Jalisco, Mexico - Mexico will take over 100 athletes to the London 2012 Olympic Games - including a host of our state of Jalisco’s top sportsmen and women.

So far, 11 athletes from Jalisco have already booked their tickets to London, while eight more still hope to make the grade. The most unlikely of those to have qualified is Alejandra Orozco, a 14-year-old diver from Guadalajara.

Competing alongside Mexico’s famed diver Paola Espinosa, Orozco took eighth place in the 10-meter synchronized diving competition at the International Swimming Federation World Cup in February. Espinosa, 25, has represented Mexico in two previous Olympics, earning a bronze medal in the same event in Beijing 2008.

"It is an honor to train with Paola, I admire her a lot because she is a caring person and she knows how to pass on advice," said Orozco of her older mentor.

Another Jalisco athlete that will be representing Mexico in the Olympics is Guadalajara soccer star Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez, who plays for the world’s richest team, Manchester United in England’s Premier League.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed last week that Hernandez would playing for Mexico in the summer games. The former Chivas striker, who turns 24 on June 1st, will be one of three players over the age of 23 permitted by rule to take part in El Tri’s Olympic soccer squad.

Archer Juan Rene Serrano is another athlete from Guadalajara who will be on the plane to London. Serrano competed in the last two Olympic Games, coming fourth in Beijing 2008 and winning bronze in the Rio de Janiero 2007 Pan American Games.

Mexico won three medals in the Beijing 2008 Olympics, with Guillermo Perez winning the country’s only gold in the martial art competition of taekwondo.

Mexico’s best chance of medals in London come in taekwondo, diving, archery, and boxing, said Jaime Cadaval, the head of the Mexican delegation. He confirmed over 100 athletes will take part, adding that Pan American gymnastics champion Diego Corral stands a strong chance, while the soccer team should also be taken into account.

The draw for the soccer tournament was made last month. Having been seeded, Mexico’s men’s team avoided tough opponents such as Spain and Brazil, receiving the favorable draw of Gabon, South Korea, and Switzerland. Mexico will be among the favorites to bring home a medal in the soccer competition.