Eagle River’s Alev Kelter. Photo by USA Rugby
A late-game conversion against Brazil was enough to put Eagle River’s Alev Kelter over the top and into the 1,000-point club.
Kelter added her name to the record book over the weekend at the World Rugby Sevens Series stop in Singapore, where she became the first American woman and fifth player in World Rugby Sevens Series history to reach the famed 1,000-point career benchmark.
The 32-year-old out of Chugiak High kicked a two-point conversion in the 16th minute to put the finishing touches on a 33-0 victory. She finished the game with 14 points. Kelter also had seven points against South Africa and five against France.
She came into this competition with 975 points dating back to 2014 and added another 26 points across four games in Singapore to join the 1K Club.
“It’s amazing,” Kelter told USA Ruby. “I wouldn’t be here without my teammates. You see 1,000 points on the board, 1,000 points made, but there’s been a million opportunities where I’ve missed.”
On a day defined by long-term success, Kelter reflected on overcoming her own short-term failures en route to reaching the mountain top and stressed the importance of staying in the game in a message about perseverance in honor of May being National Mental Health Awareness Month.
“Keep trying and never give up,” Kelter said. “It’s been an 11-year journey for me and that 1,000 is a testament of that journey. I’m proud of the ones that I missed, and I’ve learned from.
“I’m just really grateful.”
A first-class message from a world-class athlete.
Alev Kelter, class act 👏
Welcome to the 1,000 points club ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/g7bJzjIMXf
— USA Rugby (@USARugby) May 5, 2024
Kelter’s stick-to-itiveness is perhaps her greatest attribute; along with remarkable rugby skills born from a lifetime of playing sports. A standout flag football and soccer player in high school, she went on to University of Wisconsin where she was an All-Big-Ten soccer player and led the hockey team to the NCAA Frozen Four as an all-tournament selection.
Her dream growing up was to play hockey for Team USA, but it didn’t work out, so she reinvented herself as an American hero in rugby.
In her 10 years in the World Rugby Sevens Series, she has racked up 99 points or more six times including a league-high 171 points in 2020. She was fourth with 168 points in 2018 and seventh with 149 points in 2019 when the Alaskan established herself among the greatest players in the world.
Kelter is rugby royalty, a veteran of two Olympics and three World Cups while winning a Pan Am Games silver medal.
She also owns 240 caps with the national team and is one of only two Century Club players in World Rugby Sevens Series history with 100 career tries and 100 career conversions.