The Thaby training academy (T for Tinajo, Tías and Teguise, H for Haría, A for Arrecife, B for San Bartolomé and Y for Yaiza) will be launched next March. Its founder, Raquel Gómez, coach of CF Altavista, decided to found it because she realized that there is a gap in the training of women's grassroots soccer. She explained this on Wednesday on the 'Polideportivo' program of Radio Lanzarote-Onda Cero. "The project will be presented on March 10 and there are already 17 girls registered", says Gómez, "and we have closed agreements with Altavista and Puerto del Carmen", she adds.
"Most girls, when they make the decision to play soccer, are already over 11 and 12 years old. And when they go to a mixed team, they encounter the problem that many boys have been playing since they were four. This causes them frustration because they realize that technically they are far behind them. But it is true that more and more girls want to play soccer and the boys integrate them more and more", explains the promoter of Thaby.
Gómez says that in the last ten years the number of women's teams on the island has doubled. "There has certainly been a change. However, today a woman cannot live from soccer, and that is one of the things we talk about with them, that the first thing is studies. And then comes the training in soccer, which is not just kicking a ball as some people say, but it is much more", she says.
Promotion of women's soccer 8
A little more than a week before Thaby is launched, Gómez asks the Federation to promote women's soccer 8. "And I would also like the possibility that girls registered in soccer 8 can debut during the season in soccer 11. But today that possibility does not exist, it is as if they were two different sports for the Federation. Even if the club is the same, to go from soccer 8 to soccer 11 the girl would have to be deregistered and re-registered", says the coach.
"Since I decided to undertake this project I have been sent many words of encouragement. And the best thing is that the girls ask you to teach them how to play or write to you to send them exercises to practice at home. I have found girls with a lot of desire to learn and I hope they don't get tired, because the technical part is very hard", concludes Gómez.
