Connection is Magic, with Ally Hammel

Transcript

00:00:04 Ally

In the mornings we are practicing, and when you're there, it's hard and extremely taxing and it takes everything you have. And then in the afternoon you go to your job or you go enjoy your day however you want to. So we really emphasize the balance aspect in our value system. It's joy for us.

00:00:27 Kristi

Welcome to the other three years, a show for anyone who has an Olympic sized dream. They want to turn into a reality.

00:00:38 Kristi

Hi and welcome to this week's episode of the other three years podcast. My name is Christy Wagner and this week I interview US Olympic Field hockey player Ali Ham.

00:00:49 Kristi

Ally has been on the US field hockey team since 2019 and won silver medals with the team at both the 2023 Pan Am Games and the Olympic Qualifier tournament earlier this year in India, which qualified the team for the Olympics.

00:01:03 Kristi

It was so fun to connect with Allie and chat with her. I feel like there are a lot of parallels between the way that the field hockey organization is run and the way that US rowing is run, but I think that what I loved most about our conversation was how she spoke about her.

00:01:19 Kristi

It just was really clear that they're very close team and they work really well together with a lot of trust in themselves and in their process and that's how they've been able to have so much success together. Our conversation covered a lot of topics, including how Ali got into field hockey and then the transition from high school to college and then college to the national team and.

00:01:39 Kristi

How those are all a little bit different. Sports, which was really interesting to me and we also discussed how she finds balance in her life now to make field hockey sustainable and what she's looking forward to at the Olympics. So it was a really fun conversation and I think everyone will really enjoy it.

00:01:55 Kristi

Before we get into that, here is an update on what's currently going on in my training, so we are halfway through our herba pre camp in Italy and we're getting our workouts in and then we're resting really hard. We're covering really hard, fueling hard. Italy is a great place to be an open weight rower.

00:02:15 Kristi

In the summer, tons of pizza and pasta and Gelato and croissants and stuff. So.

00:02:24 Kristi

So yeah, just really been trying to enjoy the process I think which I feel like the team has really been doing a good job of it, just feels like a really great energy. And I think you know, everyone's just really excited to be here and be doing this and have such an exciting event right around the corner. So we're here for another week.

00:02:44 Kristi

And then we leave the following Monday, so a few days after this will come out to go to Paris and that's really exciting.

00:02:55 Kristi

Today is Sunday and we actually had an off day which is really nice and this kind of our last off day before the Olympics, which is wild to think about, but just got to rest up and recuperate and then hit another hard week of training and just taking it day by day, workout by work out piece by piece and.

00:03:15 Kristi

That's what you got to do.

00:03:17 Kristi

Other than that, one of the spares, Emily Frelich, organized a really fun game of trivia that we all played the other night, which was really fun. Everyone got really into it. My team was very funny and we did not get that many questions right, but somehow we tied for winning the the whole thing, which.

00:03:37 Kristi

I'm still a little unsure how it happened, but that was fun even if we hadn't one, it was still fun. So shout out to Emily for organizing that and making some of our off time a little bit more exciting.

00:03:49 Kristi

Now it is time for my conversation with US Olympic Field hockey player Allie Hamill.

00:03:58 Kristi

All right, Allie. Hi. I'm so excited to have you on.

00:04:02 Ally

Hi yeah, awesome to be here.

00:04:04 Kristi

I kind of just wanted to start with your like getting into sports. I assume you like, maybe did other sports as well, but including field hockey, just like when you were a kid and what that was like.

00:04:18 Ally

So I grew up playing multiple sports. I played ice hockey from Massachusetts, so of course ice hockey's pretty big. I've played softball, lacrosse, soccer, pretty much anything I was like. Yeah, why not? I'll do it. So I started pretty young.

00:04:38 Ally

I have two younger brother.

00:04:39 Ally

Others.

00:04:40 Ally

Both played ice hockey played other sports, but I remember watching them play ice hockey. My middle brother is 2 years younger than me, so we kind of crossed a little bit in ice hockey, but I remember watching him and being like I want to play with him like this sport is so cool. I.

00:05:00 Ally

Tell my parents. Get me this stuff. I want to play and I just picked it up. It was so much fun. And then about, I think, 7th grade. My mom played field hockey collegiately, so she introduced me to the SPA.

