Breaking the Ice: My Journey to Olympic Hockey, the Ivy League And Beyond

by Angela Ruggiero

Angela Ruggiero is the world’s best women's ice hockey player as rated by Hockey News magazine. She was the first female non-goalie to play in a men’s professional hockey league, and she has used her status as a top female athlete to promote education, health, and the value of sports across the globe. A Harvard graduate, humanitarian, and rare hockey “triple crown” winner (Olympic gold medalist, world champion, and collegiate champion), she traces in Breaking the Ice the growth of girls’ and women’s hockey from the fringes of the sports world to the center of the Olympic and world stage. Angela’s inspirational journey from a childhood in the suburbs of Southern California, where she had to overcome skepticism concerning girls in hockey and even about the sport of hockey itself, to stardom in rinks around the world is a remarkable story of determination and athletic achievement. A leading player for all three U.S. Women’s Olympic Hockey teams for which she has played, she recounts not only the joys of ultimate victory but also the physical and emotional challenges that confront a topnotch athlete, including strains on family life, a punishing training regimen, and the rigors of constant travel. It reveals Angela as a dynamic and outspoken woman who has packed a rucksack full of intense experiences and hard-learned lessons into her life. Her story will appeal not only to hockey and sports fans but also to readers of all ages who are interested in the triumph of a woman who would not be daunted by the challenges of blazing a trail and breaking through barriers. Angela has played in six International Ice Hockey Federation Women’s World Championships, and in April 2005 she scored one of the shootout goals that helped the U.S. team win the tournament for the first time. She was recognized by the NCAA as one of the Top VIII scholar athletes in the country. Since graduating from Harvard in 2004, Ruggiero has founded the All-American Girls Hockey School.

Genres: Sports

224 pages, Hardcover

First published October 17, 2005

Reviews

[Joanne Lannin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very comprehensive autobiography. Ruggiero reveals lots of details of family life and what it took to become a Hall of Fame ice hockey player at a time when there were virtually no female role models to look up to and when girls were not encouraged to pursue their ice hockey dreams. The best chapter was the one about her record-breaking "feat" of playing with a men's professional team after she'd won a gold medal in the Olympics. She was the first non-goalie to play men's hockey, and though it was for only one game, she proved that a woman could keep up with the men in this fast-paced, bruising sport. Ruggiero's brother, who was also on the men's team as their goalie, encouraged her to play with them, knowing it would bring a lot of attention to their team and to women's sports. It shows that women still need people to support them as they challenge norms and seek to pursue their sports.
Ruggiero offers advice to girls to follow their dreams and their passions wherever they might lead. Her career has been an inspiration to the girls who've followed in her path.

[Liam Connelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the book and it taught me a great lesson of following your dreams. It was a little slow at times but their was some amazing stories and I highly recommend this book for any hockey lover!

[Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting story of one person's experience playing high-level women's hockey. Could have used a more stern hand with the red pencil, but the assessment of the state of women's hockey generally at the end is informative.

[Lenka · Rating 4 out of 5]

like any biography it's not much of a thriller but its really interesting to hear about what life is like for an olympic athlete, how they got there, what they do etc.

[Jennifer Haase · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit repetitive, but interesting for fans of the sport. Started skipping skimming at times due to the overuse of quotes and things discussed repeatedly.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Angela is a woman with an impressive work ethic and a lot of different life philosophies.