CARSON, Calif. – Hanan Zelaya and 19 others completed a lifelong dream on Thursday by officially joining the LA Galaxy through the club’s unified Special Olympics team.
The youngsters will play multiple games against other Special Olympics Unified competition this year, starting with a July 9 match on the road against Seattle Sounders FC at CenturyLink Field, which will be held in conjunction with the first team’s trip to Seattle.
For Zelaya, a 16-year-old midfielder from Los Angeles, the chance to don the jersey of his beloved hometown club will be a once in a lifetime opportunity.
“It’s an honor because LA Galaxy is a really good team,” Zelaya told LAGalaxy.com. “Ever since I was a kid, I’ve loved this team, so wearing the shirt will be awesome.”
As special as the moment was for Zelaya and the rest of the squad, it was just as meaningful for Galaxy midfielder Steven Gerrard, who was in attendance to wish the team congratulations on their new contracts.
“It makes you feel very humble and proud to be involved in their special day. I’ve experienced what they’re going through when you sign your contract for a big team,” Gerrard said of the experience for the youngsters. “All the family and all the friends are very proud of them, so they should feel very good today.”
The teenager and the rest of his teammates will now turn their attention to preparing for next month’s match in Seattle, but no matter the result, it will not take away from the joy of signing his first professional contract and officially joining the Galaxy family.
“It was something that I’ll never forget. It’s really interesting because we get to know more people, so it’s really fun,” Zelaya said. “We also got to meet Gerrard, Giovani dos Santos, and even my all-time favorite player Ashley Cole. It was so cool.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog atLAGalaxy.com/Insiderand contact him atLAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com
