An ex-captain of the Super Falcons, Precious Dede, says football brought her fame and everything else she had achieved in life.
The former Falcons goalkeeper, made the assertion when she appeared at the launch of a girls’ football and mentoring programme titled: “Goal! Strong Girls, Bright Future”, alongside two former players of the U.S. female national team.
Dede, who noted that she started playing football at age 8, even though her parents were against it, said that she had to quit the university for football when she lost both her parents.
The ex-international, however, said through the sport, she was able to see her other siblings through university education even through she was the second to the last child in a family of seven.
She said that in all, hard work, discipline and humility were the keys to her success in the sport that brought her fame and all that she had achieved in life.
According to her, at age eight, I started playing street football with boys and my parents didn’t like it, they wanted me to be educated.
“They tried to discourage me by saying that I will look and act like boys if I continued with it. All they wanted was for me to go school.
“However, at age 19, I had to quit the university when I lost both of them. I channelled my energy into the game where I made money to train my other siblings even though I was the second to the last child,” she said.
She urged the girls who were selected from different schools in Benin to put in all their being in sports, if they had flair for it.
Similarly, Joanna Lohman, a former midfielder in the U.S. female team, who said she started playing at age six, said she was able to grow in football because she had people around her who supported her passion for the sport.
Lohman, however, said she never allowed her love for the game to disturb her educational pursuit.
“I had always wanted to be a professional footballer, but the visit of the U.S. female national team to the White House in 1999, became my life changing event for the game, positively,” she said.
While advising the girls to believe in their dreams, she said, “You can be anything you want to be only if you believe in yourself and work towards it.”
On her part, a 1996 Olympic gold medallist with the U.S. female team, Staci Wilson, said she now earned a full time living from the sport that had brought her fame and all that she had achieved in life.
Wilson said because of her parent’s love for education, she had to combine the sport with studies.
“Sport made tremendous positive impact in my life. I want you girls to start working towards that direction of your dream,” she said.
In her remarks, the U.S. Consul General, Claire Pierangelo, urged the girls to use their passion for sports to instill in them the passion for their future.
