Sportsmanship is definitely an important thing in all sports. In soccer, we all respect each other on such a high level, between Sweden and Brazil and Japan or whatever team it is.
I think it’s huge, especially in team sports, for players to be able to rely on each other and to really trust in each other.
I have done ‘Sports Illustrated,’ but I don’t regret it because it portrayed me in a positive way – as an athlete.
It wasn’t until 1999 when my idols Mia Hamm and Kristine Lilly took home the women’s World Cup trophy at the Rose Bowl in front of 40 million TV viewers that I remember thinking how rare it was to see women play sports on TV.
I started off playing sports when I was five years old. I played three or four sports all throughout the year.
I played volleyball, basketball, softball, and I started to love soccer the most around 7-8 years old because it was a physical game. I could use my speed and strength to my advantage.
My goal is to show girls that I’m fighting so they don’t have to, so they don’t have to fight the same battles, so they don’t have to fight for wage equality or whatever it may be.
I could always score goals. I loved that feeling of having your team look to you, that feeling of leadership.
I think it’s important to keep things positive. Sometimes you don’t win, and that sucks, and you work on improving.
It’s so easy to lose your fitness and so hard to gain it back.
To force a change, sometimes you need to stand up. You know what you’re worth – rather than what your employer is paying you.