00:05:13 Ally

It just took off from there. It was super similar, like Cross between soccer and ice hockey, so I picked it right up. It was super exciting for me. Like the rest is history, I guess.

00:05:25 Kristi

So did you keep playing other sports like through high school?

00:05:30 Ally

I played ice hockey up until my senior year. Well through my senior year of high school I was pretty competitive in it until I would say sophomore, junior year of high school. That's when I really decided I wanted to play.

00:05:44 Ally

Hockey.

00:05:45 Kristi

How like different, I mean I know like obviously there is a lot of differences. Yeah, primarily that you're on ice, but yeah, tactically or like the position you play or whatever. Like how similar? Yeah, are the two.

00:05:57 Ally

So I think of ice hockey like a small pitch field hockey. So think my decision making just has to be quicker. I played defense so similar in in both sports again like vision is very similar but everything just needs to be faster. You need to you know make your decisions.

00:06:17 Ally

Just very.

00:06:17 Ally

Quickly field hockey, I would say it's more similar to a soccer in the the size of the space and tactically very similar in that way. So it's definitely a cross between the two, but has some really fun, unique characteristics to it, which I enjoy sets it apart for me.

00:06:38 Kristi

So when you were like middle school high school playing field hockey.

00:06:43 Kristi

Were you just like, I really like this. It's super fun. Maybe I can do it in college. Did you have any sort of, like, national team aspirations at that point?

00:06:54 Ally

So growing up, me and him was always my idol. I was like, I want to be like her someday, so I knew I wanted to try to do something like that. You know, you always have a dream, but.

00:07:00 Kristi

Yes.

00:07:10 Ally

I never really thought it would become a reality, and if it did, I thought it would be ice hockey or, you know, maybe soccer. Who knows? But that was where my headspace was at. But when I started playing field hockey, I just had a blast. So I think I was more focused on the, you know, enjoying it, having fun, playing with my friends than I.

00:07:32 Ally

Was thinking, oh, I'm gonna go out and, you know, make a national team play in the Olympics type thing.

00:07:39 Kristi

I also like loved me as a as a child we went to. I'm also from Massachusetts, and we went to the like 1999 World Cup when they like, played the early round at Gillette. And I just remember it being like the cool, coolest thing. Yeah, I had like a Mia ham from like, their old league that they had. That was like not the.

00:07:42

Yeah.

00:07:52 Ally

Look insane. Yeah.

00:08:00 Kristi

NWSL. Yeah, I had one.

00:08:01 Kristi

Of.

00:08:01 Kristi

Her it was like AT shirt. It was not a jersey. It was like AT shirt that had. Yeah.

00:08:01 Ally

That's so cool. Yeah.

00:08:06 Kristi

Yeah.

00:08:07 Kristi

So yeah, so then like college. Same thing. Like, what drew you to college field hockey and then, like, what did you like about that?

00:08:18 Ally

Differences between high school and college, typically in high school, you play on grass or field turf surface.

00:08:27 Ally

In college, you play on Astroturf, and typically in Division One, it's wet astroturf, so it makes the game a lot more 3 dimensional a lot faster. It's a little bit easier to understand, see where the ball is going.

00:08:43 Ally

And then international, of course it's a bit faster. So once you play in college, it's super similar to international and I love how international field hockey is so dynamic. SO3 dimensional it. I mean, you watch the men's men's game, the ball is in the air half the time.

00:09:03 Ally

Which is insane to me. Super cool and I love.

00:09:06 Ally

How it's still evolving and it's still changing now like you see rule changes happen every year basically, which makes it a lot of fun to adapt and change to the style of play and the game that you see in front of you. So I think that's what really drew me to it really. I mean in college it.

00:09:27 Ally

It totally sparked my interest. It was, it was like a whole new world for me.

00:09:32 Kristi

That's so interesting. So like, had you never played on that kind of turf until you got to college?

00:09:39 Ally

So I played in club, but I mean that was.

00:09:44 Ally

Maybe once a month.

00:09:45 Ally

If I was lucky. Yeah, it was mainly grass or field turf, so it totally changed the game for me.

00:09:51 Kristi

That's super interesting. Do they, like, teach you how to play on that kind of turf? Like, are there, like, big changes to the game that you have that like to your game that you have to make?

00:10:01 Ally

You see a lot more sweeping and sweeping is when you, like, get all the way down onto the turf. Your hands are on the turf and you're almost like dragging your stick along.

