Hope Solo Suspended from US Women’s National Team

Why does a national athlete continue to mess up?

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On Jan. 21, starting goalkeeper for the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team, Hope Solo, was suspended for 30 days. This is not her first encounter with authorities so USWNT coach Jill Ellis finally took actions to not allow her to participate for one month.

Solo was in the passenger seat of the car being driven by her intoxicated husband, former Seattle Seahawks tight end Jerramy Stevens. Although Solo wasn’t arrested or detained, this behavior isn’t acceptable for a world class athlete. The team was participating in a U.S. soccer camp strictly to prepare for a critical time in the season, The Algarve Cup, held in March. The team will open World Cup play June 8 against Australia in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The USWNT is ranked No. 2 behind Germany and is competing for another World Cup victory this upcoming spring. Time is very crucial in training and preparing, so this could potentially hurt the team’s chances of another victory.

Even though this isn’t her first police encounter, Solo has been given multiple chances to fix her careless actions. Warnings, player confrontations, and suspension have all been given, but just because someone is an important asset to a team, should not be a factor in disrespectful behavior. On June 21, 2014, Solo was arrested and charged with two misdemeanor counts of assault in the fourth degree. Solo was only suspended for one game with the Seattle Reign. There was a lot of debatable speculation in the media with why other athletes would be suspended for longer and how she wasn’t. Not much action has been taken to control her shameful behavior. When professional football player, Ray Rice was arrested for assaulting his wife in an elevator he was charged with a felony for abuse. Why does almost the same situation get less attention? Solo’s charges were dismissed simply because of the lack of cooperation from the alleged victims.

Someone who is respected and looked up to by many, young people for her talent, has many unsolved problems. I believe that fame can get to your head and accidents can happen. But Solo’s actions deserve more severe consequences since these situations are reoccuring.