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Goalkeeper who represented USA at the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup gets the gloves in NoCo Goalkeeper Thomas Olsen, who backed up current Manchester City stopper Zack Steffen with the USA at the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup and was a third-round draft pick by the Colorado Rapids in the 2018 MLS SuperDraft, has signed with Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC, pending league and federation approval. Olsen, 26, was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nev., and played for Finnish club FF Jaro in 2021, where he started 17 matches for the Ykkönen (second division) side. Jaro finished fourth in the Ykkönen, with the 6-3 Olsen keeping seven clean sheets. “Thomas is a physical giant, and he has fantastic attributes for a goalkeeper,” said Hailstorm FC head coach Éamon Zayed. “I love that he played in the USL Championship for a few years and then wasn’t afraid to go and test himself in Europe and grow and develop over there. That shows his character and his ambition. He had offers to stay in Europe, but he wanted to come home and show everyone in the USA that he has the potential and ability to be one of the best goalkeepers in the whole of USL and develop even further.” In 2018, Olsen signed with the Las Vegas Lights prior to their first season in the USL Championship, and became the starter late in the season. He then started 32 matches in 2019, captaining the team in six and keeping clean sheets in nine of them, including a shutout against eventual champions Real Monarchs SLC, and a shutout against El Paso that earned him a spot in the USL Championship Team of the Week. His nine shutouts that year were the seventh-best mark in the entire USL Championship. During the truncated 2020 season, Olsen started six matches for Las Vegas. Hometown hero Olsen was nicknamed “the Mayor of Cashman” by the local media, though he almost never played for the Lights. Prior to the start of the 2018 season, Olsen was drafted by the Colorado Rapids in the third round of the MLS SuperDraft. Olsen had just graduated from the University of San Diego, where he started 70 matches in four years and earned all-West Coast Conference honors in 2014, 2015, and 2017. He also spent his summers playing for FC Tucson, who at the time were in the Premier Development League but are now a Hailstorm FC rival in USL League One. The Rapids elected not to sign him though, so he returned home to Las Vegas to sign with the Lights. Olsen also has international experience, having represented the USA U-20 side in 2015 while still a student at USD. He made one start, against Tottenham Hotspur U-21, and backed up Zach Steffen at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand. “I’m really excited to join the club,” said Olsen. “After talking to the coaches I’m even more excited, because they’re ready to win. It’s always good be part of something when the coaches are all in to win right away. When you have professionalism across the board it’s exciting. I can’t wait to get going.” Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC will make its USL League One debut on April 9 with a match against Richmond Kickers. Due to construction at the Future Legends Complex, the club’s first home match will be almost two months later, when they host North Carolina FC on June 8. Hailstorm FC will play its home matches in the 6,500-seat main stadium of the Future Legends Complex, the premier destination for sports and events in Northern Colorado. Opening in 2022, the 118-acre complex will feature a professional stadium, multiple baseball diamonds and multi-purpose fields, an indoor sports arena, lodging, and retail; and will host guests for major sports tournaments, events, leagues, and more. |
| For further information, contact:
Damian Foley Director of Marketing and Communications Future Legends Complex | Hailstorm FC | Owlz 970-512-9687 |
