‘I believe in you’: In Chugiak homecoming, Olympic medalist Alev Kelter delivers message of perseverance

Chants of “USA! USA!” rumbled through the Chugiak High School gymnasium as Alev Kelter appeared in the doorway.

Kelter, a freshly minted Olympic bronze medalist, returned home amidst chants and cheers Thursday, to the school where she first competed athletically and where she learned many of the life lessons she said helped vault her to stardom on Team USA’s women’s rugby team.

The gym, adorned with balloons, red, white and blue decorations and congratulatory posters, was packed with students, faculty, friends and family. During the emotional hourlong rally, Kelter was reunited with former teachers, coaches and teammates, took question from students and talked about her experiences, from playing with the Mustangs to competing in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

“These are the people who helped me get to where I am and inspired me,” she said. “I didn’t necessarily have belief in myself as a high schooler, or believed I could make it to the highest level. It’s the coaches, it’s the teachers, it’s my friends who said ‘Hey you’re a phenomenal athlete, you’re a phenomenal student. I believe in you.’ And that was so important and so beautiful to hear at that age.”

Kelter’s message to students was focused on perseverance. Kelter was a college soccer and hockey player at University of Wisconsin and was the last player cut from Team USA’s women’s hockey team that traveled to Sochi, Russia for the 2014 Olympics. Two years later she was an Olympian competing in rugby at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

“You don’t become an Olympian overnight,” she said. “Whatever your profession is, whatever your dream is, I know it doesn’t happen in one day, in one week, in one year.”

While it wasn’t only athletes who were tuned in to Kelter’s message, the handful of Chugiak students who play rugby have been following her career closely. Some had met Kelter at a camp last year and followed her Olympic journey game by game.

“It’s cool to take pride in being a rugby player,” Chugiak sophomore Amelia Dempsey said. “It’s nice that we have that representation in Alaska.”

Chugiak senior Brayden Donovan has been competing in rugby for five years.

“After seeing her succeed and get a bronze medal is incredible and inspiring,” he said. “I’m hoping I can be the next one to get a medal.”

Jon Schroeder coached Kelter at Chugiak on the Mustangs flag football team that went on an extended winning streak over the course of multiple seasons. He said while she was a force on the field, it was her force of personality that was her most resounding trait.

“She would be the one person, if someone is having a bad day or messed up, she was the one encouraging them,” he said. “Just her positive attitude all the time. She’s an elite athlete but she never looked down her nose at anyone.”

Kelter, 33 and a 2009 graduate of Chugiak High, took over a dozen questions from students, focusing on everything from how she keeps a positive mental outlook to her favorite memories of Paris.

“I ate my weight in bread,” she joked of her post-competition carb loading.

She even shared a strikingly similar moment that remembered from school that she recalls as an inspirational one.

Former Chugiak hockey standout Pam Dreyer played goalie with Team USA in the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy, where she earned a bronze medal. After the Games, she returned to the school for a meeting with students and later formed a friendship with a young Kelter.

She spoke about the dedication of her grandmother, who immigrated from Turkey and made a life for herself in a new country. Now 96, she even traveled to Paris to cheer Alev on.

“Every obstacle leads to an opportunity,” Kelter said.

Kelter’s message of persistence carried over to Team USA rugby team’s long journey to a medal. In Rio, the first year women’s rugby was at the Games, the Americans placed fifth. In the 2020 Games in Tokyo, Team USA was sixth.

When Team USA finally broke through for a medal over the summer, Kelter said the tenacity and teamwork reminded her of Alaska.

“This is ours,” she said. “This is something we created. Every winter, we team up with one another, we know what it’s like to be part of a team and be something bigger than ourselves. ... We have a humble swagger that says we’re rough, we’re tough and we’ll get the job done. For all Alaskans, this is for us.”

Kelter and USA women’s rugby XV’s vice captain Kathryn Treder of Anchorage will be at a rugby basics clinic Sunday at Delaney Park Strip. The clinic for ages 8-12 runs from 3-4 p.m. and ages 12-19 from 4-5 p.m. There will be a meet and greet and autograph signing from 5-6 p.m.