SHE has won two Pan American Games silver medals and captained the United States national field hockey team competing at the Olympics and World Cup. She was also the head coach at Columbia University and now Katie Beach is turning out for local side Ravens.

Although she has only played one game in Bermuda after arriving earlier this month from New York, Beach quickly turned heads on the artificial pitch at the National Sports Centre. "She is in a different league altogether," said one local player after watching Beach take on Swifts last weekend.

Her prime playing days may be in the past but Beach still enjoys the competition although truth be told it is not nearly as intense as when she was playing for the US national team from 1994-2004, captaining the squad in 2003 and 2004. She was also named the United States Field Hockey Association Player of the Year for the second time in 2003 after having previously won in 2000.

In those 10 years with the national team Beach flew the Stars and Stripes at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 and won silver medals at the Pan American Games in 1999 and 2003 as well as competing in the World Cup in 1998 and 2002.

"I have only played one game since arriving in Bermuda but I am enjoying it," said Beach this week.

Right now Beach and her husband Keith are still settling in but she hopes that in the future she can lend a hand with coaching and putting promising young Bermudian players in touch with US college coaches since there are plenty of scholarship to be had if the player is good enough.

"I can see getting into coaching here because hockey is my passion. I have already offered my services to the national team and they have asked me to help them out although the timing right now is difficult because I am just settling in and getting adjusted to life in Bermuda so I can't give as much of my time as I would like. But eventually I hope to.

"I have started playing and I am talking to some parents about their daughters and the level of play. I certainly will give the young players and their parents here advice if they want to play in the US – I would like to get involved with the youth programmes here at some point in the future. And ideally if I could help young players get scholarship opportunities I will. Although there is a lot of talent in the US I know the coaches are willing to look overseas. They are always looking out for talent and hopefully I can be that connection between the US coaches and the students here."

Beach is not the only one in her family with a pedigree in sport – her husband Keith was drafted out of college by MLS side DC United and then traded to the Miami Fusion where he played before injuring his knee.

And like his wife, he wasted little time in getting involved with sport in Bermuda turning out for Robin Hood last weekend in their narrow 1-0 loss to Devonshire Colts in the FA Cup.

"One of the reasons why we found coming to Bermuda attractive was because we are both outdoorsy people – we love sports and living in New York it was becoming harder to do – especially with a baby and a three year old. Living in the city was becoming too cramped – there is a different quality of life here. I got the vibe that a lot of people here play sports. So far we love it in Bermuda – it is everything we imagined it to be," said Beach.

While Beach loved her time spent playing the major hockey tournaments around the world with the US national team, she is now enjoying the less intense competition.

"One of the reasons why I retired from the US team was because my husband and I were ready to start a family. I had been to the Olympics, played in the World Cups and Pan American Games. I travelled the world for 10 years with the national team so I was ready to settle down. Staying home with the kids (Madison and baby Ella) is a nice break since I was going full out for the past 10 to 20 years. Playing in the Olympics was phenomenal – that really kept me going," she said.

And Beach could have played in last summer's Olympics. "I was asked to come back for the 2008 Olympics but I was done. Physically I was fine but mentally it would have been tough because you have to put so much into it."

After graduating from the University of Maryland Beach took a position as an assistant coach at the University of Virginia while still training with the national team. Six months later she returned to Maryland as an assistant coach where she stayed for two years and was involved in leading the team to a 1999 ACC and NCAA national championship. The following year she helped the squad to a repeat of the conference title.

Since 1997, Beach has developed, organised and coached at the Katie Beach and Team USA Field Hockey Clinics throughout the US and four years ago she started the Dream Big Field Hockey Camp, which consists of instructional camps and clinics throughout the US east coast.

Beach has also been a member of the US National coaching staff and has coached various national age group teams.

In 2004 Beach took over as head coach at Columbia University where she inherited a young programme that finished 1-16 overall and 0-7 in the Ivy League in 2003. Four years later, the Lions boasted an overall record of 11-6, and finished in second place with a 5-2 record in the Ivy League.

"Columbia is in the top division in college hockey. When I got there they were getting beat 5-0, 6-0 and 7-0," she said. Of her time at Columbia she said: "I wanted to stay until I felt I had started to turn the programme around."

Beach began playing in ninth grade in her native Pennsylvania and as coaches watched her progress she was eventually offered a scholarship at the University of Maryland.

Beach took very little time to impress players in Bermuda and likewise her husband also impressed playing for Robin Hood.

Paul Scope, the head coach of Robin Hood, said of the former MLS professional: "He came on as sub the week before last against PHC. I know he hadn't played for a while and then last weekend he played in the FA Cup tie against Devonshire Colts. He played well but his hamstring got tight in extra time so we brought him off. I know he was on trial at Sheffield Wednesday and Motherwell as well. We are very happy to have him and I have told him that if he gets his fitness up and wants to play a higher standard I would put him in touch with (PHC coach) Kyle (Lightbourne) or (North Village coach) Shaun (Goater). But he has a young family and he may end up just liking the Commercial League."

The former MLS player told the Mid-Ocean News this week he is enjoying life in the Commercial League and in Bermuda generally.

"It's been fun. We go out and have a good time and have a pint afterwards. It is the kind of thing I was looking for."

After his college career at the University of Maryland Beach was drafted by DC United in 2000 and then traded to the then Miami Fusion where injuries to his knee struck.

"I didn't play a whole lot as I was injured. I have had some issues that have plagued me since finishing up college. I was with the (Atlanta) Silverbacks for a few months after the Fusion while I was trying to figure out what I was going to do next."

Asked whether his kids will go into hockey or football, Beach, who works for Endurance Specialty Insurance, laughed and said: "I hope they are musicians," adding, "my wife is the athlete of this family."