Hope Solo’s Greatest Triumphs are Overcoming Adversity
Hope Solo is a world champion athlete and a leading voice for equality for women in sport. Right now she running to be President of the US Soccer Federation.
To often we make snap judgements about people for a variety of reasons. Anyone who has an opinion of Hope shouldn’t make it based on a random headline or media soundbite. Look at how she treats others and you will see the true measure of the person.
We are proud to have Hope as an ambassador and think everyone should embrace the profound message she has passed on from her father. Below is the transcript of the speech Hope gave earlier in the year to 200 players from our Homeless World Cup program at the Street Soccer USA National Cup in Philadelphia. This means of people living in homeless shelter across the country, working together on the field and off it to improve their lives. Her ease and sincerity with everyone speaks volumes of her character, but please, read her speech (or watch it) and judge for yourself.
“First off, I want to thank Street Street Soccer USA for having me here today.
In a world where we often times see a lot of blind hate, it’s really cool to have an organization like Street Soccer USA that shows unconditional love. It may be tough love sometimes but it is unconditional love, and what they are doing not only makes our communities better, but it makes the world a better place for all of us, so thank you, Street Soccer USA.
So I wanted to share a little about myself. My father lived on the streets of Seattle for the majority of my life. He was homeless.
The greatest lesson I ever learned from my father was to never make snap judgements, to treat everyone with respect, no matter what community you live in, regardless of what you wear, regardless of race, religion, sex, regardless of your social status. He taught me to respect everybody. His lesson remains the foundation for my passion to fight for equality, to fight for equal opportunity.
My biggest and greatest triumphs in life, some of the memories that I still hold the fondest didn’t come through privilege, but they came through struggle and my ability to overcome that struggle–those are the greatest memories of my life. Those are the greatest triumphs.
I hope that you all trust me when I say that I have a deep amount of respect for every single one of you here today. Watching you all play today the game that I love with so much heart and passion and so much grit–life is gritty. You guys were out there showing us what the beautiful game is supposed to be like. This truly is the best part of what the beautiful game is. I want to thank all of you for allowing me to be a part of it. Thank you very much and honestly you guys truly are inspiring.”
–Hope Solo, Street Soccer USA National Cup 2017, Philadelphia Museum of Art
Hope Solo is a world champion athlete and a leading voice for equality for women in sport. Right now she running to be President of the US Soccer Federation.