By Brad Hubbard | @bradhubbard
Hope Solo. Where do we begin? Solo’s latest exploits were comments she made after losing to Sweden in the quarterfinals of the Olympics. She said, “We played a bunch of cowards. The best team did not win today. I strongly, firmly believe that.” It may not seem like much but it was enough to land her a six month suspension from US Soccer.
It appears that Solo’s comments were enough to break US Soccer’s back. Let’s be honest, it wasn’t these comment’s specifically but the culmination of all of Solo’s incidents. The domestic violence case, the DUI of her husband that resulted in a 30 day suspension, and the countless moments that made her a lightning rod for controversy.
She is also quite possibly the best female goalkeeper in history. Over 200 caps, over 100 shutouts, and 152 wins. Her on the field heroics kept her critics at bay but it appears that those days have come to an end.
Vice Sports brought up an interesting perspective on Solo’s suspension, they called it hypocritical and sexist. That part is up for debate but the fact remains that Solo is one of the most recognizable figures in women’s soccer, the best keeper in the world and now suspended for six months.
Is this the end? Time will tell. But ironically, her talent’s may keep hope alive that she will take the field for the US National Team again.
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