Christie Pearce facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Christie Pearce

Pearce in 2016
Personal information
Full name	Christie Patricia Pearce
Date of birth	(1975-06-24) June 24, 1975 (age 50)
Place of birth	Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Position(s)	Center back
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1993–1996	Monmouth Hawks
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1997	Central Jersey Splash
1998	Buffalo FFillies
1998	New Jersey Lady Stallions
2001–2003	New York Power	55	(0)
2009–2010	Sky Blue FC	30	(0)
2011	magicJack	11	(0)
2013–2017	Sky Blue FC	87	(2)
International career
1997–2015	United States	311	(4)
Managerial career
2009	Sky Blue FC (caretaker player/manager)
Medal record Women's soccer Representing  United States Olympic Games Gold 2004 Athens Team Gold 2008 Beijing Team Gold 2012 London Team Silver 2000 Sydney Team FIFA Women's World Cup Winner 1999 United States Winner 2015 Canada Runner-up 2011 Germany Bronze 2003 United States Bronze 2007 China
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Christie Patricia Pearce (born June 24, 1975) is a famous American former soccer player. She played as a defender and was once the captain of the U.S. national team. Christie is an amazing athlete who won three Olympic gold medals and two FIFA Women's World Cup championships!

She played in five World Cup tournaments and four Olympic Games. Christie helped her team win the World Cup in 1999 and 2015. She also won gold medals at the 2004 Athens Olympics, 2008 Beijing Olympics, and 2012 London Olympics. In every major tournament she played in, her team always finished in the top three.

Christie played in professional soccer leagues in the U.S. from 2001 to 2003 and again from 2009 to 2011. In 2009, she even coached her team, Sky Blue FC, while still playing. She led them to win the championship that year and was named the WPS Sportswoman of the Year.

Christie Pearce was the oldest player to play in a FIFA Women's World Cup game at age 40. She is also one of the top three players in U.S. and world history with the most international games played (311 caps). In 2021, she was chosen to join the National Soccer Hall of Fame.

Christie's Early Life and School Years

Christie Pearce was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but grew up in Point Pleasant, New Jersey. When she was in high school, she was a fantastic athlete in four different sports: soccer, basketball, track, and field hockey.

At Point Pleasant Borough High School, she scored over 2,000 points in basketball. She was also the first girl in New Jersey to be the top scorer in three different sports in her conference. Because of her amazing skills, she earned all-state honors in all three sports. Many people said she was the best athlete Ocean County, New Jersey had ever seen!

Playing Sports at Monmouth University

Christie went to Monmouth University in West Long Branch, New Jersey. Many colleges wanted her to play for them. At Monmouth, she continued to play three sports: soccer, basketball, and lacrosse.

In her final year, she decided to focus more on soccer. She started training and traveling with the United States women's national soccer team. On the soccer field at Monmouth, Christie was a two-time Northeast Conference Player of the Year. She scored 79 goals and made 54 assists during her college soccer career. She holds the university records for goals, assists, and points in a season.

Christie also studied special education and finished her degree in 1996. She volunteered as a basketball and soccer coach while she was a student teacher. To honor her achievements, Monmouth University gave her a special degree in 2005. They also put her in the Monmouth University Hall of Fame in 2007.

Christie's Professional Club Career

After college, Christie Pearce played for teams like Central Jersey Splash and New Jersey Lady Stallions in the W-League in 1997 and 1998.

In 2001, she joined New York Power, a professional soccer team in the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA). She played almost every minute of the first 18 games until she got injured. She recovered and played many more games in 2002 and 2003. The WUSA league stopped playing after its third season.

A new women's professional soccer league, Women's Professional Soccer (WPS), started in 2008. Christie was chosen to be the captain for Sky Blue FC, a team from New Jersey. Other U.S. national team players like Heather O'Reilly also joined the team.

In 2009, Sky Blue FC had a tough start. Their coaches left, and Christie stepped in to be the coach while still playing! She led her team to win the 2009 Women's Professional Soccer Playoffs. It was later shared that she was almost three months pregnant with her second child during that championship game. A week later, she was named the WPS Sportswoman of the Year.

She continued to play for Sky Blue in 2010, then moved to magicJack in 2011. In 2013, Christie joined the new NWSL team, Sky Blue FC, again. She was one of the top defenders in the league that year.

Christie's International Career with the U.S. Team

Pearce training with the United States team in 2015.

Christie Pearce played for the United States women's national soccer team in many big tournaments. She played in the FIFA Women's World Cup in 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, and 2015. She also played in the Summer Olympics in 2000, 2004, 2008, and 2012.

After training with the U.S. team in college, she became a defender. Her first game for the national team was on February 28, 1997, against Australia. She scored her first goal for the team on May 2, 1997, against South Korea. In her first season, she started 16 out of 18 games and scored two goals. The next year, her team had an undefeated season and won gold at the 1998 Goodwill Games.

In 2000, Christie played a lot for the national team, including five games at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. The team won a silver medal. In 2001, she had an injury and missed many games. She worked hard to recover and was back with the team in 2003. She started in 15 games and all four World Cup matches, helping her team win the bronze medal.

Pearce (in yellow) vies for the ball with U.S. teammate Amy LePeilbet during practice June 30, 2011, in Heidelberg, Germany.

At the 2004 Athens Olympics, Christie helped the U.S. win a gold medal by beating Brazil. This was the last Olympics for some of her famous teammates like Mia Hamm. In 2004, Christie became the fifth most-capped defender in U.S. history.

Christie took a break in 2005 to have her first child. She returned to the team in 2006, just 112 days after giving birth! In 2007, she had her busiest year, starting in all 20 games she played. She became the most-capped defender and second most-capped player on the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup team. She started in all six World Cup matches.

In 2008, Christie Pearce was named captain of the Women's National Team. She led the U.S. to another gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics. She also played her 200th game for the national team that year. After her teammate Kristine Lilly retired in 2010, Christie became the active player with the most international games played in the world.

Christie captained the U.S. team to a second-place finish at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup. They lost to Japan in a penalty shootout after a 2–2 tie. She played every minute of all six matches.

At the 2012 London Olympics, Christie again captained the U.S. team to a gold medal win over Japan (2–1). She played every minute of all six matches and was key in taking free kicks. She even saved a shot from Japan off the goal line in the final game! The U.S. team won all six matches and had three shutouts (games where they didn't let the other team score).

As of September 20, 2015, Christie Pearce is second on the all-time list for most international games played, with 311 caps. On July 5, 2015, she became the oldest woman to play in a FIFA Women's World Cup final at 40 years old.

Christie's Personal Life

Christie Pearce has Scottish family roots. Her great-grandfather, Bill Dowie, was a soccer goalkeeper in Scotland before moving to the United States.

Christie has two daughters, Rylie (born 2005) and Reece (born 2010). In 2011, Christie shared that she had Lyme disease.

Endorsements and Businesses

In 2012, the sandwich shop Jersey Mike's Subs chose Christie Pearce as their first spokesperson. She and her former husband later opened two Jersey Mike's locations in Toms River, New Jersey in 2017.

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See also

In Spanish: Christie Rampone para niños