This wasn’t the way Kurt Golder envisioned celebrating his second national championship. 

The Michigan men’s gymnastics coach thought he’d be on a plane to Birmingham, England late that April night. Instead, he turned off of State Street into Michigan’s athletic complex.

Volcanic ash from Iceland wrecked plans that Golder and freshman Rohan Sebastian had to attend the 2010 European championships.

First their flight was delayed a day. Then 72 hours, which meant Sebastian would miss his competition. So Golder instead returned to Ann Arbor, well behind the welcome party that greeted the rest of Michigan’s team hours before.

His return came with no fanfare whatsoever.

“That would have been fun,” Golder said Thursday as the Michigan athletic department honored his national championship team. “They both would have been fun, but what was meant to be was meant to be, and everything worked out well.

“We won our championship so after that, I’ll take anything that comes at me.”

Since returning to Ann Arbor, Golder said he’s received a lot of congratulatory e-mails and phone calls, culminating in the Thursday celebration in front of other coaches, athletic director Dave Brandon and the presentation of national championship hats. The team then left for Dearborn, where they were to receive a resolution read by the Michigan Board of Regents at their monthly meeting.

For Sebastian, the ash cost him a chance to compete for one of the two countries in which he claims citizenship. Born to Indian parents in Ireland, Sebastian moved to the United States as a kid and settled in Oklahoma, where he watched the Oklahoma gymnastics teams in awe.

A member of the Irish National Team since 2007, this wasn’t going to be his first overseas competition, which helped ease any weather-related frustration.

“I was in great shape, finally, for an international meet,” Sebastian said. “Usually these international meets are at weird times of the year. I competed at world championships last year and that was before the season started so I wasn’t in top shape, but this one worked out perfectly.

“Then a volcano erupted.”

The collegiate national championship win eased missing the European championships came. He called Michigan's win his best moment in gymnastics - because it came in more of a team atmosphere.

“No gymnast goes into college thinking they are going to win a national title in the four years,” Sebastian said. “Especially for me as a freshman to win a national title, it’s huge and I’m still in shock.”

Plus, there are always more gymnastics meets in Europe. The Olympics are in London in 2012 - something not lost on Sebastian.

“If I can qualify to the Olympics and do well at the Olympics, that would be the height of my career, definitely,” Sebastian said. “But right now, I want to win another championship.”

Michael Rothstein covers University of Michigan sports for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at (734) 623-2558, by e-mail at michaelrothstein@annarbor.com or follow along on Twitter @mikerothstein