Fromer Pats Cheerleader Strives To Earn Hero Win
By Alexandra Caulway
Telegram & Gazette
Athena Lazo, center, listens to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in a segment of “The Hero.” The show airs at 8 p.m. Thursdays on TNT
Athena Lazo went from Shepherd Hill Regional High School to the Patriots football stadium, and now she has landed herself a spot on TNT’s new series “The Hero.”
Hosted by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, the reality show tests strength, courage and integrity through a series of challenges and temptations meant to throw the competitors and find a true hero based on America’s votes.
Lazo is a Southbridge native and moved several times throughout the Worcester area as she grew up. A former NFL cheerleader, she currently works as community relations director for a fitness center. Originally, Lazo wanted to be on “The Hero” to give the lesser-known side of cheerleading a spokesperson; she wanted to talk about the social aspects, expectations and eating disorders many of the girls struggle with. But her motivation shifted when her 26-year-old brother suffered a stroke. He was diagnosed with a brainstem tumor at the age of 4 and is paralyzed on the left side and almost completely deaf.
The family was inundated with medical bills after the stroke, and Lazo knew she needed to do this for them. “I got an email for an open casting call,” she said. “The audition was in Boston and it was the same day as my grandpa’s birthday. I decided last-minute to stay home with my family and sent in my résumé and a blurb about why I wanted to be on the show.” She has always enjoyed performing, even when faced with rejection. “Perseverance and hard work are what make a hero,” she said.
In 2008, she tried out for a spot on the NFL cheerleading squad and got turned down. But that didn’t dissuade her from trying again. “Three-hundred eighty-three girls walked in and eight earned a spot,” she said of the auditions. “It’s not easy. Everyone thinks it’s all glamorous and all smiles, but it was one of the hardest things I ever had to go through.” She was on the team for three years and left with a retirement ring.
The entire experience on “The Hero” has been overwhelming for Lazo. “So far, things have been crazy. I gained 500 Twitter followers overnight,” she said with a laugh. As for working with “The Rock,” Lazo found him to be down-to-earth and honest. “You always see him with that enticing smile,” she said, “and it actually never leaves his face.”
On Episode 2, which aired last week, the contestants were taken to Colon City, Panama. “The challenge in Colon was the craziest,” Lazo remembered. “We ran for over two hours. I was teamed with Hero Rachel, and thank goodness she spoke Spanish!” Their task was simple, but not easy: find the location of a photo handed to you by Johnson, who arrived by helicopter. “You didn’t know where you were supposed to go,” explained Lazo. “Our location ended up being hidden in a 15-story building. It was kind of really scary — they just dropped us in the middle of the city with dirty streets and wild dogs everywhere.”
Throughout the challenges, Johnson pops up with random “temptations,” or large sums of money the contestants have the option to take. “You have to decide if you want to be there for your team or for yourself,” Lazo said. “It was hard because we were competing against each other, but we had to work as teams.”
For her, the most difficult part of being on the show was being open-minded and trying to let other people see that she was a good person. “You start living the second you stop caring what other people think,” Lazo said. “I’m here for my brother.”
