Fortune Makes the Under 20 Brazilian National Team

     On January 10, 2008, Kleiton Lima, head coach for the under 20 Brazilian team, invited 28 players for the first phase of preparation at the National Training Center in Teresópolis, Brazil. Fortune was one of two international players invited, the other being from Italy. After the January 29 final roster was announced, Fortune is the only international player as well as, at age 17, the youngest player on the team.

     Fortune, who returned to Wheaton Academy on Wednesday, will travel back to Brazil the week of February 11 to continue training with the team for the South American Championships which are held in March. If the Brazilian team wins South American Championships, which they did in 2004 and 2006, they will advance to the Under 20 Women’s World Cup in December. The World Cup tournament will be held in Chile.

     Recalling the emotions she felt at the training camp in Brazil, Fortune says, “It was hard being the youngest out of 28 girls, as well as being an international player. The language barrier made it even more difficult.” It wasn’t all hardship for Fortune though. “It was such an awesome experience, training in the mountains with the Brazilian National Team,” says Fortune, “it’s all worth it.”

     Attempting to put this all in perspective, Wheaton Academy Head Coach Dave Underwood says, “Leah is living the dream. She has been invited to participate with one of the top women’s soccer teams in the entire world. It’s really hard to put into words the magnitude of this opportunity.”

     “I’m looking forward to going back in February for more training,” says Fortune. “I’m excited about building deeper relationships with my teammates and I can’t wait to wear the Brazilian National jersey.”

Dave Pacheco
Wheaton Academy Communications Coordinator
630-562-7511
dpacheco@wheatonacademy.org