Aspen Stars in the Rugby World Cup

Posted by
Donna Dailey
Sep 11, 2007

I spent much of the weekend in front of the television watching the opening matches of the 2007 Rugby World Cup, which kicked off in Paris on Friday. And I was thrilled to discover that a player on the USA team is from Aspen, Colorado – Alec Parker, who plays lock forward.

I'm not usually much of a sports fan, but the Rugby World Cup holds special interest for me. I spent most of last summer traveling through southern France, researching the World Cup host cities for the Rugby World Cup 2007 Official Travel Guide, published by The Purple Guide. I photographed more stadiums than I care to remember, but the enthusiasm of the French fans I interviewed rubbed off on me, and I was glued to the screen Friday evening for the opening match between France and Argentina in Paris.

My loyalties were split on Saturday, when England played the USA in Lens. As the current World Cup holders, England was expected to trounce the Americans, who are not full-time professionals. But the US gave them a run for their money, with a respectable score of 28-10 to England.

So who is this player from the Gentlemen of Aspen? The club's delightful name reminds me of the old sporting saw that begins "Rugby is a game for ruffians played by gentlemen..." Aspen's star is rancher Alec Parker, 37, who also played in the last two Rugby World Cups. Parker was brought up on a ranch in Old Snowmass, and after playing college football at Mesa State, switched to rugby in 1996 with the Gentlemen of Aspen. He was a natural, and after only eight games of rugby was playing for his national team, the American Eagles.

So go Alec, go Eagles!

To see the USA's Rugby World Cup Fixtures, click here.