HARARE — It’s 25 minutes past sunrise when Mavis Chirandu grabs her football and takes it to the field behind her housing complex in the capital city. She meets her Mighty Warriors teammates on the pitch where they proceed to stretch in preparation for a practice match. They are training for the game of their lives.
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The Mighty Warriors will be heading to Brazil this summer to compete in the 2016 Olympics. Becoming a professional football player has been a dream of Chirandu’ since she was living at the SOS Children’s Village Bindura.
Chirandu came to live with her SOS family in Bindura, a community located north-east of Harare, when she was just one-year-old. She was found stranded on the side of a dusty road before being brought to the SOS Children’s Village where she received love, care and support.
“I thank God, particularly for the fact that I found a family at the SOS Village and you can’t really tell the difference between me and the children raised in a typical family set up,” says Chirandu.
Growing up at the Bindura village, which is equipped with 15 SOS family homes, Chirandu was usually found on the football field playing against the other children. When she was old enough to join the SOS primary school’s team, she realised that football was more than a hobby to her. Teachers and her peers soon noticed that too and encouraged her to pursue her gift.
“Chirandu has always been a hard worker — that is one thing I know. She is a born dribbler and the girl can shoot a goal,” says Grundy, the assistant coach to the SOS Children’s Village team when the footballer was on the team.
At the age of 19 and still living at the SOS Children’s Village, Chirandu was the captain of Zimbabwe’s national Under-20 team, with whom she travelled to compete in international games in Germany and Egypt. Now at the age of 21, she has moved out of the SOS Children’s Village and is living in the capital. She’s playing in the premier women’s league, with whom she has played in international matches in eight countries. Brazil is next.
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The entire SOS Children’s Village will be cheering her and her team on from Zimbabwe. She has become an inspiration to other young girls at the Bindura village to work hard and not give up on their dreams.
“She has been very determined and focused on her development,” says Edwin Magosvongwe, SOS youth leader in Bindura. “She has transformed herself into a role model. She has managed to excel in a field that has been dominated by men and we salute her for that.”
Chirandu explains that she dreams of playing abroad in international clubs such as the Liverpool Ladies or Arsenal LFC. In the meantime, she is focusing on her training for the big games this summer.
