Brandi Chastain has been one of the women’s national team’s most accomplished defenders since 1996, but created the defining moment in women’s soccer by scoring a goal. Her medal-clinching penalty kick against China in the 1999 Women’s World Cup final, and joyously uninhibited jersey-waving celebration, brought her team and her sport into the international spotlight.

With the rest of her World Cup teammates, she was instrumental in forming the Women’s United Soccer Association, and led the San Jose CyberRays to the inaugural WUSA Founder’s Cup championship in 2001. With the Women’s National Team, she has played in three Olympics (counting Athens) and three Women’s World Cups, and intends to keep going, at least until she collects her 200th cap. She had 179 entering the Athens Games, sixth on the team’s all-time caps list.

Soccer has been Brandi’s passion since childhood, when she would sleep in the uniform of her first youth team, the Quakettes. Although she has battled nagging injuries for the past several years, including a broken foot that knocked her out of the 2003 Women’s World Cup after just half a game, Brandi remains a cornerstone of the U.S. defense at middle or left back. Off the field, her unflagging optimism, resilience and enthusiasm for the game she has loved since childhood have made her a favorite of her teammates and soccer fans alike.

Brandi, “Hollywood” to her teammates, made her national team debut in 1988, as a 19-year-old reserve forward. She scored her first international goals in 1991, coming off the bench to net five against Mexico in a qualifying match for the 1991 FIFA Women’s World Cup. She also made the World Cup roster, joining the other “91ers” on the field for two games, including one as a starter.

The San Jose native’s national team career stalled after that first World Cup, however. She appeared in only two games between 1991 and 1996, and reinvented herself as a defender on the advice of then-national team coach Tony DiCicco to secure a spot on the U.S. Olympic roster for the Athens Games. Brandi played every minute of every U.S. game in that Olympics, gutting out the final despite a serious knee injury suffered in the semifinal against Norway.

From then on she has been a national team regular. In 1997 she started 15 games. She ended 1998 third on the team in minutes played, with 1,894. Shuttling between defender and midfield, she scored five goals and assisted on five more. In 1999, she made 27 appearances, including the memorable Women’s World Cup final, and was named to FIFA’s WWC All-Star team after the tournament.

Her busiest year with the National Team was 2000, with 32 starts and 34 appearances. Her four goals included a penalty kick to win the Algarve Cup final against Norway, a brilliant free kick against Japan in the Pacific Cup and a memorable volley against Nigeria in Olympic group play.

The national team schedule slacked off considerably with the formation of the WUSA in 2001. With her hometown CyberRays, Brandi was an offensive, as well as defensive, mainstay. As a midfielder, she led the ‘Rays in scoring for the first half of their championship season. After she returned to left back, the team’s defense surrendered the second-lowest number of goals in the league, 23. Brandi continued to contribute to the CyberRays’ attack in 2003, and finished third on the team in scoring with four goals and three assists for 11 points.

Injury shortened her third WUSA season, but Brandi still started 15 games, collected a goal and four assists, and made the All-WUSA second team.

Brandi was born July 21, 1968, and graduated from Santa Clara University with a degree in Television and Communications. She lives in San Jose with her husband, Santa Clara women’s soccer coach Jerry Smith, and stepson Cameron.