Personal Statement
Soccer Adventures
For what seems like an eternity, I have lived my life with a ball at my feet. On a hot sunny day, as the sun burned my skin, I repeatedly kicked the ball at the wall, it rolled back quickly to my feet. I heard nothing but the sounds of birds squawking and chirping;the trees rustled in the wind. Since the age of three, I have had this passion for football or as Americans call it, “Soccer.”
My grandmother would always say “kwụsị ịgba bọl, ya maka ụmụ nwoke” {“Stop playing soccer, it is a game for boys”}, but I was focused on enjoying this game; my game. I always played with the village boys around my Nigerian neighborhood and tried to do everything they did. If they took their shirt off to celebrate, I would too; I felt like I belonged there. Sometimes I would get kicked so hard that by the end of the game my legs were filled with bruises and welts. The pain, however, never deterred me, I played soccer any chance I got. My passion and love for this childhood game only grew after my move to the United States. One day, my father and I took a walk to a nearby soccer field; the field looked as if it went on for miles, covered in fake grass(turf), with two huge goals on opposing ends. We saw a group of girls
training, immediately my heart started to race; all I knew was that I wanted to be part of it. So, I confronted the coach and inquired about joining the team.
I was not used to this kind of culture, but I figured that once I joined a team, I would begin to find my way. However, it proved to be a difficult transition seeing as how I wasn’t physically as conditioned, plus I didn’t know anyone on the team. I would sometimes fear practice because it was countless hours of drill work and conditioning; I also feared making mistakes. As time quickly passed, I began getting familiar and comfortable; my fitness levels were improving, my technical skills got better, but I knew it wasn’t the best of what I could do. After practice, I would stay two hours or more to practice with the boys at the field till it became a habit. Whenever I played with the boys I would see their faces filled with amazement because of my confidence and skill. Sometimes, people passing by would stop to watch me play; I enjoyed every bit of that. I loved when I would put a ball through a boys legs (this move is called a “Nutmeg” or “Meg” for short) and everyone would scream in surprise. I believed I had the talent to go far and achieve my dreams.
My family has always supported my athletic pursuits. Even though they aren’t around to watch me play, they always give me words of encouragement. Discipline and dedication are two characteristics that I was able to develop by playing soccer. These characteristics have also made their way in to my academic life. While soccer is an undisputed passion of mine, it is also a catalyst for my other interests: sports medicine. I believe studying sports medicine will give me better knowledge on diet, fitness, and injury prevention for myself and for my teammates. Being the high school’s Girls Varsity designated captain for my entire high school career, has given me the skills, knowledge, and discipline to positively motivate myself and my teammates to succeed.
I strive to do my best best on and off the field. The game of soccer isn’t just a game to me, it’s the motivation I need to be better than I was yesterday.
