Daily Inspiration: Meet Charlie White

Today we’d like to introduce you to Charlie White.

Hi Charlie, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I started my athletic career as a multisport athlete but focused on soccer later. In High School I was the City and District Player of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year and helped win 2 Championships. I played Division 1 soccer at Vanderbilt University with my identical twin brother. It wasn’t until after college that I discovered Beach Handball.

Discovering the sport of Beach Handball changed my life! It was amazing to get a second chance to be an athlete again and especially to have the opportunity to compete for TEAM USA! Talk about a dream come true! To travel the world and compete with the best in the sport was the opportunity of a lifetime. Also, as an athlete I appreciated competing and training so much more this time around! Age and experience definitely helped me see the bigger picture.

As I look to retire from the USA Team it brings up the incredible gratitude I’ve had for this journey and pain of moving on from something I truly love and has given my life purpose and meaning.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It’s safe to say it’s it was both love and a struggle from the start. I didn’t play indoor handball so the proficiency required to win at an international level did not come immediately to me. It took a lot of work. I was already advanced in age and wasn’t added to USA Player pool until age 37, something I tried to hide and it was nothing short of a miracle that I was given the opportunity. Through sheer determination and unrelenting dedication, I made the USA team at age 39. Another miracle and a dream fulfilled.

In 2019, I joined the USA Team for the Continental Qualifier in Trinidad and Tobago. For the most part, I waited on the bench and when I finally got my chance, I seized the moment! In the semifinals versus Puerto Rico, I came off the bench in final minutes to hit 2 big shots and put the game out of reach for our opponents. Then, in the championship game, midway through the first set I came off the bench again versus our biggest rivals, Mexico. I scored every shot I took and even scored a golden goal to win the first set! We won a tightly contested game and I led the team in scoring with 18 points. It was a magical night and something I will never forget.

I got another chance to compete in the World Beach Games later that year in Qatar. I got my first chance to compete as a left wing and finished 2nd in the tournament for left wing shot percentage and had the highest velocity of goals on our team for the time I was on the court. Probably in part to our opponents being worried about the other members of our high-powered American Offense. Unfortunately, we lost in a shootout to Australia to advance to Quarterfinals and it still stings to this day!

I think the biggest struggle was getting the USA Coaching staff to give me chance. It was always a struggle. I felt if I could only on the court, I would help them win! I was a dangerous finisher, I never missed a shootout shot in an official game and was at times considered one of the top players in the world. With the team, I was always hoping we would end up on the podium in major tournament like a World Championship but it wasn’t meant to be. Although the team was always very talented and had great expectations, the closest we got was 4th at The World Games in 2023. Still, 4th at The World Game is great accomplishment and it was another dream to get to play for a world title on American soil. To walk out to the chants of “USA” in a packed stadium for the opening ceremony was absolutely incredible.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have been known for my dedication and tireless work ethic off the court preparing for competition year-round. I think that this second chance to be an athlete meant everything to me and I really went all in. Now, I am known in the sport for my physique and it always makes me laugh and smile with all the people flexing and nicknames at tournaments. It was fun to recognized in other countries and take pictures with kids and fans of the sport.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
– Hard work. I decided I would do anything and everything to compete again and try to help the team win.

– Focus. I would write in a journal every morning mantras to help me stay focused and to be prepared if I ever got my chance.

– Never giving up. For the first 2 years in that same journal, I wrote over 10,000 times and I would make the USA Team. I continued a variation of it after I made the team for all these years!

– Resilience. Even when the coaches wouldn’t give me a chance and my own teammates would trash me and look for ways to discredit my performance I would tell myself to just work harder. Prove to everyone that I was the right choice and an indispensable asset to the team.

– Experience. I learned a lot from my soccer career and how it ended. It helped me appreciate how amazing this journey was and to appreciate every minute of it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.teamusa.org/usa-team-handball/team-usa/team-usa-mens-beach
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/charlie_white/