By Rogelio Adonican Osorio |
Panama City (EFE).- Raiza Gutiérrez, former Panamanian national player and current assistant coach of the senior team that will compete in the Women’s World Cup in Australia-New Zealand, assures that the road up to there was not easy, in a country where the players and their families continue to fight against sexist stigmas that keep girls away from the sport, thus losing potential soccer stars.
“In Panama there is still that machismo that says that soccer is for men. Unfortunately, we still live in a country where, if you are a soccer player… you are a lesbian and that is not the case,” the Panama U-20 team coach also denounced in an interview with EFE.
She added that this stigma, which many players struggle with, leads parents not to support their girls.
“I only take this opportunity to tell you: if the passion of your girls is to play soccer… give them your support, because women’s soccer in Panama is growing,” she said.
He made it clear that although it is improving, the Panamanian women’s league still does not allow a living from soccer.
“The truth is that you can’t live in Panama with women’s soccer, there are girls who don’t get paid. The same goes for the teams that make an effort to give their players something, but still don’t give them a decent salary, ”she acknowledged.
Panama soccer figure
Raiza Gutiérrez is remembered as a scorer in the National Women’s Soccer Association tournament (Anafufe 2003-2013). This talented goalscorer began like all athletes in Panama, at the street school.
“Raiza started playing at a very young age in the San Miguel neighborhood, I started very young, believe me that in the neighborhood they played in the streets. They had a court that they called Tívoli, which was a supermarket that closed and there was a small square where she played, ”she said.
His first soccer idol was his brother, whom he accompanied to all the fields to watch his games, from there Raiza’s love for soccer was born.
“At first my brother didn’t want me to play because of the theme of you know, what people always say the players are, then they realized that this was my passion and they gave me all their support,” she commented.
From footballer to dream from the technical bench
Now from the technical bench, Raiza lives the dream that she could not fulfill as a player, reaching a Women’s Soccer World Cup.
“That very nice experience was something that I have always sought since I was a child, I think that in my beginnings as a player my dream was always to play in a World Cup. Unfortunately, it was not given to us as a player, (but) she was given to me now as a coach and believe me, I am enjoying it in the same way, ”she said.
She revealed how she experienced the moment of qualifying: “with seconds remaining I was yelling at the referee ‘time, time’… when she blew that whistle it was one thing, it was something unforgettable.”
She is getting ready to enjoy the World Cup experience, in which for the first time 32 teams will compete for the Women’s World Cup, aware that in the tournament that begins next July they will have a difficult group along with Brazil, Jamaica and France, but ” We are going to enjoy it with a lot of responsibility”.
“Being at the biggest party in football is something that any person or any player would like to experience and now it’s up to us to enjoy it,” she celebrated.