Soccer midfielder
By Leslie Gibson McCarthy
She’s not a household name yet, but by the end of September, St. Louis native Lori Chalupny (Ka-LUP-nee) could be. When the Women’s World Cup begins in China next month, lining up in red, white and blue will be one of the most talented female soccer players to ever come out of St. Louis. Since first playing competitively for the J.B. Marine youth soccer club, Chalupny, 23, has been steadily working her way onto the national stage, with stops at Nerinx Hall, junior national teams and collegiate powerhouse North Carolina. Now a midfielder for the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team, Chalupny had, through mid-May, 23 caps—a term used to designate an appearance in an international game. After scoring a goal in a May 12 game against Canada in Dallas, Chalupny returned home to St. Louis for a week to regroup.
Can you pinpoint the moment when you knew you were pretty good at the game? It was always my goal to be able to play for North Carolina or at the national level, but in the back of my mind I never really thought I could. When North Carolina started recruiting me, that was the first time I thought, “Man, this could go somewhere.”
Did you make it a goal to get better every year? Truthfully, growing up, I just loved to play. It wasn’t really about how good I was. Soccer was fun. I remember coming home from school and being bored, so I’d go out in the back yard and just dribble a ball up and down the yard. I’d picture situations—a leaf would be the defender. For hours, I’d just dribble.
Where were you in 1999 when the U.S. women won the World Cup? I remember the exact moment when Brandi Chastain hit that last shot. I was with my family, just sitting in the living room watching the game as a fan. In my wildest dreams I never thought I’d be on that team. It wasn’t until I got to North Carolina and my coach, Anson Doran, told me I could make the [U.S. National] team if I wanted. That gave me a lot of confidence. I think that was the turning point in my career.
Was North Carolina intimidating? Sure, at first. But I knew a bunch of girls from Youth National Teams, and I had grown up with those girls in a sense. Our first camp was the Under-16 National Team in Boca Raton, Fla. There were a bunch of us. We’re like sisters. Off the field, we fight, we laugh, we do everything together. It’s starting to come together where the chemistry we have off the field is showing up on the field.
What’s it like playing with women you used to watch on TV? It’s kind of a give-and-take. They’ve been through it all before, and they’re experienced and give us insight, but at the same time they treat us like competitors and comrades. Kristine Lilly is our captain. In the midfield, Shannon Boxx has really helped me a lot. She’s been on the team a couple years and played in a world championship, so she’s really a big inspiration for me and someone I look up to.
What will be going through your mind the moment you walk onto the field for your first World Cup game in China? It’s a dream come true, no doubt. It’s what I’ve been training for for years. I’m sure the heart will be pumping pretty hard. But at the same time, you want to treat it like just another game. So I hope when I get on the field I don’t think about all that emotional stuff, and I keep playing like I have been.
Do you see yourself as a role model? I try to be, because I want people from St. Louis to know they can make it at this level if they want to. It takes a lot of hard work, but if I can do it, they can do it.
The Chalupny File
Position: Midfielder
Number: 17
Height/Weight: 5-4, 130
Nickname: Chalupa
Born: January 29, 1984
World Cup Schedule
September 11: U.S. vs. North Korea, 4 a.m. CST
September 14: U.S. vs. Sweden, 4 a.m. CST
September 18: U.S. vs. Nigeria, 7 a.m. CST
Quarterfinals: September 22–23
Semifinals: September 26–27
Finals: September 30