00:10:11 Ally

The.

00:10:11 Ally

Turf. Whereas I think in high school you see more like place the ball down, you hit try to hit down the field because it helps you get through the bumpiness of the turf.

00:10:22 Ally

College is a lot more structured. You learn a lot about pressing out, letting which is, you know, in high school you're just kind of working through the skill and understanding. OK, I'm a defender. I, you know, do this. It's just it's so different.

00:10:40 Ally

I remember my sophomore or sorry, my freshman year of college this spring, that's when I really developed into a collegiate style player. You just like the speed, the skill, the exposure to the turf. You just don't get that in high school, which is unfortunate. I wish everyone could have Astroturf, but I understand it's incredibly expensive to have.

00:11:00 Ally

So.

00:11:00 Kristi

So then during college, like sort of the same question I asked earlier, like did you think that you would keep playing after college?

00:11:09 Ally

That was always my goal. Whether I knew I could do it or not, I just wanted to try. I remember my freshman year of college, my college coaches at Boston University said, hey, this is something that we think you can go do even if you don't see yourself playing at the international level.

00:11:30 Ally

It's really great for development because again, it's like going from college to international. It's like a whole nother level of step up.

00:11:39 Ally

So to be in that type of environment, it challenges you as a player. You play against some of the best players in the country, which is important. It just makes you a better field hockey player. So I went into back then it was called the Young Women's National Championship and that's basically the start of the trial for the junior high performance pipeline.

00:12:00 Ally

And it usually takes place in June, so all college athletes that want to play in it do high performance in the spring and then.

00:12:10 Ally

You go to this tournament, you're selected from there to continue on in the junior high performance pipeline. So they call it junior national camp. And then from there you get selected to play for the U21 team, the development squad or the national team. So I went and I tried out, I made it up until.

00:12:31 Ally

The U21 tryout and then I got cut from the U21 squad and this is, as they were developing for the Junior World Cup which is.

00:12:40 Ally

Super important.

00:12:42 Ally

So it was a pretty big tournament at that time for them and their world ranking. So I said, OK, I'm gonna go trial again next year. And then I had aged out of the U21 squad and I actually made it onto the development squad, which was huge. I think it was the first or second year that we had the development squad.

00:13:02 Ally

Next.

00:13:03 Ally

Distance and that is basically to bridge the gap between U21 and the national team, so keeping collegiate players in the system, keeping them up to that like international level standard of play. Yeah, so that was an awesome experience. And I think at that point, that's when I was like, OK, if I can go out there and have.

00:13:24 Ally

Confidence in my play, I think that's something for me. I can say maybe I can go make the nation.

00:13:28 Ally

Build team between freshman, sophomore year. That's when I really saw my dream develop a bit more.

00:13:36 Kristi

Yeah, that makes sense. So it's you guys only have U21, not U 2030.

00:13:41 Ally

No. Yeah.

00:13:42 Kristi

Oh, that's interesting.

00:13:43 Ally

Our development squad is technically like AU 23 as soon as you age out of U21, you are eligible for the development squad, so it's pretty cool.

00:13:52 Kristi

Yeah, that's so interesting. In rowing we have like, U19 is like the International junior and then U 23 is like I guess what would be like international college. Yeah, but we don't have a U21 like it's only those two.

00:14:06 Ally

Yeah.

00:14:08 Ally

Interesting.

00:14:09 Kristi

When you did graduate like sort of, what was the process like training for the national team?

00:14:16 Ally

When I was a senior in college, I was still on the development squad. Typically, we have a tour every spring, so I think that my senior year spring for the development squad we went to.

00:14:30 Ally

And we played a couple games there, which was super cool and from there our coach at the time was like, OK, I want to select you or I don't want to select you for the national team. And I was invited to join the national team starting August of 2019, which was pretty cool. So that's kind of how the process went and then.

00:14:51 Ally

You know that whole summer leading up to it, it was a lot of just working.

00:14:55 Ally

Out trying to get up to that level, trying to make sure I was fit enough to get through the load that they have every single day at every single practice, which is crazy. I remember being like, Oh my gosh, this is so much like, you know, it's it's so much greater than you have been experiencing. And I was like, I can do this, this is great. And then you get there and you're.

00:15:18 Ally

OK, I thought it was great and I'm not great. So yeah, a lot of that fall. Once I joined the national team was me just trying to get up to speed and understand what was happening because it just, it's such a huge gap. Like it's such a huge jump, which is something that, you know, as we grow the game in field.

