international studies.

“I love meeting and talking to people. And writing,” Ramos said. “And journalists know a little bit about everything. I like that. Today I can know about sports, and tomorrow I’m doing something about science or the universe.”

Ramos wants to continue jumping while she attends grad school, since she has an extra year of eligibility remaining. She’s hoping she’ll be approved.

Regardless of what happens, Ramos is proud of how far she’s come and continues to set her sights high, on and off the field.

“The only thing I can do is work hard and show them I’m valuable on this team,” Ramos said.

“I came here with not much English, and now I’m in my junior year of college in a university in the United States.”