Lt. Jany Collaco was selected for and participated in the 2005 National Football League (NFL) Pro Bowl Feb. 13 in Hawaii, culminating a two-year career as a cheerleader for the San Francisco 49ers.
Collaco, assigned to the Human Performance Center Detachment for Naval Air Forces in San Diego, is one of the first NFL cheerleaders on active duty with the U.S. Navy.
“I’ve always had a passion for dancing and sports, and so I decided to pursue my passion and combine them into one really great second job,” said Collaco. “It’s really been a remarkable experience. This job combined with my job as a naval officer provides a really great balance in my life.”
Born in Brazil, Collaco grew up in San Francisco and learned tap, ballet and jazz. She graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1998 with a mathematics degree and earned her wings in 2000 as a P-3 pilot. While at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., she decided to try out for the cheerleading team, using her free time, with the Navy’s permission.
“The Navy has been very supportive,” she said. “I went through all the procedures and got it approved through the dean of students, and they were great about it.”
She earned her master’s degree in operations analysis while receiving “Rookie of the Year” as a 49ers cheerleader, and this year, she was selected for the 2005 Pro Bowl.
“I really just want to live every moment here at the Pro Bowl to its fullest,” she said. “I want to take in every experience and just cherish it. I realize that this is my last game, so I want to live it up and remember every second out there on the field.”
Collaco said she will miss cheering for the 49ers, but really enjoys the work she is doing with the Navy and looks forward to where it will take her in life.
“One of my lifelong dreams has been to combine two of my greatest loves - dancing and my passion for the San Francisco 49ers,” she said. “It is an experience unlike any other, and I am so proud to have been a part of it.”