By Frederick Halley

AFTER an illustrious career spanning just over two decades on the soccer field, Guyana-born Charmaine Elizabeth Hooper has left an indelible mark on Canadian soccer with her scintillating performances both on and off the field, and is still considered the greatest female player Canada has ever produced.

Hooper is considered a legend in Canada and the world of women’s football, and her Hall of Fame recognitions in 2012 are ample testimony to her remarkable achievements.

Having last played for the Canadian National Team in 2006, she will always be remembered as one of Canada’s best ever soccer players, and that takes into account male players of the game. Hooper was inducted into the Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame in June 2012. She was, in October of that year, inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in Calgary.

And as if that weren’t enough, Hooper acknowledges that being chosen as a 2014 inductee to the North Carolina State Athletic Hall of Fame is even more special.
Significantly, Hooper was inducted into the United Soccer League’s Hall of Fame in 2002 after being named Atlanta Beat’s Most Valuable Player (MVP), and became the only Canadian player in Women’s United Soccer Association (WUSA) history to score in the Founders Cup III.
Strong, powerful and determined, the Guyana-born powerhouse played 131 times for the Canadian national team, scoring no fewer than 71 goals, and went on to become one of the biggest names in the women’s game.

Her international debut came on July 7, 1986 at the age of 18 and against the United States, and she represented Canada at three FIFA Women’s World Cups (Sweden 1995, USA 1999, and USA 2003).

In 2003, Hooper scored the winning goal against China to propel her adopted country to its first trip to the FIFA World Cup semi-finals, earning tournament all-star honours.

Now enjoying her retirement in the southern part of the USA, the well-travelled striker and three-time FIFA Women’s World Cup veteran comes from a sports-oriented family. She is the sister of Lyndon Hooper, also a former Canadian footballer; and Ian Hooper, the Director of Business Operations for the Ottawa Champions Baseball Club. Her husband, Chuck Codd, is also a university soccer coach.

A former star at North Carolina State University, Hooper played for the Fort Worth Football Club of the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL) in 2008. In 2006, she represented the New Jersey Wildcats in the American Women’s League. Her previous clubs include the WUSA’s Atlanta Beat, the Chicago Cobras, and the Rockford Dactyls.

Hooper also played for FK Donn of the Norwegian Toppserien, where she scored 17 goals in 13 league appearances. After a short period with Lazio of Serie A, she signed a professional contract with Japanese L. League club Prima Ham FC and was a highly valued player in Japan before returning to North America after four seasons.

After leaving Guyana at the tender age of eight, Hooper lived with her parents in Zambia, where her father served as a diplomat and she attended an American school where soccer was predominantly played by boys, including her brother Lyndon. It wasn’t until she came to Ontario, Canada that she saw an entire team of girls playing.

It was an instant turning point in the then 12-year-old girl’s life, and it represented the beginning of a spectacular career that saw Hooper lead North Carolina State to four consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, including the 1988 NCAA title game. She led Canada to its best ever finish in the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Hooper’s other accolades include being honoured on the All-Time Canada X1 in 2012 as part of the Canadian Soccer Association’s Centennial Celebration, and being noted by the FIFA Women’s World Cup Technical Study Group as one of Canada’s outstanding players.

Hooper served as an Honorary Ambassador for the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup Canada 2002, was a member on the Organising Committee for the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup Chile 2008, and also served on the Technical Study Group at the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup Germany 2010.