Soccer enthusiasts across the country woke up to jubilant news of the womens soccer team bagging a momentus bronze medal at the Olympics Thursday morning.
With less than a minute in added time remaining, 28-year-old Diana Matheson slipped the ball passed French goalkeeper Sarah Bouhaddi. That second of play gave Canada its first medal in a traditional team sport at the Summer Olympics since the 1936 Canadian mens basketball team won silver in Berlin.
The 1-0 game shocked all who participated and watched, as team Canada had been out-shot 25-3 by France. Additionally, during a previous encounter, France had beat Canada 4-0 in the 2011 World Cup.
It shows our girls that they can do it, said Richmond Girls Soccer Association chair Aiman El-Ramly. I think its great.
Richmond soccer players have had the rare opportunity to encounter many of the Olympians as they trained and played games in the city. Most of the associations girls had seen the womens soccer team play, while some even participated as flag people for the games.
When I was watching the games, I realized its really different to watch the sport when you know the people in the game, said El-Ramly.
And I think our girls feel the same way. Theyve seen these women first hand. When you see the players up close, you realize, theyre really not that different from our players.
In general, enrollment in soccer has taken a dip across the province, for both boys and girls, according to El-Ramly. However, the slight drop speaks more to a natural ebb and flow, rather than anything more serious.
The training regime in the province has also become more strict and structured, rather than just involving kick abouts.
So when theres an increase in structure, it means youll lose a few, said El-Ramly. But you also get a lot more dedication from those who do stay on.
It is this dedication that leads to Canadian athletes of a higher calibre, he said.
It means that we can get to the Olympics, and place amongst the top three in the world. And by the looks of it, that number one spot is not so far away.
