More than a decade after she launched her Olympic aspirations and four years after that ambition turned to anguish, persistent Kerry Weiland of Palmer finally bagged the prize she coveted: She's a U.S. Olympian.
Weiland, 29, on Thursday was one of 21 players named to the 2010 U.S. Olympic women's hockey team for the Winter Games in Vancouver, B.C., in February.
For a woman who was an early cut from the field of candidates for the 2006 Olympic team, and considered hanging up her skates and putting two college degrees to work, the announcement proved a payoff for perseverance.
Though the Olympic team was officially unveiled Thursday afternoon at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., Weiland discovered her dreams were reality during a meeting Wednesday at the team's training facility in Blaine, Minn., after the final two cuts were made.
"We were told we were no longer the U.S. National Team, but we were to be called the U.S. Olympic Team," Weiland said by cell phone from Minnesota on Thursday night. "Olympians. It gives me shivers every time someone says it.
"I'm kind of speechless. I'm so excited, but I'm also exhausted, too."
Weiland shared her joy Thursday with her mother. Teri Weiland coincidentally flew into the Twin Cites late in the afternoon for a scheduled medical exam in the area and arrived at the Mall of America in time to watch her daughter sign autographs.
Weiland, a defenseman, becomes the second Alaska woman to be a U.S. Olympian in hockey -- goaltender Pam Dreyer of Eagle River earned a bronze medal with the Americans in 2006 and has since retired from the sport.
The Americans and host Canada will be gold-medal favorites in Vancouver.
Weiland is the third-oldest member of the 2010 team -- forward Jenny Potter, 30, and defenseman Angela Ruggiero, 29, are four-time Olympians -- and has negotiated what she called an "epic journey."
She first began dreaming of being an Olympian as a teenager in 1998, the first time women's hockey was included in the Games, and not long after she proved a pioneer in Alaska high school hockey as a first-team, all-region player on Palmer's boys team.
"It set that dream for all young (women) players, and it was in my sights then," Weiland said. "It's years in the making, and it's all worth it. The ultimate lesson I learned was to dream, and to believe in that dream."
Weiland went on to a terrific career at Wisconsin, where she was a two-time All-American and earned degrees in legal studies and sociology.
She has been on teams representing the U.S. in four World Championships, twice winning gold medals (2009, 2008) and twice seizing silver (2007, 2004), and she has played more than 50 international matches for the Americans. Weiland also played professionally in Switzerland and Canada.
Unlike the upper echelons of men's pro hockey, which can be lucrative, women's hockey has not remotely generated riches for its athletes. Until recently, when players like Weiland on the U.S. national team began receiving monthly stipends, she spent years living "below the poverty line," using financial help from her family and occasional jobs to chase her dream.
All the while, an Olympic berth remained the only thing missing on Weiland's rink resume, which made making the team so much sweeter.
"There's nothing like putting on a jersey to represent your country," Weiland said. "I give my jersey a kiss every time before I put it on and when I stand on the blue line for the national anthem, I probably look like a 5-year-old kid smiling, looking down at the USA crest and the red, white and blue.
"I say it right now and I can't believe it. So much sweat, so many tears, just dreaming."
Weiland is the second Alaska athlete to secure a berth for the Vancouver games. Biathlete Jay Hakkinen of Kasilof already has pre-qualified. Other Alaskans who are contenders to make their respective Olympic teams include nordic skiers Kikkan Randall, Holly Brooks, James Southam and Lars Flora, all of Anchorage; men's hockey player Scott Gomez of Anchorage; biathlete Jeremy Teela of Anchorage; and snowboarder Callan Chythlook-Sifsof of Girdwood.
The anxiety of awaiting the Olympic announcement proved nerve-racking, said Weiland, who is scheduled to fly into Anchorage tonight for a five-day holiday visit before returning to Blaine for Olympic training. She said she coped with the help of yoga and meditation.
"It's kind of like you're in a pressure cooker and someone keeps turning up the pressure," Weiland said. "Nights become hard, hard to sleep, and you have to find some way to relieve that stress. I've learned a lot of lessons from mentors and our team's sports psychologist about how to deal with stress.
"I've learned a lot about overcoming obstacles, and it's made me a better hockey player and a better person. I try to live every day with an attitude of gratitude."
Find Doyle Woody's blog at adn.com/hockeyblog or call him at 257-4335.
By DOYLE WOODY
dwoody@adn.com