Born in the U.S., Lanaro competes for Mexico and would like to hear that anthem at the Pan American Games

From the Los Angeles Times:

Lanaro has since left swimming and is now a pole vaulter — the seventh-best in the world, in fact. But if he climbs to the top of the medal platform today during the final full day of competition of the Pan American Games, he won’t be hearing "The Star-Spangled Banner." Instead they’ll be playing the Mexican national anthem.

"Ever since I was young I wanted to compete for Mexico," said Lanaro, who was born in Los Angeles to an American father and a Mexican mother, qualifying him for dual citizenship. "My whole family, everyone’s Mexican. We live in the U.S., but the culture is a Mexican culture and that’s what I grew up around.

"So that’s what I’ve always wanted to do, compete for Mexico."

He’s not the only one. No fewer than nine athletes named to the Mexican Pan Am team — including East L.A. boxer Anthony Mosquera and former UCLA middle-distance runner Martell Munguia — were born in the U.S. but choose to compete for their parents’ homeland instead.

"I live in the States. Everything I do is in the U.S.," said Lanaro, the Mexican champion and national record-holder with a best of 19 feet 1 inch. "[But] competing for Mexico, it’s a big deal for my mom. And my dad too. For them, it’s important for me to represent Mexico."