By Mike Pearson
FightingIllini.com

National Hispanic Heritage Month (from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15) recognizes the influence and contributions of Hispanic Americans to the history, culture and achievements of the United States. This is the third in a series of articles about current Fighting Illini staff members of Hispanic descent.

Then 20-year-old Argentinian Germán Dalmagro (pronounced Her-mahn Dal-mahg-ro), a professional player in his South American homeland, first displayed his talents in front of collegiate recruiters at a showcase tournament in Miami, Fla.

"I had a couple of friends who'd gone to college in the United States, so I said 'Let's give it a try'," he said.

He played well and the offers started rolling in … Georgia, LSU and others. However, Dalmagro faced a couple of underlying problems. He'd been earning a small bit of money as a professional, a no-no in those days according to NCAA rules and regulations. Consequently, eligibility-wise, he'd be forced to sit out his first year.

Even a bigger issue for the young man from Córdoba, Argentina was that he scarcely spoke a word of English.

"I was close to a beginner," Dalmagro admitted. "Every time someone spoke English to me, I had to translate it in my head to Spanish. I would gather my thoughts and translate it to English. In Spanish, you sometimes say things the opposite way, so it was confusing."

He did have one other offer—from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, a small university in Tifton, Ga.—and it turned out to be his only realistic option.

"ABAC told me that they just wanted me for my tennis and would let me in without knowing how to speak English," he said. "My first semester was a struggle. I was thrown into the lion's den. But that made me better because I had no other choice than to learn quicker than I would back home. Nothing can compare to going to a place where you want to learn the language. English was the only thing I read or heard or saw, so that helped me a ton.

"My first semester, I basically took all English classes, but these were tailored to English as a second language. What helped me the most was just speaking with my teammates. It was hard, but it was also fun. I've always enjoyed a challenge. You can't be afraid to make mistakes, otherwise you would never speak it."

On the tennis court, Dalmagro was fabulous for the Golden Stallions, winning National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) All-America honors in both singles and doubles. He was the national champ at No. 2 singles in 2002 and the runner-up in 2003. ABAC finished second in the NJCAA national tournament both years.

This past March, Dalmagro was named to ABAC's Hall of Fame.

He continued his collegiate success at the University of West Florida, leading the Argonauts to back-to-back NCAA Division II titles (2004 and '05).

"I had teammates from Argentina, Brazil, France, and Columbia, so our team was very diverse, very international," Dalmagro said.

Like many other Argentinians, the Dalmagro family's roots are of European descent. His mother's family came to South America from Spain, while his father's family migrated from Italy. In fact, the original spelling of his surname was Dal Magro.

"When they landed, the officials in Argentina changed it to one name," Germán explained.

His maternal grandfather established a successful Napa Valley-like vineyard near the Andes Mountains in Mendoza. That's where young German and his family lived for many years.

"As a kid, I used to stomp on grapes in my family's winery," he said.

By the age of nine, Dalmagro was obsessed with sports, participating not only in tennis, but also in soccer, swimming, basketball and rugby. When he turned 12, young Germán followed in the footsteps of his very successful tennis-playing father. His parents now live in Paraguay, where his dad, Alberto Dalmagro, continues to serve as a coach.

When Germán's collegiate playing days ended, he began his coaching career, first as an assistant at ABAC, then at UWF, then for six seasons with the Kansas Jayhawks' women's tennis staff. He eventually moved on to Lincoln, Nebraska where he helped the Nebraska Cornhuskers earn a top-60 ranking each of the five years he was there, including No. 21 in 2017-18.

Dalmagro became Evan Clark's associate head coach at the University of Illinois in July of 2018 and successful results followed immediately. Not only did Illinois advance into the Big Ten Tournament Finals, it also received an invitation to the NCAA Team Tournament.

The 2020-21 Illini roster features a pair of international players in Japanese star Asuka Kawai and India's Shivani Ingle, and Dalmagro is an especially supportive mentor to them both.

"I've been in their shoes," he said. "I tell them what I've been through. That usually makes them feel a little more secure and safe and helps them navigate through their ups and downs. Sometimes our international students have much better grades that American-born students. Our academic advisors say that that success comes because of their discipline. They don't want to fail. They want to take advantage of their opportunity and do their very best."

Dalmagro, a member of the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics' diversity and inclusivity committee, explained why it's important to know about Hispanic culture.

"I describe myself as a Latino Hispanic," he said. "Many, many years ago, the population here was as much Hispanic as it was anything else. It's deep in the roots of the United States. I always say that it's better to be more diverse than to be close minded. It's always good to learn about other cultures, other foods, other languages and other behaviors. It's always best to be open-minded.

"I have friends that didn't know anything about my culture or foods or language, but the more you get to know each other you begin learning things and trying things and becoming more passionate about that. Sometimes, when you're used to only one thing, that's what you like and what you do and what you say and how you think. But the more you're around other people around the world, it opens up your mind and your thoughts and your heart. I think that's how you become more tolerant, more compassionate, more well-rounded.

"In this world that we're living in right now with racism, especially here in the U.S., the more you know about all the cultures, the more tolerant you'll become in accepting everybody. It takes acceptance to know what other people are about."