00:15:37 Ally

Hockey in the United.

00:15:39 Ally

Rates, we want to see that jump happening sooner. So like it's really our goal is to continue to challenge the speed and challenge the skill, especially at a younger age.

00:15:50 Kristi

Do you guys have a national training like location?

00:15:53 Ally

Yeah. So about two years ago, we moved down to Charlotte, NC and we train out of the University of North Carolina, Charlotte. So pretty cool. Really awesome.

00:16:03 Ally

Facilities, awesome location. The university has been so great, so they have a partnership with the United States Performance Center. Yeah. So it's been great. We've been loving Charlotte.

00:16:12 Kristi

And are you guys there? Like all the time? Do you guys train together like all year or is it more like camp style?

00:16:19 Ally

It depends on the year. So right now we fully centralized as a group last year in August.

00:16:26 Ally

And that would take up take us as like a whole lead up to the Olympics and typically that's what you would see. But then in the fall you see a lot of girls going back to their universities, cause a lot of them are still in school. And during that time, we'll still have a centralized program and then you see some players if they want to go abroad, play in different.

00:16:46 Ally

Leagues like over in Europe or, you know, Australia, Argentina, wherever it may.

00:16:50 Ally

Be.

00:16:51 Kristi

I was gonna ask you about that. I know that there are some, like opportunities, I guess for people to play internationally. Is that like a big thing? Cause you can probably make more money than you're making, like training for the US team.

00:17:04 Kristi

Right.

00:17:05 Ally

Yeah, it also is great in the sense of challenging our style of play. So you know, every country has a different style and if you go to Holland, you know they look for more of a passing combination. They've been number one in the world for forever and it's something that.

00:17:26 Ally

Everyone wants to work towards, you know, if you go to Argentina, you see more individual, really flashy, great.

00:17:35 Ally

Still, but still a lot of like team play. So yeah, it it's just great for challenging our tactical style of play. Yeah. And then of course you do, you are able to make more money, which is great.

00:17:49 Kristi

Yeah.

00:17:51 Kristi

It's really cool. I feel like you guys have been like improving kind of the past few years like.

00:17:57 Ally

Yeah.

00:17:59 Kristi

What do you think are the like reasons for that? Like I don't know if you guys have had any like big changes or just.

00:18:05 Kristi

Sort of like team.

00:18:06

Yeah.

00:18:07 Kristi

Mantras is definitely not the right word, but just like you know, was that like a plan and like what kind of got that ball rolling?

00:18:09

Yeah, yeah.

00:18:15 Ally

We have had a lot of turnover in our coaching staff and then we've had a lot of turnover in the players on the team and I think that was pretty difficult in terms of creating something stable within our program.

00:18:31 Ally

During this time, a lot of the leaders of the group, mainly you know, centralized athletes, some of whom are retired and unfortunately aren't even here today, really worked hard to create a culture that gave us the ability to both enjoy things like outside of field hockey, you know.

00:18:51 Ally

Go have a job, go play internationally. Go do those things that you enjoy.

00:18:56 Ally

00:19:16 Ally

And again, that looks like the joy and the hard moments, the joy you know, in falling down, failing and stepping back up again. And then the joy of being able to further your career in other aspects, you know, doing what you love. So for example, for me, I do a lot of things with my club back in Connecticut.

00:19:36 Ally

Recruiting consultations, practice planning, things like that, and then, you know, in the mornings I go to practice. It's just this great balance. I mean we emphasize retention. So creating an environment where people want to stay in the program and they want to buy back into the.

00:19:53 Ally

Culture. It's been so much fun for us. We've had people say and we've had people buy back in and we found a lot of success. We have had a silver medal medal at the Pan Am Games and then a silver at the qualification, which has been amazing and I don't think a lot of people really expected us to do that.

00:20:14 Ally

And you know, we've had people criticize our culture and the way that we run things every day, but it really just does work for us. And we've seen, again, people want to buy back in, which has been amazing.

00:20:27 Kristi

Yeah, that's awesome. And I think it actually sounds pretty similar to the way that like our organization is run.

00:20:32 Kristi

How would you say that having that balance has helped you, you know, sort of in both areas, because I think a lot of people assume that that make that like having a job or you know whatever, like makes it harder to put everything into your sport. But I actually find that when all you have is your sport.

