Thierry Henry

(http://parsfootball.com/php/modulos/articulos.php?task=imprim&aid=6769)

Some might call him a prodigy; others might say he is plainly the best. Any way you put it, Thierry Henry is an outstanding professional soccer player and an excellent goal scorer. Many people adore him for his sheer brilliance on the field, but there is more about him than meets the eye.

Born in France, August 17, 1977, he grew up in Les Ulis which is a very densely populated city, filled with high-rise concrete buildings and few small parks. It was considered a dangerous city at night in the 70’s. Thierry Henry had a loving family and a fair childhood. His family was not exactly wealthy, so Henry had to find fun things to do. The answer - Football. In the United States, football is known as soccer. Henry played soccer throughout his childhood. “ ‘When I was growing up, all I saw was cement,’ Henry says. ‘Tall buildings, long buildings, walls we played football against,” (The Sydney Morning Herald). He was very much encouraged by his father, Antoine Henry. His father wasn’t any football superstar, but he kept encouraging and helping Henry. Henry didn’t just play soccer with his group of friends everyday, he was also on club teams. The first junior semi-professional team that Henry was on was Viry-Chatillon. This club was one of the best in the city of lights (Paris) for hopfull young foot ballers (The Sydney Morning Herald). In 26 matches for Viry-Chatillon, Henry scored 77 goals even though he was considerably younger than the other players. Although he was tall. At the age of thirteen, Henry was allowed a great opportunity, he was selected for the French Academy at Clairefontaine, which is a very good academy for young soccer players.

(http://www.2atoms.com/personal/arsenal/)

Thierry Henry stared in his first professional soccer game when he was just seventeen years of age, playing for Monaco - a pro team in France. Later, he joined Juventus, a pro team in Italy, for a short time. Henry didn’t like Juventus and how they played. Not before long, his contract was bought by Arsenal. Arsenal is a professional soccer team in London, England and is in the English Premier League. The coach of Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, was Henry’s coach when he was at Monaco. In the 2001-2002 season with Arsenal, Henry proved himself as an outstanding striker. In the 2002-2003 season with Arsenal, Henry scored even more goals. In the 2003-2004 Henry scored 30 goals in the Premier League boosting his club to first place. The club was undefeated in the Premier League also that year, a great accomplishment by far. Henry picked up many awards that year, “He was voted the Professional Football Association (PFA) Player of the Year and the Football Writers' Association Player of the Year,” (A&E Biography.com).

To me, a hero is not someone who can do great things and are the best. Instead, it means that they worked hard, and never gave up. Also, a hero is someone who is always willing to take on a new challenge. In my eyes, a hero exemplifies loyalty, kindness, and generosity. Last but not least, a hero should be someone that people just can say, “He or she is a great person.” If people can say that truthfully, then it is true.

(http://www.tercera.cl/lt/Multimedia/PopUp/Galeria/0,0,3308_5880_104264075_104264061_9,00.html)

Why do I call Thierry Henry my Hero? He was persistent and never gave up soccer. He trained and worked hard throughout all of his childhood, and played well even when he was up against older players. He could have given up at any time, but he loved the game and pressed on. Henry is loyal to his teams and is a team player. After he scored his thirty goals in the premier league, he was the leagues leading scorer and won the Golden Boot – an award for the top scorer in the league. As a reward, the league paid Henry one-thousand British Pounds for each goal he scored. So, he had thirty-thousand Euros payment in addition to what the club paid him. Henry decided to donate the full thirty-thousand Euros to charity. Henry made a remark after donating the money, “ ‘It’s great to be awarded the Golden Boot again but as I always say, I could not have done it without the help of my team mates. I’m also delighted that my goals will benefit a really deserving cause in ChildLine,’” (ChildLine.org). That is how generous and kind Henry is. ChildLine’s Chair, Esther Rantzen, said, “Thierry Henry is not simply one of the world's greatest sportsmen, but he is extremely impressive in the way he appreciates the needs of children,” (ChildLing.org). In addition to generosity, kindness, persistence, and diligence Henry is one of the most skillful in the world. He also displays amazing speed. All of these aspects are enough to make almost anyone look up to him. But to me, he is my Hero.