I’m proud to write the first Queen Sheva dedicated to a Guatemalan woman of this 2016. She is someone who has put an immense amount of effort and dedication into two parts of her life that make up who she is today. Ana Lucía Martinez is scoring left and right in every game.
Ana Lucía Martínez, at just 26 years old, has just been signed by the Rayo Vallecano making her the first woman professional soccer player from Guatemala to play in a First Division League.
Born and raised in Guatemala, she grew up playing soccer with her cousins and brothers at the courts of Campo Marte (one of Guatemala’s biggest sports centers). And it was her older brother, then 16, that took her little sister Ana Lucia, then 8, to play with her first team (of many many many more). From that day on, she fell in love with soccer. And it has been since that first day that her family has supported her in everything that she’s set her mind to do. Her mother, being a feminist and an advocate for women’s rights, has been her biggest supporter, enthusiast, cheerleader, booster, groupie, promoter, and any other synonym that exists. It’s been her family’s unconditional support that has made Ana Lucia go the extra mile to work harder, train harder, and achieve her dreams. She knew she was good when at 17 she was part of Guatemala’s sub20 national team. By 20 she was part of the National team, in which she still plays today and travels around the globe representing Guatemala, and by 26 has crossed the pond to join one of Spain’s greatest teams. No wonder, last year she was awarded Outstanding Player from Castilla La Mancha.
Ana Lucia shares that the key factors that influenced her life and that brought her to where she is today are 3: family support, her school’s sports program that involved boys and girls in every sport possible, and her willingness to work hard to achieve her dream. And not letting fear get in the way. And failure makes you work harder. So, it’s actually 5 main factors. She recounts a game she played with Guatemala’s National Team against the US where they lost 9-0, and it was that day she realized she wanted to be better, she wanted to be at that level and play side by side with players all over the world. After that game, she changed her lifestyle, from eating better to training harder. It was that game that defined her approach towards soccer and towards achieving her dreams.
And you would think that soccer is the only thing in her life, nop. She is a chemical engineer and wants to go back to school to get a masters in business. She’s a firm believer in having a formal education and has put the same discipline and responsibility in her studies as she’s done in soccer.
Ana Lucia has just started and we know we will hear many great news from her. She is definitely an amazing role model for many women and girls in Guatemala, and around the world.
We were lucky enough to have her at SHEVA’s offices and recorded a little video for you:
Thank you to Global Sports Corporation for introducing us and for supporting amazing talent in Guatemala.
