Today we’d like to introduce you to Abby Gustaitis.
Hi Abby, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I grew up in the small town of Norrisville, MD- not even on the map. There is nothing there but large open fields, an elementary school and a fire department, which my whole family joined. I have two older brothers and we lived with our parents in Harford County, MD until I went to UMD. I was the first person to ever attend college in my immediate and extended family. I was a volunteer firefighter and Emergency MedicalTechnician from the age of 16 and this sparked my interest in medicine.
I started playing club rugby at the University of Maryland in 2010 and eventually learned there was a national team in 2013, the year I graduated. I graduated with a BS in Physiology and Neurobiology in 2013. I stayed in MD and worked for different physicians in hopes of gaining experience for medical school. I still played club rugby and started to travel to gain more experience in sport as well. I decided to move out to San Diego on my own in 2015 to chase the Olympic Dream.
I was mid application process to med school but thought that could wait and I wanted to try to make the cut as a professional athlete. I initially got cut from the national team in March 2016 prior to the Rio Olympics. I struggled a bit with my identity and purpose immediately after this and eventually found my way back to rugby after a brief hiatus. I went to play in Australia, played in the Women’s Rugby World Cup in Ireland in 2017 and eventually made my way back to the national team for rugby 7s then.
I traveled the world with the team including visits to Dubai, Cape Town, Sydney, Paris, Fiji, New Zealand, I made the Tokyo 2020 Olympic team as a captain of the squad. The Olympics were postponed one year due to COVID and it was a wild rollercoaster of emotions in the build-up and then after the Olympics as well. During COVID, I also became a Pilates instructor and now teach part time to supplement my income as a female athlete. I love sharing my passion of sport and health with others.
I’ve faced a bit of adversity over the years, always hitting obstacles and I believe it is my resiliency that has helped shape me as an athlete and woman today. I am still playing rugby for the national team and have hopes to captain the team in the Rugby 7s World Cup in South Africa next September 2022. I met my fiancé playing rugby in 2018- he is a retired England Rugby player and also lives here in San Diego and works as a rugby analyst for NBC Sports.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Firstly, the decision to forgo medical school and move across the country where I did not know anyone was a big decision to make. I had taken the MCAT twice, applied o medical school and then withdrew from the application process.
I was cut from the National Team in March 2016- just 4 months before the Olympic Games. I went back to Maryland and started working again and reignited my passion for rugby.
I returned to rugby 7s in 2017 and a new coach came in 2018. He did not select me for 2 tours and I thought I was on my way out again. I persevered and ended up being named Captain by this same coach.
COVID hit and shut down training and all tournaments from March 2020 to August 2020. We resumed practice in Chula Vista at the Olympic Training Center (Now called the Elite Athlete Training Center). We did not play in a Rugby 7s international tournament for over a year. We only played in 2 in the lead-up to the Olympic Games.
We were medal favorites going into Tokyo and ended up finishing 6th. We lost our quarterfinal match to a strong Great Britain side; however, after going 3-0 in pool play- we were favorites to win that match and continue on in the hopes of medaling. This has been difficult to deal with post Games.
Sometimes it feels like mourning. I constantly think about “what could have been.”
Choosing to continue to play sport at the age of 30 and put off a wedding and children in order to pursue my dreams and goals as an athlete.
Something I struggle with is having a family right now and retiring from sport even though it is where I’ve dedicated the last 10 years of my life.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a professional women’s rugby player. I play for the United States of America. I was the Captain of the USA Olympic Rugby team in Tokyo 2020 (which actually took place in 2021 due to COVID). I have also attended the 2017 Women’s Rugby World Cup in Ireland, 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Francisco and the 2019 Pan American Games in Peru where we won a Silver Medal. I am part of the first professional rugby 7s league in North America- Premier Rugby 7s, which just kicked off its inaugural season in Memphis, TN this week.
My resilience sets me apart from others. I have constantly had to fight to achieve all these accolades. I have not been selected on multiple occasions, I was told that I wasn’t skilled enough or fast enough by many coaches. The national team coach in 2014 told me I would never play for the United States. I was able to use all of this as fuel.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I believe luck occurs when hard work and opportunity collide. Therefore, the harder you work, the more luck you may have. I was lucky to be seen by the National Team coach in 2014 and eventually get invited to move out to San Diego to train full time with the rugby team.
Contact Info:
- Facebook: https://www.instagram.com/atown1022/?hl=en
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/abbygustaitis
Image Credits
Aaron Anderson (Parity Laura Costa)
