基督教拉米雷斯 took an indirect route to his career as a professional soccer player for the Los Angeles Football Club and the U.S. 男子国家队. That path included two critical years at Concordia Irvine where Ramirez re-discovered his love for the game.
“Christian has such an amazing heart,” says CUI men’s soccer coach Chris Gould ’06, MBA ’07. “他非常谦虚，鼓励其他人. Everybody’s so happy for him because it’s like a good guy made it.”
作为老鹰队的前锋, 拉米雷斯在大四那年进了23个球, 仍然是学校的单赛季记录. 他是联盟年度最佳球员. 现在, 这是他作为职业球员的第七年, Ramirez is living a dream that began while he was growing up in Westminster to Colombian immigrants in low-income housing.
“My parents’ sacrifices made me who I am now,拉米雷斯说. “家庭是我的一切. I wouldn’t be in the position or the person I am without the sacrifices my parents have made.”
Ramirez’s soccer talent landed him on club teams and in the Olympic Development Program. But at 6' 2", 187 pounds, some didn’t consider him the typical soccer player.
“Some say I don’t fit the mold of a forward, that I'm too slow or not as athletic,拉米雷斯说. “继续证明他们是错的真是太棒了.”
在为一所大型大学效力之后, 发现环境不适合你, 拉米雷斯决定搬到离奥兰治县的家人更近的地方. 欧文康考迪亚大学’s Gould and then-assistant coaches Cheyne Gordon and Mike Osiguera knew Ramirez from club soccer and offered him a place on the Eagles’ team.
“They convinced me that Concordia was the right place for me and that I would find the love for the game again,拉米雷斯说. “事情就是这样. 我又爱上了这项运动. I trusted them because they knew who I was as a player and what type of personality I was. I was comfortable that they would mentor and guide me in the right direction.”
Ramirez came in as a center mid-fielder but Gould immediately made him a forward.
“他可以改变比赛，”古尔德说. “He has a process and a composure in front of the goal that’s in contrast to other players. 大多数球员会变得情绪化. Christian had a process of how he wanted to execute whatever the circumstance was. 他成功的原因是他想知道为什么. He got to the point where he would suggest how we approach certain games because he understood what we were doing and why. 就像场上有教练一样.”
拉米雷斯也悄悄地让其他球员变得更好. “他为球场上的球员创造了解决方案，”古尔德说. “If you didn’t understand what you were seeing, you’d say someone else did it.”
The Eagles posted their historically best seasons those years, earning the conference title and making it to the quarterfinals in the national tournament.
拉米雷斯说:“我再次享受了踢足球的乐趣。. “When I’m having fun playing soccer everything takes care of itself.”
Gould says Ramirez is successful “because he works harder than almost everybody else. He took the time to go the extra mile in every controllable dimension. We set a vision for what he could be and laid a pathway for how to get there. 剩下的就靠克里斯蒂安去执行并相信它了.”
协和女神帮我找回了自我. 是他们把我塑造成了今天的我.
Christian met his wife, Valerie (Barrios) Ramirez ’15, who also played soccer for the Eagles. 他们现在有一个孩子.
And while plenty of people told Christian he would never make it professionally after going from a Division I school to an NAIA school, his 欧文康考迪亚大学 career earned him a spot on the Charlotte Eagles, 北卡罗莱纳的第三级别职业球队. Eight months later he signed with Minnesota United FC and scored off the bench in his first game. In the next four years he scored 65 goals in 120 league appearances and won the North American Soccer League 2014 and 2016 Golden Boot awards. He was traded from Minnesota to the Los Angeles Football Club in 2018.
“I don’t think you could ask for a better representative for our soccer program,” says Gould. “It shows what a Christ-centered experience can do to love, encourage and help somebody toward what God is calling them to be.”
1月, 拉米雷斯达到了职业生涯的另一个顶峰, 他被征召参加他在美国国家队的第一场比赛.S. 男子国家队，对阵巴拿马.
“I took some moments during the game to soak in what was going on,” Ramirez recalls. “Before being subbed in I closed my eyes and took three deep breaths because it’s a lifelong dream to play. I know how much privilege and honor it is to represent this country which has given my family this opportunity to have a better life.”
Less than five minutes into that appearance, he scored a goal.
“当我得分的时候, as I was shooting the ball into the net I was processing and saying, “请不要把球踢过去。,’”他说.
他在美国打了另一场比赛.S. 对阵哥斯达黎加队.
“Soccer has given me the opportunity to provide for my family in ways that wouldn’t be possible without the sport,他说. “It helped me meet so many of my friends and mentors, and helped me travel the world.”
Much of his confidence goes back to his Concordia Irvine experience.
“协和女神帮我找回了自我,拉米雷斯说. “他们真的把我塑造成了今天的我. Without their guidance I wouldn’t have believed in myself and have the assurance in who I am or who I could become on and off the soccer field. 他们把我推向了正确的方向. I’m forever thankful for them, that God brought me in connection with them. We worked through a lot while I was there and I’m thankful for that.”
As for his future, Ramirez sees another decade on the field if he continues to avoid injuries. 他说:“我觉得我还能活很多年。. “我会一直踢到他们把我拖下球场为止.”