WRAPPED IN THE FLAG: Former Princeton University field hockey standout Kathleen Sharkey ’13 controls the ball in action for the U.S. national team. Last month, Sharkey served as Team USA’s flag bearer for the Opening Ceremony of the XVIII Pan American Games in Lima, Peru. She was the first field hockey athlete to serve as U.S. flag bearer at the Pan Am Games. She went on to help the U.S. earn the bronze medal at the competition. (Photo provided courtesy of USA Field Hockey)

By Justin Feil

Eggs and pancakes.

The food itself wasn’t especially memorable, but Kathleen Sharkey won’t forget the breakfast in the athlete’s village dining hall in Lima, Peru, when she was informed that she had been selected as the flag bearer for the United States at the Pan American Games that concluded August 11.

“It was definitely one of the coolest, if not the coolest, experience of my life,” said Sharkey, a 2013 Princeton University graduate and four-time All-American for the Tiger field hockey program.

“It was such an honor. I was actually pretty surprised when I found out. I knew before we headed down to Peru that I had been nominated to be a flag bearer. I didn’t have much information at that point. I thought every sport had a nomination from their team.”

Sharkey is the first field hockey player to be selected by Team USA as flag bearer. She is the third local product to carry the U.S. flag at the Pan American Opening Ceremony in the last 20 years. Princeton University graduate Karen Smyers, a triathlete, was flag bearer in 1999 while Hun School graduate Jason Read, a rower, carried the flag for Team USA in 2011. The flag bearer is selected by vote from the U.S. athletes.

“It was something I didn’t really think was a possibility just because no other field hockey athlete had ever done it,” said Sharkey, who hails from Moosic, Pa.

“Usually it’s a higher profile sport that’s represented in that way. I just didn’t really see it as an opportunity for myself or one of my teammates because no one had done it before. It was nice that a field hockey athlete got that recognition.”

Sharkey’s field hockey teammates were boisterous supporters of her selection at the breakfast, but Sharkey was left speechless.

She went on to lead Team USA into the Estadio Nacional del Peru on July 26.

“I was a little nervous,” said Sharkey. “Once they told me I was the flag bearer, there wasn’t much instruction given to me. Even at the Opening Ceremony, when all the athletes were lining up, I was just told I had to be at the front of the line. Just before we walked out, someone handed the flag to me, and it wasn’t too heavy thankfully. It wasn’t too hard to control.”

In addition, Sharkey also looked forward to playing, having missed the 2015 Pan American Games due to an ill-timed injury. She broke her ankle a day before the team was to travel to those Pan Am Games. She returned to help Team USA place fifth at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, their best finish since 1984.

While many of those Team USA players then retired, Sharkey stuck with the team after the Olympics and now captains Team USA.

“I definitely considered my future on the team after the Olympics,” said Sharkey.

“I put a lot of thought into what I wanted to do. We had some coaching changes, so I knew it was going to be a different type of program. At the end of the day, I just realized how much I appreciate being on the national team and playing the sport I love for my living. It’s something that not everyone gets to do. It’s something you can only do when you’re young. There’s definitely a physical limit. My body was in good shape. I was lucky with injuries at that point. I felt like I had more to give to the team, and also more to grow individually. I wanted to keep work on reaching my potential. Ultimately I was happy with my decision to stay on for another cycle.”

Sharkey is still Princeton’s all-time leader in points (245) and goals (107) and she has helped bolster an American attack for a team that has just two other players from the Rio Olympics squad.

“I am one of the oldest now,” said Sharkey, 29. “I think I’m the second oldest on the team. It was strange as to how quickly that happened. At the Rio Olympics, I was about average, maybe a little on the younger side. With all the retirements we had in 2016, I became one of the oldest in terms of age and experience which is just crazy how quickly it happened.”

Her experience is a plus to a team that is rebuilding. Sharkey’s position on the field is no different, but her role has grown.

“I definitely feel like I have a bigger leadership role on and off the field than I did before the Rio Olympics,” said Sharkey.

“It’s different in that I need to make sure I’m being a good leader at all times. One difference is communicating more on the field and being more vocal, and helping the younger players with everything on and off the field. We’ve been focusing a lot on our growth as a team. In order to do that, sometimes we have to have difficult conversations on and off the field. I’ve been trying to facilitate that and be as helpful as possible for the younger girls so they can get where they need to be.”

Having 166 international caps going into the Pan Am Games, Sharkey far and away led Team USA in experience. The U.S. fell to Canada in the semifinals and then blew out Chile to take the bronze medal after winning the previous two Pan Am titles.

“We were definitely happy that after losing in the semifinals we were able to come back with a strong performance and beat Chile in the bronze medal game and win pretty decisively and win the medal,” said Sharkey.

“I think overall, it was a good tournament for us. In the majority of games, we were able to play to our DNA as a team. A lot of the teams we played were teams we’d never played before and were ranked significantly beneath us. When you play teams with a unique playing style, it can be hard to stick to your game plan. I think we were able to do that, which was a positive for us. We did lose to Canada in the semifinal game, which was very disappointing to us, but ultimately it was the first time that a lot of our younger players had a game that meant something. I think we learned a lot mentally from that game, and the whole team learned a lot from that game and we can use that to prepare for our Olympic qualifiers.”

The U.S. squad took a little time off before resuming training. It will play a pair of Olympic qualifying matches November 1 and 2 against host India and Bhubaneswar. The combined winner will qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

“It’s definitely very high pressure, high stakes games, which will make it exciting for the fans to watch,” said Sharkey.

“It’s definitely a lot of pressure for the athletes. We have a really great sports psychologist that works with us. Having that experience that we had playing in that semifinal against Canada, that’s an example of the lessons that we’ve learned and put in our back pocket to prepare us for that moment. I think the mental piece will be a part of our preparation these last couple months before the games. It’s definitely going to be intense.”

The U.S. will be an underdog to make the Olympics, but Sharkey is hoping that the team can put together two of its best efforts to earn a berth.

“It would be amazing to reach that goal with this team,” said Sharkey. “We’re very inexperienced. I think we only have myself and two other girls training right now that played in the previous Olympics. To be able to reach that goal with this group would be a great accomplishment. This new qualifying scenario, it’s the first time they’re doing it this way and it makes it a little more challenging. To be able to come out of those two games on top would also show the potential this team has in the next year leading up to the Olympics. It’s definitely going to be a big obstacle and challenge. If we play our game and play to our potential, we have a really good chance.”

The Pan Am Games showed where they can improve. Team USA will be training in earnest in preparation, studying film on their Olympic qualifying opponents and working toward developing camaraderie as it prepares for the next international competition.

“Right now, I’m still loving it and enjoying it every day,” Sharkey said. “I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to play the sport that I love as my job. I’ll be putting it to use someday, but I’m enjoying this experience.”

Sharkey won’t reconsider her future in field hockey until after the Olympic cycle ends. Being flag bearer at the Pan Am Games added another special moment to her storied career.

“It was definitely a highlight of my life,” said Sharkey. “It was amazing experience.”