Brandi Chastain
I have been playing on teams for almost 34 years, but it feels like yesterday. I have always loved what sports did for me internally, but also how it made me feel physically. I have played on little teams and big teams, but no matter what team I played on, I always played the same way, as if it always matter. My earliest memories of sports and my dreams in relations to them are still clear in my mind. One, I thought I would be on the line for the Pittsburgh Steelers. My god father was an old time football player, when leather helmets were the norm and I think that is where I got my love of the Gold and Black. Then, one day I was at a friends sitting in front of the tv and I saw the US Men’s Hockey team play the Russians in the semi-final game of the Olympics. When they won that game, their pride, passion, excitement and joy surged through me. I knew I wanted to be in the Olympics, only the thing I loved didn’t exist in that space. So as quickly as that game came, the idea of being a professional and Olympian did. I just keep hitting homers from my friends driveway left or right handed, playing with the boys in street football, and playing soccer like nothing every happened. And for me, that is one aspect of what was the most important part of being a professional. That what we do is a game, but the lessons for the players and fans were about life. I faced the “no you can’t” only once in my life and when the boys stood up to the coach of the supposedly co-ed team in junior high, I knew that sport made me powerful, and that I wasn’t in competition with my teammates. Having those boys as allies gave me the green light to push forward. I never again would be afraid or question my reason or love for what I was doing in sport, even when it was rough. Earning medals, and championships has been an amazing journey (athletically and personally) but it pales to the impact I feel I am having as a mother and founder of a non-profit that benefits young girls. I now realize that every experience we have builds us up for our next challenge and that is what Brandi’s World will do for me and the girls we will have the luxury to reach everyday.
Brandi Chastain
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