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FC Gold Pride Well Represented on FIFA's World Player of the Year and World Coach of the Year Shortl

October 26, 2010 - Women's Professional Soccer (WPS)
FC Gold Pride News Release


HAYWARD, CA (October 26, 2010)- The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) unveiled the shortlist for the annual World Player of the Year and inaugural World Coach of the Year awards on Tuesday. Among those named to the shortlist were FC Gold Pride teammates and recently crowned WPS Champions Camille Abily, Marta and Christine Sinclair. Also, Pride Head Coach Albertin Montoya was named to the inaugural shortlist for World Coach of the Year for Women's Football.

Only 10 women were named to the shortlist for the Women's World Player of the Year award, seven compete regularly in Women's Professional Soccer (WPS), three of which play for the 2010 WPS Champions, FC Gold Pride.

Marta has four-times been crowned the FIFA World Player of the Year (2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009). Her world-class performance earned her the WPS Michelle Akers Player of the Year (MVP) and Golden Boot winner (19 regular season goals) for the 2010 season, awards she has captured two consecutive years; Marta helped lead the Pride to the team's first-ever WPS Championship in September. Marta was also elected as one of two 2010 All-Star game captains. Marta has returned to Brazil where she has rejoined her National Team in preparation for the Sudamericano Femenino, the CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifying Tournament.

2010 marks the fifth time Christine Sinclair has had her named added to FIFA's shortlist for the Women's World Player of the Year. Sinclair surpassed the century mark in international goals, scoring her 100th goal in February of 2010. The Burnaby, British Columbia native lead the league in assists with 10, ranked among the top five goal scorers in WPS and was named to the WPS All-Star team for a second consecutive year. Sinclair is currently in Cancun, Mexico with the Canadian Women's National Team for the CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying Tournament set to begin on Thursday, October 28.

French International Camille Abily quickly became a fan favorite in the Bay Area with her top-notch ball skills and composure in the middle of the field. International call-ups did keep her away from several WPS matches during the regular season but that didn't stop Abily from scoring a goal and assisting six for the eventual WPS Champions. While traveling back and forth from Europe to the US during the regular season, Abily also helped the French Women's National Team qualify for the 2011 Women's World Cup. Since the end of the season, Abily has been released from the Pride and has returned to her former club, Olympic Lyonnais (Lyon, France).

In only his second season as the Head Coach of a professional team, FC Gold Pride Head Coach Albertin Montoya has been named to FIFA's inaugural shortlist for the World Coach of the Year. Montoya led his team to a record-breaking season, capturing both the 2010 Regular Season Championship with an impressive 16-3-5 regular season record. Montoya was named a WPS All-Star Coach for the 2010 mid-season game and helped lead Marta's XI to a 5-2 victory. Most notably, Montoya completed the last-to-first turn around from the team's inaugural season by winning the 2010 WPS Championship and bringing a professional sports title to the Bay Area; a feat that had not been accomplished since 2003. A resident of Mountain View, CA, Montoya continues to coach at the Mountain View Los Altos (MVLA) Soccer Club while also maintaining his focus on the Pride and preparing for the 2011 season.

FIFA in conjunction with France Football will announce the names of the names of the three finalists in each of the four categories: Ballon d'Or, Women's World Player of the Year, Coach of the Year Women's Football and Coach of the Year Men's Football. Winners of each award will be revealed on at the first FIFA Ballon d'Or gala as part of a televised ceremony at the Zurich Kongresshaus on 10 January 2011.

FIFA Women's World Player of the Year Shortlist (Alphabetical):

Camille Abily (France), Fatmire Bajramaj (Germany), So Yun Ji (Korea Republic), Marta (Brazil), Birgit Prinz (Germany), Caroline Seger (Sweden), Christine Sinclair (Canada), Kelly Smith (England), Hope Solo (USA) and Abby Wambach (USA).

FIFA Coach of the Year, Women's Football 2010 (Alphabetical):

Bruno Bini (France/France national team), In Cheul Choi (Korea Republic/Korea Republic U-20 national team), Maren Meinert (Germany/Germany U-20 national team), Albertin Montoya (USA/FC Gold Pride), Silvia Neid (Germany/Germany national team), Hope Powell (England/England national team), Norio Sasaki (Japan/Japan national team), Bernd Schröder (Germany/FFC Turbine Potsdam), Pia Sundhage (Sweden/USA national team), Béatrice von Siebenthal (Switzerland/Switzerland national team).



Women's Professional Soccer Stories from October 26, 2010


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