Denver, Colorado – Returning to his homeland of Iceland, Arnthor (Thor) Kristinsson travels have brought him full circle; he will be joining the ranks of Vikingur Reykjavik as a professional soccer player. Vikingur Reykjavik is one of the top professional soccer teams in Iceland, finishing fourth last season and advancing to the qualifying stages of the Europa League, run by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The organization was founded in 1908 and captured a National Championship in 1991.
Every student-athlete dreams of becoming a professional athlete and Kristinsson has done just that, “There were often times that I almost gave up on that dream because of injuries and other obstacles, but with hard work and determination, I managed to get back on track.” Kristinsson is head coach Tony McCall's second student-athlete to merge into the professional scene. Kristinsson's teammate, Martin Maybin, has taken his talents to the Colorado Springs Switchbacks. “It is indicative of where we are as a program that we have two 2015 graduates now playing professionally,” added McCall.
Kristinsson left his hometown of Akranes in 2011 to pursue an education while continuing his passion of playing soccer at the collegiate level. His first stop brought him to Florida International University in Miami, Florida. There, he played in 24 games and made 15 starts for a total of 1,115 action minutes.
His next stop was Regis, 2,067 miles from Miami and even further from home. “Thor was recommended to me by one of my ex-players, also from Iceland, and being a transfer student already in the U.S., it made for an easy transition,” said McCall. Upon arrival, Kristinsson immediately elevated the field of play with his knowledge and technical talents of the game. “His leadership, maturity, and overall quality on the pitch will be sorely missed,” added McCall.
Kristinsson was fortunate to experience unprecedented success in his Ranger uniform helping lift the team to back-to-back trips to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament, a regular season conference championship in 2013, and an National Division II National Tournament berth that ended in the Elite Eight (a first in program history). Some of his fondest memories stem from the memorbale 2013 season which include: beating Metro at their stadium to win conference and scoring the equalizing goal in the Sweet Sixteen to send the game to overtime where we won to advance to the Elite Eight.
After two years at Regis and countless memories on and off the field, Kristinsson has added another place he can call “home.” “It is hard leaving a place like Regis and Denver, I have turned into a true Coloradan and that is why I will hopefully return soon to my 'home state,'” expressed Kristinsson.
Kristinsson's future is uncertain; he hopes to continue playing the sport he fell in love with as a child but would also be open to a return to Regis in pursuit of a Master's degree. “It is hard to predict what the future holds but whatever it may be, I will work hard and do my best,” added Kristinsson.
The current Vikingur Reykjavik season is underway; Kristinsson graduated from Regis on May 3rd and flew back home two days later to begin training and has seen action in three games thus far.
