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Olympic gold medalist soccer player Christine Sinclair talks about her memoir

Olympic gold medalist soccer player Christine Sinclair chatted about her memoir.

Olympic gold medalist soccer player Christine Sinclair
Olympic gold medalist soccer player Christine Sinclair. Photo Credit: Rachel Pick
Olympic gold medalist soccer player Christine Sinclair. Photo Credit: Rachel Pick

Olympic gold medalist and Canadian soccer player Christine Sinclair chatted about her memoir. Her book “Playing the Long Game” comes out on November 1st via Random House Canada.

Sinclair is the captain of the national Women’s Soccer League Club Portland Thorns FC and the Canadian national team. In this book, she candidly opens up about her exhilarating successes and heartbreaking failures.

She is a FIFA All-Time Scoring Record Holder, a 14-time winner of the “Canadian Soccer Player of the Year” Award, as well as a three-time Olympic medalist (winning one Olympic gold and two bronze medals for Canada).

On her inspiration to write “Playing the Long Game,” Sinclair said, “Writing a memoir has been something I’ve always wanted to do, but as a generally reserved person, it’s not something that came easy.”

“At this point in my career, I felt it was a necessary process if I wanted to get my message out there at a time when the gender equality conversation is at the forefront of not only sport but society as a whole,” she added.

She acknowledged that writing this book was a therapeutic and cathartic process. “Throughout this media tour so far I’ve been describing the writing process as therapy sessions. Even though it was like pulling teeth at times for someone like me, I had a great time working with my co-author Stephen Brunt as he was able to get me to think really think deep about my personal story on and off the pitch,” she said.

She opened up about her Olympic hardware. “The two bronze medals were great and really helped to change the culture and popularity of the sport in Canada, but the gold was unbelievable,” she said.

“Pre-tournament we set out with the mission to change the color of the medal and we did that. Hearing the Canadian national anthem being played was unforgettable,” she added.

On her career-defining moments, she responded, “I don’t know that I can pinpoint one specific moment. Maybe just the camaraderie and the true team we’ve built here in Canada and all those medals in between? Obviously, I had a chance to reflect while writing the book, but I’m someone who is pretty laser-focused on the task I have in front of me. A lot of these moments are things I’ll think back on and enjoy whenever I hang up my boots.”

For young and aspiring soccer players, she offered the following advice: “Nothing replaces hard work, but I think just having fun with it is important. I grew up in a sporting family so whether it was baseball early on or soccer, it was always an easy and supportive environment for me to discover my own passion for the game.”

“Having fun and my love for the game is what has been keeping me playing all these years,” she said.

On her daily motivations as an athlete, she said, “Just my love for the game. If I didn’t enjoy playing, I wouldn’t still be out here at 39. I just love going out there to battle with my teammates every day. Special shoutout to my Canadian and Thorns fans, that support is always amazing!”

Regarding her future plans, she said, “Well I have this thing called the World Cup that I’m preparing for next summer. After that, I have no idea, but I like to think there is a lot more soccer in my future.”

On her definition of the word success, Sinclair said, “My definition for success isn’t what I’d call “material”. Like it was never really my goal necessarily to, you know, break records and stuff.”

Sinclair continued, “Obviously something like the goal-scoring record was always in the back of my head as something to chase after scoring my first couple of goals, and growing up as a huge fan of Mia Hamm.”

“I think what you’ll find in the book is that it’s really about going beyond soccer, but using the platform it gives me, to make a positive impact on everyday people,” she added.

The Canadian soccer superstar concluded about her book “Playing the Long Game,” “If I had to pick one thing, it’d be to battle and fight for whatever it is you look to achieve. Relating that to my own experience continuing to grow the women’s game, I’ve been able to see things in football improve over the past 20 years because players of my generation did just that.” 

To learn more about Christine Sinclair, follow her on Instagram.

Markos Papadatos
Written By

Markos Papadatos is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for Music News. Papadatos is a Greek-American journalist and educator that has authored over 22,000 original articles over the past 18 years. He has interviewed some of the biggest names in music, entertainment, lifestyle, magic, and sports. He is a 16-time "Best of Long Island" winner, where for three consecutive years (2020, 2021, and 2022), he was honored as the "Best Long Island Personality" in Arts & Entertainment, an honor that has gone to Billy Joel six times.

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