Women's Soccer Volunteers with Coaches Across Continents

Alicia Johnson, Sophie Legros and A.J. Millet pose with some of the Special Olympics Namibia athletes (Photo courtesy of A.J. Millet).

Coaches Across Continents Blog

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Alicia Johnson, Sophie Legros and A.J. Millet of the Harvard women's soccer team have spent the first few weeks of summer volunteering in South Africa with the Coaches Across Continents program.

These members of the Harvard women's soccer team have been working in soccer drills with youth teams, as well as focusing on social issues, such as violence, social inclusion and the environment. 

While helping the soccer players improve their skills, the Harvard student-athletes also aided the coaches in discussing how to incorporate social messages into soccer drills. 

Following each week, the local coaches were honored in a ceremony and everyone discussed what they learned in the drills, while being free to discuss serious social issues.

Seamus Malin '62, a U.S. Soccer Hall of Famer, and Nick Gates '91 run Coaches Across Continents, which is an organization that allows experienced soccer coaches to work and assist developing regions using a designed soccer education curriculum. This not-for-profit organization, which was founded in 1990, is designed to develop young people to become modern leaders in their community.