MUKONO – The Crested Crane goalkeeper and 2018 FUFA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award winner Ms. Ruth Aturo was on Friday, July 5, among the students who graduated at Uganda Christian University (UCU).
The 23-year-old graduated with a Diploma in Business Administration, she was studying on a scholarship at the prestigious Mukono-based University.
Our reporter Elizabeth Namajja caught up with her and brings you the details of the interview.
Ms. Aturo took pride in juggling both her academics and sports. She said that, that was only possible because she comes from a family that values education.
“I couldn’t drop out of school to play football. I come from a family where education is a must have,” she noted.
Well as most talented people drop out of school to grow their talent, Ms. Aturo explained that she used her talent to pay for her education.
“I have been a sports person from way back. I have used sports to achieve my education,” she said.
“This has saved my parents from looking for tuition,” she added.
Even when she had to miss class sometimes due to various tournaments the crested cranes’ player confessed that she compensated this by working hard in her coursework and tests.
“Sometimes I missed class because I used to be away from school for a tournament. I would concentrate on my coursework and tests, discuss with friends so as to catch up,” she narrated.
Dreams are valid and Ms. Aturo revealed that she would like to play professional football for some of the teams in the USA.
“I would love to play professional football for clubs in the USA.”
She intends to continue playing football for as long as she can especially since people are now investing in it.
With so many stereotypes going around that football is a sport for men, Ms. Aturo found it difficult to associate with most girls on campus.
She said that she could be related better with boys as her friends as opposed to the ladies, most of whom frowned upon her choice of sport.
“I made more friendships with the boys compared to the ladies. These would advise me instead of talking me down,” she said.
The MVP award-winner also noted that the stereotypes made by the ladies only motivated her to be good at what she does.
Ms. Aturo revealed that she will not let her education go to waste. She intends to be both a footballer and a businesswoman.
“I will pursue both football and business. I believe I can just like I did while at the campus.” She said with a hopeful attitude.
“This will give me something to fall back on once I retire.” She added.
She advised parents to support their children in whichever talent they have.
“Parents if your children have a special talent support them, give them a chance to explore it because you never know this could save you a lot in the future.” Ms. Aturo said.
Ms. Aturo plays for both the national and university team of the UCU Lady Cardinals FC.
She was outstanding in the Crested Cranes team during the Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) women’s tournament that was held in Rwanda and the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) championship, where Aturo was named the best goalkeeper in both tournaments.