00:20:36

Hmm.

00:20:39

Hmm.

00:20:51 Ally

Yeah.

00:20:51 Kristi

It's like a little bit overwhelming, so I don't know if like you feel the same way.

00:20:52 Ally

Totally, yeah, totally. And I think a lot of us do feel that same way.

00:20:59 Ally

You get a little bit of the burnout aspect, just you know when you have that daily grind and it just you have to stay on the pitch all day. We used to have a schedule like that and it honestly it just became a bit too much. Again, it's the thinking about, OK, when I retire, whenever that is.

00:21:19 Ally

What does my life look like? You know, I can work and I can further my career and I can for me, you know, personally learn about recruiting and understand the processes of that and say, OK, I'm learning something every day both like, on and off the pitch.

00:21:35 Ally

And I have something that I want to do posts professional feel happy and it feels great to have that every day. And you know something? One of our previous coaches actually said was international careers are fleeting, they're short and you need to take advantage of them when when you have them. And I think for us, this is always like.

00:21:56 Ally

Very reassuring, very nice to have to be able to say, OK, I'm doing both and when I am done playing, whenever that is, whether it's expected or unexpected, I have a plan for myself that was important for us in making money. Also of course is important. Field hockey is.

00:22:14

It's.

00:22:15 Ally

Big in the US, but it's not as big as soccer and we would love to continue to see that grow through the next however many years. So and as a way for us to continue to make more money and generate more money as in NGB, that's super important to us. But again, it's like I'm passionate about other things, not just field hockey. And I think that's.

00:22:36 Ally

Important for us.

00:22:38 Kristi

Ohh totally. I think the number of probably athletes that like can live off their earnings from athletics is like really, really small.

00:22:48 Ally

Yeah.

00:22:48 Kristi

The reassurance is like.

00:22:51 Kristi

A huge thing like I don't know, I've explained to people. Ohh yeah, well, it's like it's stressful to be like playing, you know, not have a traditional job because you do like worry about, you know, your future. And they're like, oh, you've got your life to work.

00:22:57 Ally

MHM.

00:23:01 Ally

MHM.

00:23:08 Kristi

And you're like, OK. Yeah, that's nice. Like, I like, I understand. But that doesn't sort of like.

00:23:12 Ally

Yes.

00:23:14 Kristi

Ease my stresses, right? Right. I mean, I agree, like having some work experience and things on your resume and like just also you knowing that you that you've built like skills and stuff. So it it is super helpful. Yeah.

00:23:26 Ally

Yeah, right.

00:23:29 Ally

And then, of course, taking your mind off of it, you know, I can come home and I for four hours. I don't think about what I did this morning and that's fantastic for me because I am a chronic overthinker. And if I spend my afternoons thinking about, OK.

00:23:45 Ally

Should I have taken in my first touch here or here then I'm just gonna drive myself crazy. So it just. It's a really nice distraction. And again, like something I work towards that makes me feel fulfilled in my life.

00:24:00 Kristi

Yeah, I totally agree to switch topics a little bit like, yeah, I definitely want to talk about both. Like the Pan Am Games and the Olympic Qualifications. So starting with Pan Pan Am Games, we're before, right. So what was that tournament?

00:24:14 Ally

Yeah.

00:24:15 Kristi

Like.

00:24:16 Ally

So for a lot of us, it was our first Pan Am games. I think there was maybe five or six people that this was their second Pan Am game. So being there with all the athletes you know, there's so many athletes that you see on Instagram you've never met in person and you're like this is so cool and playing in that tournament was.

00:24:35 Ally

A lot of fun. We are still working on our confidence. I think it's that's our biggest thing right now. We're such a young.

00:24:44 Ally

Team going into that tournament, I don't think we were even favored to get third. Maybe. So that was really exciting for us to go out there. We played Chile in our semifinal match to go to the the final, which was for everyone that doesn't know at our Pan Am Games the.

00:25:05 Ally

First team, you know the gold medal winning team gets the qualification spot for the Olympics and then based on ranking, we have the next three teams will go to an Olympic Qualifier and play for the last. I think it was 6 spots. So I think there was.

00:25:25 Ally

12 teams total playing for six spots at the qualifier, so in our semifinal match against Chile, we were just looking to go out there and take control of the game. We ended the game in A11 draw and we wanted to shoot outs and I think previously.

