CASERAS, Spain — After Spain gained the soccer Ladies’s World Cup in August, the nation’s triumph and subsequent celebrations had been marred by the actions of Luis Rubiales, a former participant and official who was serving because the president of the Royal Spanish Soccer Federation and as a vice chairman for the Union of European Soccer Associations (UEFA).
Rubiales kissed a Spanish participant, Jennifer Hermoso, on the lips through the award ceremony, inflicting a firestorm of controversy for the weeks to return. Hermoso has been adamant the kiss wasn’t consensual. Rubiales has since resigned his place and was in courtroom earlier this week, the place a choose gave him a restraining order. The previous Spanish official can’t be inside 200 meters (656 ft) of Hermoso and the courtroom in Madrid is considering a criminal complaint for sexual assault and coercion.
So what does this must do with golf? Spain’s Carlota Ciganda was requested concerning the incident throughout her press convention forward of the 2023 Solheim Cup this week at Finca Cortesin and her reply drew a spherical of applause from Spanish and European media. The next quotes have been translated from Spanish to English.
“I feel it was a disgrace what occurred ultimately, when Spain gained the World Cup, I feel we must always have fun the World Cup as a result of ultimately that’s not going to occur many instances,” mentioned Ciganda. “I feel that (Rubiales) was clearly fallacious, he doesn’t must act like that, particularly in such a public occasion, if you end up in entrance of everybody.”
“Clearly after all I assist the gamers and when so many individuals agree, clearly issues have occurred that we might not know,” she continued. “However I feel the necessary factor is to have fun the World Cup, which is what everybody needs to be very pleased with, the nation we’ve got and the good athletes there are.”
Ciganda, 33, mentioned it’s “a dream come true” and “pleasure” to characterize the European staff in her dwelling nation as she makes her sixth Solheim Cup look this week.
“I simply love enjoying for our staff. Relating to Solheim, it jogs my memory of once I used to play with Spain, just like the European Crew Championships. I feel match play, it’s plenty of enjoyable as a result of you may have a winner on the finish of the day of the match,” mentioned Ciganda, who boasts a 7-8-4 file within the biennial occasion in opposition to the US. “So I simply love enjoying match play, enjoying for the staff, on your teammates, for the captain. I feel that’s extra enjoyable than enjoying for your self. I do love that about this week and the environment that we’ve got. I imply, the European staff is all the time one united staff and I really like that.”
Regardless of being the lone Spaniard on the 12-player European facet, the Pamplona native and resident doesn’t really feel any added stress to carry out this week.
“I feel greater than stress it’s simply going to be pleasure, adrenaline, and simply enjoyable. I’m going to embrace it and I feel it’s going to be nice to have all of the assist from Spain, from my household, numerous members from my membership,” mentioned Ciganda. “So I’m simply going to attempt to go on the market and revel in. I do know I’m going to really feel nervous and I’m going to really feel that adrenaline. I do know I can play nice golf with that, so I’m simply going to get pleasure from and embrace each second.”