JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas -- The U.S. Air Force World Class Athlete Program did more than hone Capt. Eric Duechle’s readiness and resiliency.
“It unlocked my potential,” said Duechle, a member of the WCAP participating in rugby in 2016 and current flight commander with the 505th Training Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. “I would say before WCAP, I was an average officer. I did my job, but I never won awards. I always wanted to be the best officer I could be, but I didn’t know how. Now, I feel very confident, competent and able to achieve that.”
While Duechle wasn’t selected to compete for the 2016 U.S. Olympic Rugby Team, he was selected as Company Grade Officer of the Year for the Squadron, and his flight was selected as Team of the Year for the Wing.
He attributes this recognition to his time spent in WCAP from 2013-16.
“I would say I had never been challenged that greatly before,” said Duechle, who was commissioned as a second lieutenant after graduating from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 2008. “For me to make it to the level I wanted to, I had to push beyond my limits.”
Duechle was asked to join WCAP after helping the Belmont Shore Rugby Club in Long Beach, California, win national championships in both the 7s and 15s divisions in 2012. An imposing 6-foot-3 and 250 pounds, his frame was tailored for 15s, which has positions suited for bigger athletes.
“If you look at 7s guys, especially the Olympic players, they’re very lean, very athletic, able to run and be a dynamic athlete,” said Air Force rugby director Lt. Col. Andy McQuade, 627th Air Base Group deputy commander at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, who has known Duechle since his Academy days.
“My impression of (Duechle) at that time was ‘Man, this kid is really, really big, very strong and suited for 15s.’ ” McQuade said. “Since then, and of course with his involvement with WCAP and potentially reaching the Olympic team, he really leaned down and became super fit in a way that I never would’ve imagined from when I first met him at the Academy.”
Though physically gifted on the rugby pitch, Duechle admitted he lacked the mental resiliency to do the “boring stuff” such as extra conditioning and nursing injuries to progress to the next level.
A sports psychology class the captain took during his time in WCAP as part of his master’s degree program in sports and health sciences through American Military University changed his mindset.
“In there, they described high achievers vs. low achievers,” the captain said. “Low achievers focus on the reward; high achievers focus on the pride of challenging yourself and pushing yourself. I knew if I wanted to be an Olympian, I had to change my mentality, which was probably my biggest roadblock. A lot of times, we worry too much, and that blocks us from our potential.”
McQuade immediately noticed Duechle’s change.
“Eric has always had a great mindset for rugby, and he played the game within himself,” he said. “What changed for him is that he’s focused on the bigger picture. He’s focused on what it takes to be successful, and now he’s playing outside of himself.”
Not only was Duechle’s change on the rugby pitch noticeable, the change as Duechle the Air Force officer was, too.
Duechle said he plans to apply again for WCAP in July and try to make the 2020 U.S. Olympic Rugby Team. He also recommends Airmen who aspire to compete in the Olympics apply as well.
“If that’s their true passion, I would encourage them to do it because it’s going to make them push beyond who they know and what limits they think they have,” the captain said. “It’ll make you push beyond it if you want success.”
For more information on becoming an Air Force athlete or the WCAP program, click here.