I immigrated to this great country as a young lad and soccer was the universal language that helped me integrate. My soccer career peaked in elementary school when Johnny picked me first for our PE game. I validated his 1st round pick with a beautiful goal weaving through a tough and I must say dirty defense of the girls. I scored a beautiful low shot through the monkey bars. There were many complaints that the monkey bars goal was wider than the fence pole goal but in my book it was just sour grapes by the losing team. Unfortunately, my soccer career went downhill from there. My Tiger Mom made me study and work at our family business, a motel in Daytona Beach. I help cleaned rooms and if I walked in on a naked spring breaker it wasn't my fault! With this pent up anger and tension, I met Ky and Gautam who saw my inner rage and picked me out of the mass of applications to join the first USMST. I rewarded them with not one goal but the first Yellow card of the USMST. Unfortunately, my tenure on the team is always tenuous because of outside pressure from family and my Tiger Mom who still insist I study hard and play my violin.

Played soccer since the age of 6. Played for college of Marin in Kenfield, CA. After moving to LA Basin played with my college team. At this stage of my life, I continue to train bi-weekly soccer games to stay healthy and active.
USMST has allowed me to see the world as I relax for 1-2 weeks to play my favorite sport.
Thank you

Dr Nayak grew up in Lee's Summit, Missouri outside of Kansas City and is an avid Royals and Chiefs fan. He did his undergraduate education at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana and received his medical doctorate from Tulane University School of Medicine in New Orleans. After medical school, Dr Nayak completed his residency in Internal Medicine and Cardiovascular Medicine fellowship at the National Naval Medical Center (NNMC) in Bethesda, Maryland, subsequently serving four additional years as a staff cardiologist at NNMC. After leaving the Navy in 2009, Dr Nayak joined the Wenatchee Valley Medical Center in Wenatchee, Washington, where he currently resides with his family. Dr Nayak's medical interests include cardiovascular imaging, heart failure, and emerging models of healthcare delivery.

I have called these United States Home for nearly 20 years. I was born and raised in El Salvador. Although soccer is the nation's most popular sport, I started to play organized soccer when I was in Jr High School and played through High School. I did not have the most talent and was far from a MVP type player. But it was riding that bench that taught me with hard work, humility and persistence I could achieve what others thought I could not. I made it to the starting eleven in the varsity team. It sort of feels I have my own "Rudy" story. ( Certainly much less dramatic). So Soccer has had a profound influence in my life, and a positive One.

Playing games in Medical School intra-murals, was the last time I saw a pitch with me in it. Back then there was plenty of hair in my head. So long ago.

Since then, a Medical Degree, Family Medicine Residency and Medical practice is where plenty of work and effort has been spilled. After completing my residency in Poughkeepsie NY, I moved to Southern California.

I worked for a Community Clinic for 6 years providing primary care to the under served population in Ventura County. Subsequently I opened my private practice.

A long time friend Paulo Carvalho, the USMST goalkeeper, invited me to join an In-door soccer league. That became my stepping stone back to the world of Cleats, grass, and Soccer balls. It felt like I was 15 years old again.
Little did I know that a few years later I would be part of this great team, organization and have a whole new group of great friends, helping the community, traveling the globe while playing "the beautiful game".

As Primary Care physician I have been prescribing exercise to my patients. The USMST provides me a tool and motivation to lead my patients by example. Compounding exercise with nutritional counseling we can help America gain back its health.

I am originally from Chattanooga, TN. I completed undergraduate studies in 1995 at Vanderbilt University in Nashvile, TN, and then graduated from medical school fom Tulane University in New Orleans, LA in 1999. It was in medical school that I became friends with Ky Tran and Gautam Nayak and played with them on our intramural soccer team, The Cadavers. Even at that time the two of them dreamed of playing in the "Physician's World Cup."

After completing medical school, I joined the United States Navy and completed my internship and residency at Portsmouth Naval Hospital in Portsmouth, VA. I then served for two years as an Internal Medicine physician in the tropical paradise of Puerto Rico, at the Rosevelt Roads navy station.

I then compelted a fellowship in gastroenterology at the combined program at the Naval Hospital in Bethesda, MD and Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, DC. After completing fellowship, I served for three years as a gastroenterologist in the US Navy back in Portsmouth, VA. During this period, I deployed for a six month tour of duty in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, serving in Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. I was awarded two Navy Medals of Commendation, a Navy Achievement Medal, and an Army Commendation Medal for my service with the navy.

After completing my time in the navy, I then took a position with the Department of Veteran's Affairs in Memphis,TN. I now serve as a staff gastroenterologist at the VA Hospital and am an Associate Professor of Medicine with the University of Tennessee.

I live in the beautiful town of Collierville, TN with my wife and three (soon to be four) children. My wife, Jennifer, and oldest son, Andrew, have accompanied me on our last two world soccer journeys, to Manchester, England and Malmo, Sweden. We have had the joy of seeing many wonderful sights and making friends from teams from all over the world.

Being a part of this team has been one of the truly extraordinary experiences of my life. I can only hope that I can give as much to this team as it has given to me. Go USA!

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After getting my MD degree from Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia in Lima, Peru, I moved to the US to land in Chicago, IL, where I completed Internal Medicine training at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center. I subsequently moved to Atlanta, GA, for my fellowship in Nephrology. Immediately after that, I joined the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston to start my current career in academic medicine.

It's hard to describe what football/soccer means to me. My sanity has been questioned by others who have witnessed my limitless passion for the sport, either if it's playing it, watching it or simply talking about it. Back during my days as a younger (significantly younger) player, a match day usually lasted 3 days: 1 day of pre-game mental isolation from earth, the actual day of the match, and 1 day of post-game ranting about the referee or simply celebrating a victory in the most obnoxious way. Currently, it is known in my household that a fuming near-psychotic reaction could be elicited if somebody dares to interrupt me during an important televised game. Unless, it's time for dinner and my wife says so, of course.

Now, after playing "futbol" competitively throughout my life and realizing that my aging skills and family/work-related duties continue to limit more and more my "playing time", joining the USMST hasn't just been an amazing opportunity for me, it has been like a rebirth. I feel pretty lucky to be part of this organization and I feel very lucky to be surrounded by incredibly nice teammates.