Sara Whalen
Sara Whalen Hess (born Sara Eve Whalen) was born on April 28, 1976[ in Natick, Massachusetts [1]. Whalen played for the United States Women's National Soccer Team from 1997 to 2000 and was a founding player of WUSA[2].
| Olympic medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  United States
| ||
| Women's Football (soccer) | ||
 |
2000 Sydney | Team Competition |
Soccer career
Whalen attended Harborfields High School in Massachusetts. There she played varsity soccer, basketball, and track (as a sprinter). After high school, Whalen went to The University of Connecticut where she was a defender for their women's soccer team. While playing soccer for UCONN Whalen was a three-time All-American.
In 1997, Sara Whalen joined the US Women's National Soccer Team as an outside defender and earned her first cap against France, while still in college. The following year, 1998, Whalen had a very successful season scoring two goals and garnering three assists [3]. In 1999, Whalen helped the US Women's National Team win the Women's World Cup, playing every minute of extra-time. Whalen was pictured on the cover of Time Magazine hugging Brandi Chastain. The following year Whalen won a silver medal as a part of the US Women's team at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
In 2001, Whalen began to play for the New York Power, a team within the Women's United Soccer Association, which she co-founded along with Christie Pearce and Tiffeny Milbrett. On June 26, 2002, in a game against the Carolina Courage, Whalen tore her ACL and MCL. This was after just recovering from a broken rib. Whalen had surgery, but noticed her knee was infected shortly after. During her second surgery Whalen had a severe allergic reaction, nearly dying. The doctor's realized that the infection was in one of the screws, within the ligament of her knee, which had to be removed. Whalen had to go through five surgeries, including moving ligaments from her right to left knee, to repair her injury. This marked the end of Sara Whalen's proffessional soccer career.
Personal life
Sara Whalen graduated from the University of Connecticut with a degree in psychology. She received her masters degree in psychology from Fordham University[4]. Now Whalen upervises the research database at SUNY Optometry in midtown Manhattan and lives in the West Village with her husband, Jon Hess, a Nasdaq trader and former Princeton University lacrosse player. In 2004 she ran the New York Marathon in 4 hours 19 minutes 38 seconds--remarkable considering her physical condition.