VOA慢速英语--阿根廷小女足运动员面临性别难题

Girl Soccer Player Faces Gender¹ Rule in Argentina

She wears loose, white team clothing from Huracán de Chabas, her hometown, a little less than 400 kilometers north of the capital, Buenos Aires. Her player number is four. She uses white shoes and leg guards. Her long hair tied back is what makes her noticeably² different from the other players.

"Cande," as she is known by friends and family, is the only girl playing in a children's soccer league in the southern part of Santa Fe province. The area is the birthplace of soccer stars like Lionel Messi, Gabriel Batistuta and Jorge Valdano. Former Argentine coaches Marcelo Bielsa, Gerardo Martino and Jorge Sampaoli are also from there.

But an area rule that prohibits³ mixed-sex children’s teams threatens to take Cande off the field.

The ruling is evidence of the unequal opportunities for men and women in this soccer-loving area.

Rosana Noriega is Candelaria's mother.

"I had to sit down with her and tell her that there are some people who have to make rules in soccer and that these rules do not agree with what she wants," Noriega said.

She continued, "And, well, we both cried, and she said: 'The people who make the laws are bad people.'"

The area’s soccer officials informed Huracán two months ago that Candelaria could no longer play on the team. She could only play on a girls' team -- which does not exist where Candelaria lives.

Noriega went on social media to speak out about her daughter's case. She was surprised when other girls wrote to her saying they were facing the same problem in nearby towns and in more distant places.

Of the 230 regional leagues recognized by the Argentine Football Association⁴, only 68 have women's teams. This is just one of the many inequalities in soccer in Argentina. The most notable⁵ is financial.

Argentina's female⁶ players have struggled financially when their payments⁷ get delayed. They will play in a November runoff game for the 2019 World Cup.

They have also expressed anger about how Adidas, a sponsor⁸ of several national teams’ players, publicly displayed new clothing for this year’s Female America Cup. The company used professional models instead of players.

Ricardo Pinela is president of the Football Association's Women's Football Commission⁹. He said the women’s teams need younger players.

"They start playing at age 16, 17 and by then they've missed out on a bunch of issues that have to do with understanding the game," he said.

But, he added, "The important thing is that every club in every corner of the country gives a girl the possibility of joining a female soccer team, to play with other girls, even if it's just for fun, and from there generate¹¹ the necessary structure that ... sets them on equal standing¹⁰ as the male players."

After Candelaria's case became widely publicized, her league promised to reexamine the rule in a meeting later this year.

Although she is officially barred from the team, it has let her keep playing in games — at least until an opponent¹² objects.

In Candelaria's most recent match, her team beat the Alumni soccer team 7 to 0.

Candelaria said, "No one should say that a girl can't play soccer.”

I’m Caty Weaver¹³.

Words in This Story

opportunity – n. chance; an amount of time or a situation in which something can be done?

regional – adj. of a part of a country, of the world, etc., that is different or separate from other parts in some way?

sponsor – n. a person or organization that pays the cost of an activity or event (such as a radio or television program, sports event, concert, etc.) in return for the right to advertise during the activity or event?

generate – v. to produce (something) or cause (something) to be produced

1 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

2 noticeably   

adv.显著地，明显地

参考例句：

• There was one boy rather noticeably standing apart from the other children. 有个男孩引人注目地独自站在一边，不接近其他孩子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was noticeably slow to respond. 他明显反应迟缓。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 prohibits   

v.禁止，阻止( prohibit的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The high cost prohibits the widespread use of the drug. 该药昂贵，影响广泛应用。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The law prohibits tobacconists from selling cigarettes to young men. 法律禁止烟贩向年轻人出售香烟。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 association   

n.联盟，协会，社团；交往，联合；联想

参考例句：

• Our long association with your company has brought great benefits.我方和贵公司的长期合作带来了巨大的利益。
• I broke away from the association ten years ago.我10年前就脱离了那个团体。

5 notable   

adj.值得注意的，著名的；n.名人，要人

参考例句：

• His achievement is very notable.他的成就是非常显著的。
• He wrote and published the essay under notable's name.他假托名人写文章发表。

6 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。

7 payments   

n.支付，付款，缴纳，报酬( payment的名词复数 )；付出的[要付出的]款项；报答，报偿

参考例句：

• Welfare payments cease as soon as an individual starts a job. 一旦就业，即停发福利救济。
• The law can compel fathers to make regular payments for their children. 这项法律可强制父亲定期支付子女的费用。

8 sponsor   

vt.发起，主办；资助；n.发起者，资助人

参考例句：

• Sponsor stated they have no idea where he is.赞助方表示他们不知道他在哪儿。
• The sponsor has permanent ad on the website commonly.赞助商一般在网站上有永久性广告。

9 commission   

n.委托，授权，委员会，拥金，回扣，委任状

参考例句：

• The salesman can get commission on everything he sells.这个售货员能得到所售每件货物的佣金。
• The commission is made up of five people,including two women.委员会由五人组成，其中包括两名妇女。

10 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

11 generate   

vt.生成，产生（光、热、电等）导致

参考例句：

• We need someone to generate new ideas.我们需要有人出新主意。
• This book will continue to generate excitement for a long time.这本书将在很长一段时间里继续使人们为之激动。

12 opponent   

n.对手，敌手，反对者；adj.敌对的，反对的

参考例句：

• The boxer gave his opponent a punch on the nose.这个拳击手朝他对手的鼻子上猛击一拳。
• After a fierce struggle,he got a beat on his opponent.经过殊死的较量，他占了对手的上风。

13 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。