Giovanni Lanaro
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's athletics | ||
Representing  Mexico
|
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| Pan American Games | ||
 |
2007 Rio de Janeiro | Pole vault |
 |
2011 Guadalajara | Pole vault |
Giovanni Alessandro Lanaro Mercado (born 27 September 1981 in Los Angeles) is an American born Mexican pole vaulter.
Giovanni Lanaro attended West Covina High School in California; Lanaro pole vaulted as a freshman in high school (3.51m) but suffered a back injury as well as a fractured ankle skateboarding that prevented him from vaulting the next three years. He focused on swimming and made CIF before deciding to give the vault one more try at Mt. San Antonio College (Mt. SAC) in Walnut, CA.
In two years at Mt. SAC, Lanaro raised his personal best from 3.51m to 5.30m breaking the college record of 5.21 meters held by Olympic Gold/Silver Medalist, Bob Seagren and Bill Halverson. Lanaro shunned recruiting offers from USC, South Carolina, Michigan State and Fresno State to attend little known Cal State Fullerton where he was a three-time NCAA All-American and raised his career best to 5.60m.
He finished in joint fourth place at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Moscow, and won the silver medal at the 2007 Pan American Games. He also competed in the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2007 World Championships, but failed to clear his opening height. At the 2005 World Championships in Athletics, with 5.45 metres he failed to progress to the final.
Although he failed to qualify for the final of the 2007 World Championships in Athletics, Lanaro's 2007 campaign was a fabulous one. He jumped 5.70 meters or higher nine times, including three competitions of over 5.80 meters. Along the way he captured a host of competitions titles including the Mt. SAC Relays, Road to Eugene, Reebok Grand Prix, Nike Prefontaine Classic and Padua International Athletics Meet. At the Nike Prefontaine Classic, he jumped 5.80 meters, easily defeating the stellar field by 20 centimeters, which included all three 2004 Olympic Medalists, the U.S. record holder, the Japanese record holder and the U.S. Champion.
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