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of Educational and Cultural Affairs Life Lessons the Golden Goal of Salvadoran Soccer Clinics
Two-time Olympic gold medalist and World Cup champion, Cone – speaking with her medals around her neck – and Women’s National Team Staff Coach Jeff Pill, were the perfect example of how this tandem of smart decision-making and dedication is a means toward achieving the greatest of goals. The soccer duo led this Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs' (ECA) SportsUnited initiative, in partnership with U.S. Soccer and with local assistance from FUSALMO, a non-governmental Salvadoran organization. Pill and Cone interacted with diverse audiences in the capital of San Salvador, as well as in the smaller cities and towns of San Miguel, Soyapango, and Santa Ana, and the successes of the program were equally widespread. As Pill noted, “We certainly felt a lot of excitement from the players, and enjoyed their enthusiastic responses wherever we went.” The clinic participants, ranging in age from 7 to 18, were able to play alongside Cone and Pill throughout the program, learning from their instruction as well as by their example. It was apparent that despite the fact that the players and their American visitors spoke different languages off the field, their communication as teammates, with a soccer ball at their feet, needed no translation at all. Upon the conclusion of the six days, every player received a certificate to mark their successful completion of the program, and it took only moments for the young players to surround Cone and Pill, asking both of them for “un autógrafo.” Both Pill and Cone were enthusiastic about their experiences; Cone said “My only hope is that the kids of El Salvador got as much out of us being there as we did.”
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