00:25:45 Ally

If we had played that game a year or two years before with our confidence level and with our general age as a group, I think we would have seen a loss in that game. But we really fought through it. I mean, Chile at home in Chile.

00:26:01 Ally

It, you know, playing against them. Yeah. Crazy. The stadium is so loud and it's so fun to play in. But you know, you're yelling to your teammate and nobody can hear each other. So it's a lot of just looking around, communicating with your eyes pointing, and it's a lot of, like, high energy stress, of course, nerves.

00:26:03

Yes.

00:26:21 Ally

That excitement. So that was awesome for us and for us to come away with a win against them in that semifinal.

00:26:27 Ally

Was insane to play for that Olympic qualification spot. We played Argentina, who is number 2 in the world, was crazy. We actually ended that game in a 2 to one loss, which got us the silver medal, but it it gained us a really good spot in our Olympic Qualifier.

00:26:47 Ally

Which was amazing. So we were really proud of the work that, you know, went in and the results that came out, it was super exciting for us and it gave us a lot of confidence moving forward into the qualifier, which is exactly what we needed. So it was really awesome.

00:27:04 Kristi

How long was it between that and the qualifier?

00:27:07 Ally

So we ended towards the beginning to middle of October, so as November, December and then we left, I think it was January 3rd for India.

00:27:19 Kristi

So not that long.

00:27:20 Ally

For the qualifier. Not that long. Yeah. So we had a small series against New Zealand in Charlotte in December and New Zealand was in our pool at the Olympic Qualifier. So it was great to see them. And they're a team that we had previously played in Pro League and a team that we again looked to beat at the quality.

00:27:40 Ally

Higher. So we knew each other pretty well going into it. So we left January 3rd for raunchy India, which was such a cool experience for everyone. Again, that doesn't know India's national sport. I think it's cricket and then really close second to that is field hockey. So it's.

00:28:00 Ally

It is like the national sport. There were so many people there. We were there for in India for about two months and we played in the world's largest hockey stadium and I think there was 20,000 people. 25,000 people. Yeah, which?

00:28:12 Kristi

Wow.

00:28:14 Ally

Is pretty cool.

00:28:15 Ally

So yeah, it was awesome for us to be there to be at that style of tournament and we worked our butts off going into it, you know, watching film, understanding tendencies, looking for what our game plan would be for each team, spend a lot of time doing that, which I think again.

00:28:35 Ally

Helped grow our confidence to where you know the first game against India in India and the stadium is loud and we're like, OK, we've been here before, we understand. You know, we played Chile in.

00:28:50 Ally

Chile, so we understand how loud the stadium can be, we understand what the, you know, the vibe is going to be like, how it's going to feel and we were able to come up, come out with A1, nothing win against them, which is insane like.

00:29:03 Ally

You know, playing a a country in their home country. Is it? Yeah. You know, it's difficult. And then we played Italy, which was a very tough game for us. Italy presses a little bit different than we were familiar with. And I think it really challenged.

00:29:09 Kristi

Yeah.

00:29:20 Ally

Us to come up with the new ways to you know, OK, this is my out and I need to be using this out. You know every team is a little bit different. So that was great for us again confidence builder and then we played New Zealand and basically you know every game in the qualifier you think OK you're in round Robin style you know.

00:29:40 Ally

Tournament and.

00:29:40

Ends.

00:29:41 Ally

Really, for us it was like single elimination. You lose one game, you're out. So for us, the expectation was that we need to go in and win every single game. And again, we did a ton of work with New Zealand. We knew each other like inside and out. So it was it was a super gritty game. And they're again like an excellent side.

00:30:02 Ally

So coming away with the wind, it was insane. It it felt like we were finally getting somewhere and then going into Japan again. Olympic qualification up for grabs and we saw ourselves go down 1. Nothing.

00:30:17 Ally

Of course, that is the first time we had gone down. I think since I'd say the Argentina game, the final in the Pan Am I remember that being like a oh, OK, you know, moment where we had to make a decision of are we going to show up or are we going to say?

00:30:37 Ally

Ohh, this was good enough for us and you know we're a team that previously I think would be like, OK, we've gone this far. No one expected us to get this far. No one thought we'd be here. And this is good enough for us. But we knew we set the goals. It wasn't good enough. We wanted the qualification spot and.

