HUSKY SPOTLIGHT: ASTRID OLSEN
October 25, 2023 | General, Women's Tennis
For Astrid Olsen, playing college and professional tennis were always the dream. Growing up in Hagan, Norway – where the college sports landscape looks drastically different than that of the U.S. – she knew that coming to the States was her best opportunity for growth – both on the tennis court and in the classroom.
Olsen took a gap year after graduating high school, which was when she solidified her decision to pursue college tennis. She emphasized the importance of the high level of training at the college level, along with getting a high quality education – making the decision to play college tennis simple.
She committed to Pepperdine, playing in Los Angeles for two seasons before transferring to UW in 2021 – one of those seasons cut short due to COVID-19.
FINDING A BETTER FIT
Knowing she wanted to venture out and seek new opportunities for herself, deciding to transfer to Washington was the best move for Olsen.
The right move didn't start out quite as expected, as Olsen suffered a stress fracture in her foot early on in her first year at UW that severely limited her time on the court.
Three years of college tennis under her belt and having barely hit the courts for matches, Olsen had a lot to prove her senior season – mostly to herself.
"I understand more now," Olsen said, about getting back on the court after dealing with adversity. "I was on the sidelines for the majority of my first three years and watching everything. When I was actually in it, I could understand the joy. I understand the magnitude and intensity of this whole experience from a different perspective."
Despite being sidelined for a variety of reasons at the start of her career at Pepperdine and her first year at UW, Olsen's investment in her recovery and to her team's success never wavered.
Her commitment to her team and her own growth escalated even more when she was finally able to get on the court and make an impact during matches – in a big way.
"I am so invested in the things that I do but to live it, and play it, and do it, it just intensifies everything," Olsen shared. "All the emotions, all the highs and lows become so much higher and so much lower. It takes a lot of output when you're putting everything you have into something, but all of that is so worth it. You grow so much more, you learn so much more – you have so much more fun when you do it that way."
Olsen earned a spot on the all-conference second team in a breakout junior season last year, tying for the best record on the squad at 25-8, 17-7 in dual matches.
She won Pac-12 Player of the Week honors after helping her team to its first sweep of UCLA and USC since 2003. She had three set ranked wins in both matches, first beating No. 64 Ava Catanzarite, then upsetting No. 43 Snow Han.
COACH THOUGHTS
"Astrid has made a tremendous impact on the program since her arrival at UW both on and off the court," Head Coach Robin Stephenson said. "She is truly one of the most positive people I know and has the ability to face adversity with calmness and poise.
"No matter the situation or circumstance, she is always looking at the bright side of things and remains so optimistic. That mindset helped her lead the team in singles match wins and clinch many important matches when it came down to her court – as well as receiving conference, regional and national recognition for her accomplishments. I have no doubt that she's just scratching the surface of her abilities and I'm very excited to see what her senior year brings for her and the team."
THINKING AHEAD
Olsen is also pursuing her master's degree during her last year of eligibility. Her one-year program in entrepreneurship aligns perfectly with her personality and passions, Olsen said, which is allowing her to accentuate her creativity and develop and grow in a very personalized way.
While trying her best to live in the moment all that she can her final season, Olsen also looks forward to continuing her tennis career in a professional capacity after leaving UW.
It has always been a long-term goal to play on the pro tour after college, although she could have never expected what her collegiate career would have looked like.
She has been resilient throughout the whole process. Using the obstacles she has faced as learning opportunities is nothing new for Olsen.
ADVERSITY --> ACHIEVEMENT
Adversity on the tennis court has given way for many opportunities for Olsen's personal growth off the court.
"Things recently have been going my way," she said, when asked about how her past adversity has shaped her as a person and a player. "I've felt like things have always gone my way and looking back, that's kind of not true. I've been super resilient and positive-minded about everything – optimistic about where I want to be and where I want to go, regardless of how dark the situation looked at the time."
Olsen continued, "So, I think that has translated to me as a player. No matter how dark a match is looking or how bad you feel you are playing, I know there is always hope to change things. There is always hope to change things around. That's been the last five or six years of my life. Life's been giving me lessons – hard lessons to learn, but hopefully they're going to teach me something or help me someway in the future. Honestly, they already have."
Olsen's resilient mindset is exactly the energy her team needs from her as a leader heading into this season. In a team environment where every person cares deeply for one another, having a never-give-up attitude is not only beneficial for her own success, but the achievements of the team.
"Everyone means well toward each other and toward other people in general," Olsen said about her team. "I think that foundation is key to our success. So if you have that – wanting each other to thrive and succeed – of course we're going to work our butts off on the court. Of course we're going to do all the little things that we know we need to do to get to where we want to be – both individually and as a team – to succeed."
IN THE COMMUNITY
Olsen's commitment to her growth on the court is evident, but so is her eagerness to make her community around her better.
She has been involved in Washington's BSAA (Black Student-Athlete Alliance) since 2021, a group that recently won the 2023 Student-Athlete Group of the Year award.
The award honors "the top Black Student-Athlete organization for their work to build community within the athletic department, bridge the gap between athletics and campus, and engage with the larger community."
In May, BSAA sent 19 UW student-athletes, representing nine sports, to attend the BSAA Summit.
The four-day event provided a platform for black student-athletes to focus on community development, mental health, identity development, social impact and additional topics centered around empowerment.
"Being able to meet student-athletes from all over the country, listen to these speakers and learn about how we can continue to be good role models and create change at our universities," Olsen said of the experience. "Now, using what we learned to make a change and make things better for black student-athletes at UW – that's what matters."
Summer 2023 was a busy time for the graduate student, who also went on a service trip to the Dominican Republic with Courts for Kids.
While in the Caribbean, Olsen spent a week helping build a sports court for a local community. Making a space where kids can play sports in a safe environment was important to Olsen.
After five days spent shoveling everything from sand to asphalt to cement, Olsen gained a lot of respect to those working everyday to build hospitable places for kids to play sports.
Players Mentioned
