Transgender Pro Footballer Leads Samoan Team To First Win in almost two decades
Oh to be amongst school yard bullies again! To every kid who was picked last in gym class because he was more "feminine" than the other boys, this goes out to you! Details after the jump.
American Samoa had two things to celebrate last week. Coming out of a 17-year streak of 30 consecutive defeats, they finally won! And they did so by fielding the first ever transgender player in an official match!
Defender Johnny "Jayieh" Saelua helped the 204th ranked Samoans defeat the 202nd ranked Tonga 2-1. Closing the game, head coach Thomas Rongen said, "I've really got a female starting at centre back. Can you imagine that in England or Spain?"
Saelua is part of the fa'afafine (biological males who have a strong feminine gender orientation and identify as a third sex that is widely accepted in Polynesian culture). The defender was raised as female and said after the match that "the team accepts me and we have that mutual respect. Which is great. It's all part of the culture."
To top it all off, Saelua was also named "Man of the Match" after providing an assist and making a goal-line clearance in the dying seconds of the game. (That awkward moment when a woman is called a man and it is a compliment). Congrats to Saelua and the team.
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