00:30:57 Ally

I remember our sports psychologist postgame being like in that moment, all of a sudden it seemed like you guys found each other. You connected with each other and you just started passing again. Like I had never seen before. And we had two really excellent corners that we executed super well against Japan and.

00:31:18 Ally

It was like we just possessed the ball the rest of the game and and came away with the win and.

00:31:22 Ally

It was surreal. I mean, it still feels surreal right now. It it it, like, gives you goosebumps thinking about it. I just remember in those moments it felt like there was no other.

00:31:33 Ally

Path.

00:31:34 Ally

It felt like this was the only path for us, and the moment felt right and I know that sounds so weird. But but it's true, like.

00:31:41 Kristi

No.

00:31:42 Ally

It just felt right. It felt like there was there was no other outcome for us. So yeah, it.

00:31:48 Ally

It's been insane again. We were the underdog. We were never expected to come away with the 2nd place, so building our confidence, building our culture, our connection we say is our magic. Yeah, it's been insane.

00:32:04 Kristi

That's so awesome. Yeah, I'm very excited.

00:32:10 Kristi

Do you feel like it's sunk in that you guys are going to the Olympic?

00:32:14

Thanks.

00:32:15 Ally

No, still now I I think a bit more now, but I don't think it'll fully sink in until we step on the pitch and you know have our first practice, I don't think it'll feel real until then.

00:32:29 Kristi

Yeah, it is. It's it's kind of wild. I know somebody asked me the other day like, oh, does it feel normal? Whatever. And I was like, yeah, I mean, it's funny because, like, right now, you're, like, surrounded by Olympians. So you're like, yeah, everyone I know goes to the Olympics like, whatever. But then also, you're just like, no, it's the wildest thing.

00:32:37 Ally

Yeah.

00:32:46 Ally

Right, yeah.

00:32:49 Kristi

Ever. So I think it's like this really funny.

00:32:52 Ally

Yeah.

00:32:52 Ally

Yeah.

00:32:53 Kristi

Are you guys doing like a pre camp or anything or you just gonna go straight to Paris?

00:32:58 Ally

So we'll spend a week in Dublin and then we'll go straight into the village at that point.

00:33:03 Kristi

Very exciting.

00:33:04 Ally

Super cool, yeah.

00:33:07 Kristi

Or is there anything that you're excited for at the Olympics, sort of like beyond competing?

00:33:14 Ally

I mean, I feel like everyone says meeting different athletes. I think that would be super cool. It's like the cliche answer, but I mean genuinely being around such high achieving athletes. I think that's pretty cool seeing different events. I would love to see at least one track event like.

00:33:35 Ally

Just give me one you.

00:33:36 Ally

Know let me out for one.

00:33:38 Ally

I mean, all the work that people have put into it and knowing that I have done the same thing, that and that I can relate to.

00:33:45 Ally

That I think that's pretty cool. It's like the connection piece, yeah.

00:33:50 Kristi

Yeah, that's super cool. Well, I don't want to take up a ton more of your time, but I like to ask people, and I feel like you're going to give a good answer, but I guess no pressure. Like what? What advice would you have? Maybe for someone that sort of has, like, those aspirations as maybe in high school or college and you know, what are some kind of?

00:34:11 Kristi

Important things that that you've learned along the.

00:34:13 Kristi

OK.

00:34:14 Ally

So for us, I don't think I was introduced to this concept until college, but you know, understanding that you're going to make.

00:34:23 Ally

Mistakes.

00:34:25 Ally

And you're going to fail, and that's OK and something we talk about a lot is one finding the joy in the sport.

00:34:34 Ally

And finding the moments where even when it's hard, you feel joy in these moments because they challenge you and we talk about, you know, going out there and and having fun, enjoying the moment from a young age, I really, I really focus on just.

00:34:50 Ally

Going out there and playing and being myself and I think the reason that I am where I am is because I never really focused on, OK, well, I have, I have to achieve this. I have to go out there and make a national team. That was never a focus for me. It was always, you know, how can I go out there and.

00:35:09 Ally

Try a new skill and how can I perfect it and how? How can I?

00:35:14 Ally

00:35:15 Ally

Challenge myself every day to just be better because I see that in the international game and I would love to be able to do everything that you know the men do out there. It's crazy. That's really what I focus on and then the joy aspect and understanding that you make a mistake and it doesn't define you.

