BIRTHDAY GIRL
We offer up 12 tidbits on Canada captain Christine Sinclair, who turned 32 on Friday,
With two-thirds of their round-robin matches in the bag, Canada’s captain
Christine Sinclair celebrated her 32nd birthday Friday by travelling from Edmonton to Montreal for the team’s next game against the Netherlands Monday.
Here are 12 things to know about Sinclair:
1. Although June 12 is her date of birth, Christine Margaret Sinclair wears the No. 12 jersey after her childhood idol, former Blue Jays second baseman Roberto Alomar, whose poster used to be on her bedroom wall.
2. Her dog Charlie, a rescue Pomeranian, is named after Sinclair’s former coach at the University of Portland, Clive Charles. He died in 2003 from cancer.
3. She graduated from university with a 3.75 grade point average in life sciences on top of a demanding athletic schedule.
4. She is Canada’s all-time leader in caps for her country, with 225 appearances. She has also scored more international goals than any other Canadian, with 154. She only needs four more goals to tie American legend Mia Hamm on the all-time list.
5. Sinclair has a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame, which she received in 2013.
6. In 2012, Sinclair was the first soccer player to win the Lou Marsh Award as Canada’s athlete of the year. That year she also won the Bobbie Rosenfeld Award as Canada’s female athlete of the year.
7. She was Canada’s flag bearer at the closing ceremonies for the London Olympics in 2012 after leading the team to a bronze medal victory. It was Canada’s first time on the podium in a traditional team sport since 1936.
8. Her pre-game superstitions include putting her left boot on before her right boot.
9. Sinclair received an honorary doctorate of laws degree from Simon Fraser University in her hometown of Burnaby, B.C., in 2013.
10. Sinclair is a fan of Liverpool Football Club, and counts Reds legend Steven Gerrard among her favourites. Her second club is Manchester United Football Club.
11. In her downtime from international duty and club team Portland Thorns Football Club, Sinclair enjoys golfing and spending time with her five-year-old niece Kaitlyn.
12. Her must-hear track in the locker room before a match is Michael Jackson’s Man on the Mirror, a tradition that began during her college days.