By Cassidy Rota | Staff Writer
The focus and determination on his face is clear. His feet are moving dangerously fast as he continues up and down the hallway, warming up for his workout. Low and sidestepping, then high knees, then sprints, then repeat. Pounding footsteps distract from the thundering hip-hop music blasting inside the gym. He is continuously switching between the various footwork workouts, each time moving faster then the last. Only when he has sweat dripping down his face does he stop to move into the gym to start his actual workout.
The athleticism is obvious. The only thing that gives away the sport he is loyal to is the jacket he wears, which says UCONN Rugby.
Shane Dempsey, a sophomore at Salve Regina University and member of Salve Regina’s rugby team, is working furiously towards one thing: Summer Olympics 2016 in Rio de Janeiro.
Dempsey began playing rugby his freshmen year of high school, but the sport has always been an influence on his life.
“Every member of my family has played,” said Dempsey, “I mean, it’s even how my parents met.”
The sophomore divides his time between the Salve rugby team and two other local teams, the Whitefish 7’s and Old Blue RFC. In the past seven years, Dempsey has played ten seasons between his various teams.
The aim in rugby is to score in the end-zone, much like football. Unlike football, rugby is divided into two different types. “Rugby union” is the standard game of rugby, while sevens rugby is a higher level of the game. Salve’s rugby team plays rugby union, which consists of fifteen players on either team in a game that lasts 80 minutes.
According to Dempsey this type of rugby is more “football-esque” than rugby sevens because of the amount of physical contact between players. The players in this type of rugby also tend to be built bigger, like football players.
As his rugby career develops, he hopes to move into rugby sevens, playing in a position known as a scrumhalf. Within each of one his many goals, Dempsey’s focus is still on one thing, playing for the United States in Rio two years from now.
“In my mind there is nothing better then having the letters U-S-A across your chest,” said Dempsey, “There is no bigger honor.”
He is motivated by his desire to represent his nation on the world’s stage. The Olympic hopeful also admitted that some of his drive comes from wanting to impress his family.
“I want to prove to them that I’m better then they think I am,” said Dempsey, “Especially my dad.”
Lucky for this young athlete, his determination and hard work is starting to pay off. Last year Salve’s men’s rugby coach, Mike Martin, encouraged Dempsey to try out for an Olympic Development Academy located in New York City during summer break. Dempsey attended the Academy and continued to play with the same academy at its Boston base this school year.
For now Dempsey is focused on becoming the best player he can be and never giving up on the game, regardless of where it takes him.
“I won’t stop until I’m 50 or my body breaks down,” he said, “Whatever comes first.”
The end goal for this rugby player is clear, but his future is not. All that is certain is that two years from now, he will be far away from a hallway outside of Sullivan Fitness Center, and he may even find himself atop a podium. No matter the end result, Dempsey will always be playing the game he loves.