00:35:35 Ally

It, you know, does.

00:35:36 Ally

And make you know your value any less and to just go out there and enjoy every moment that you have, because again, you know, careers are fleeting and you would love to achieve everything that you that you know you want. But unfortunately, that's not always the case. So just, you know, taking advantage of it while you have it.

00:35:58 Kristi

Well, thank you so much. I do always ask people at the end if they have any questions for me.

00:36:04 Ally

Hmm. Where do you guys train? I'm so intrigued. So we.

00:36:09 Kristi

So we primarily train in Princeton, NJ we're not a centralized team like we can train with our club teams. So I live in upstate New York. I rode for a high performance team that's based in Saratoga Springs in New York.

00:36:12 Ally

OK.

00:36:23

OK.

00:36:24 Kristi

But also we have to go somewhere warm to row in the winter, so we also spend a lot of time in Sarasota, FL. So it's a little bit confusing but.

00:36:33 Ally

OK, that's nice.

00:36:35 Kristi

Yeah, we're we're snowbirds.

00:36:38 Ally

Love that. Love that for you guys.

00:36:41 Ally

And then my only other question is, do you work on the side or so you, yeah.

00:36:48 Kristi

Podcast, obviously, yeah.

00:36:51 Ally

I'm just very intrigued. I always love learning about different programs and how they operate.

00:36:55 Kristi

I'd say the high majority of US work, there are a few like bigger companies that have. I think they're like called internships, but technically they're like positions like they get they're, they're like paid internships. But I work for the rowing organization in Saratoga.

00:36:58

OK.

00:37:05 Ally

MM.

00:37:09 Ally

MHM.

00:37:14 Kristi

Where I live and I like plan our regadas growing regattas are like big weekend events and so we host these like really big weekend events and I planned those. But it's I mean I'm sure it's the same for you guys like it's working is tough because sometimes during the year we're available like basically full time and sometimes.

00:37:15 Ally

OK.

00:37:24

MHM.

00:37:34 Kristi

They're like not available at all, so they have to be really understanding of like, yeah.

00:37:34 Ally

Yeah.

00:37:39

Yeah.

00:37:41 Kristi

I want to work but my schedule is unknown and then also sometimes they'll just like change our practices and you know whatever. So right. Yeah. It's been great for me cause like the growing organization I work for is like super understanding.

00:37:54 Ally

Hmm.

00:37:55 Kristi

I was just gonna say it is definitely like necessary. Also like we don't, we don't get paid, you know anything so.

00:37:58

Mm-hmm.

00:38:02 Ally

00:38:04 Kristi

Thank you so much. I'm so excited. Hopefully I can come cheer you guys on and a game when is field hockey.

00:38:05 Ally

Yeah. Thank you.

00:38:11

Yeah.

00:38:13 Ally

The 26th is our first game and then I think it's like every other day. We have a game.

00:38:19 Kristi

That's awesome.

00:38:21 Ally

Yeah. Where are you guys?

00:38:23 Kristi

We are all the first week, so everything is the first week.

00:38:26 Ally

OK.

00:38:27 Ally

And is it around Paris? Like is it? I have no idea. So.

00:38:32 Kristi

I I'm not 100% sure, I've been told it's near the airport.

00:38:36

Hmm.

00:38:37 Kristi

But we're still we're living in the village, so I assume it is a bus ride.

00:38:41 Ally

So we'll see you around. Yes, yeah.

00:38:43 Kristi

Yeah.

00:38:45 Ally

That sounds like fun.

00:38:51 Kristi

Thanks for listening and thank you so much to Ali for coming on the podcast and taking time out of her busy schedule to chat with me. I can't wait to cheer on Allie and the whole team in Paris, hopefully get to you to a game.

00:39:02 Kristi

So to end the show this week I'm sharing a quote from Serena Williams just really been enjoying the women power Wimbledon is on right now. A lot of tennis in the news, and she said every woman's success should be an inspiration to another. We're strongest when we cheer each other on. So. Thanks for listening. Have a great week. See you next time. Bye.

00:39:26 Kristi

I'd love to hear from you. So send us a topic suggestion or if you'd like to submit a question for our ASK. Christy, anything segment head to our website, theotherthreeyears.com. Thank you for listening to this episode of the other three years podcast. Part of the bright sided network.

Connection is Magic, with Ally Hammel | Episode 66