I Was Secretly Dating My Teammate, then Everything Blew Up

What happens when being an athlete is all you’ve ever known — and then it’s suddenly taken away?

In this episode of No Former Athlete, Kelly Balch opens up about growing up as a multi-sport athlete, earning a soccer scholarship as a goalkeeper, and competing at a high level — only to lose her senior season two practices in. What followed wasn’t just the end of a career, but a deep identity rupture she didn’t fully grieve until years later.

Kelly shares what it felt like to not “look like” an athlete anymore, dating her teammate in secret at a religious school, and compartmentalizing her pain by killing off her athlete identity and becoming an artist instead. We talk about her last game in Italy, exchanging jerseys after a win, and the long-term impact of athlete mindset on creativity, entrepreneurship, and leadership.

This is a conversation about grief, identity, queerness, ambition, and what it really means to still be an athlete — long after the games end.

If you’ve ever lost a version of yourself you thought defined you, this episode is for you.