Stephanie Labbé

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Stephanie Labbé
Stephanie Labbé Rio 2016 (28807778010) (cropped).jpg
Labbé in 2016
Personal information
Full name Stephanie Lynn Marie Labbé[1]
Date of birth (1986-10-10) October 10, 1986 (age 34)
Place of birth Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Club information
Current team
 Paris Saint-Germain
Youth career
Spruce Grove Saints
Millwoods Warriors
Edmonton Aviators
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2005–2008 Connecticut Huskies
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2006-2008 New England Mutiny 21 (0)
2009–2011 Piteå IF 37 (0)
2012–2014 KIF Örebro 61 (0)
2016–2017 Washington Spirit 25 (0)
2018 Calgary Foothills WFC 6 (0)
2018 Linköpings FC 9 (0)
2019–2020 North Carolina Courage 18 (0)
2021 Rosengård 10 (0)
2021- Paris Saint-Germain 1 (0)
National team‡
2004 Canada U19 1 (0)
2006 Canada U20 4 (0)
2015 Canada Pan-Am 4 (0)
2008– Canada 84 (0)
Honours
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of September 12, 2021
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of August 6, 2021

Stephanie Lynn Marie Labbé (born October 10, 1986) is a Canadian soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Division 1 Feminine club PSG and internationally for the Canada women's national soccer team. She won a bronze medal with Canada at the 2016 Rio Olympics, the NWSL Championship with the Courage in 2019, and a gold medal with Canada at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

College career[]

2005–2008: University of Connecticut[]

Labbé joined the University of Connecticut and the women's soccer team in the second semester of 2004. In 2005, she played in all 22 games of the season, starting in nine. Labbé emerged as the top keeper in 2005 and played every minute of the last three games of the season. She posted a 1.15 goals against average and a 4–3 record, made a total of 65 saves, played in 12 conference games, allowing only seven goals and stopping 32 shots.

In 2006, Labbé played in all 21 season games, and made the start in 20 of those. She finished the season with a 10–7–4 record and a 0.96 goals against average. Some of her other highlights: made 73 saves and allowed only 20 goals in just over 1879 minutes logged, collected four individual shutouts and was part of a Husky team that recorded five straight blankings, posted a scoreless streak of 461:63 consecutive minutes over a six-game span, and was named Big East Goalkeeper of the Week on October 16.

In 2007, Labbé played all 22 games in her junior year, and played every minute in goal that season. She finished with a 14–6–2 record, and a career best 0.61 goals against average. Some of her highlights are: making 71 saves and allowing only 14 goals in 2058 minutes of action, collected 11 shutouts over the course of the year, recorded first career assist on game-winning goal against Providence, and earned three shutouts in the NCAA tournament against first round foe Boston College, in the second round against Wake Forest and against third round opponent Stanford.[2]

In 2008, Labbe was named Big East Goalkeeper of the Year. Labbe took and made penalty kicks for the Huskies to help them advance in the 2007 NCAA Tournament over Boston College and the 2008 Big East Tournament over West Virginia.

Club career[]

2009–2011: Piteå IF[]

Piteå IF is a Swedish football club located in Piteå, currently playing in the country's highest league, Damallsvenskan. The team played in the highest league for the first time in the season of 2009, in which Labbé joined the team. After the club was relegated to Division 1, Labbé was one of three foreign players that stayed with the club and managed to rise up again to Damallsvenskan in the season of 2010. In 2011, Piteå and Labbé once again played in the highest league.

2011–2014: KIF Örebro[]

With Örebro in 2014

After three years in Piteå, Labbé moved to KIF Örebro for the 2012 season. In the 2014 season she picked up a silver medal with her KIF Örebro team when they finished 2nd in the Swedish top division. She was also nominated as one of three goalkeepers for the Swedish soccer awards in 2014.[citation needed]

2016–2017: Washington Spirit[]

On February 8, 2016, it was announced that Labbé would play for the Washington Spirit for the 2016 season of the National Women's Soccer League via the NWSL Player Allocation[3] Labbé started and played in eight matches in 2016 and recorded a club record five shut outs in one season.[4] She was named to the NWSL Team of the Month for April and June 2017.[5][6]

In September 2017, Labbé announced she was taking a medical leave of absence from the Spirit for the remainder of the 2017 season. Although neither she nor the club specified the reason for the decision, she had spoken openly about her struggles with depression in the months leading up.[7] In February 2018, the Spirit announced it would not retain the rights to Labbé.[8]

2018: Calgary Foothills[]

In March 2018, without a club since her release, Labbé joined Calgary Foothills F.C., a men's team, to train and attempt to make the team's roster.[9] However, the Premier Development League responded that they are a gender-based men's league that does not allow women to play.[10] In response, she filed suit against the league.[11] Having been denied entry into the PDL, Labbé would sign with the women's side, Calgary Foothills WFC in United Women's Soccer.[12]

She later wrote an article in The Players' Tribune detailing her experiences with the men's club in pre-season and with being denied entry, stating that:

I kept going. I didn’t scale things back. I wanted to make that team so bad, and I loved the feeling that came along with not knowing how things would turn out. Of knowing that I needed to work harder than I had ever worked before if I was going to have a real shot. And the cool thing was that every day I could feel my legs getting stronger. My hands quicker. My passes smarter. I was proving to myself that I could hang. Something that seemed like it might be impossible when I started, was suddenly becoming very … real. And it became clear to me that in some ways I’d been selling myself short by assuming back then that I wouldn’t be able to hack it on a men’s team. After a while, I couldn’t help but wonder where that self-doubt had come from in the first place. When did I start believing I was less of an athlete than the guys?[13]

2018: Linköpings FC[]

On July 10, 2018 it was announced that Labbé would be joining Linköpings in the Damallsvenskan in Sweden.[14]

2019–2020: North Carolina Courage[]

On February 11, 2019 Coach Paul Riley announced that Stephanie Labbé would be joining the North Carolina Courage for the 2019 season, replacing Canadian Sabrina D'Angelo, who had left Carolina to sign with Vittsjö GIK in Sweden.[15][16][17] She backstopped the Courage to a 2-1 victory over Portland Thorns FC in the opening match of the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup.[18]

2021: FC Rosengård[]

After two years with North Carolina, Labbé would return to Sweden to sign with Damallsvenskan club FC Rosengård.[19] She held six clean sheets in her first seven matches for Rosengård.[20]

2021-present: Paris Saint-Germain[]

In August 2021, it was announced that Labbé signed with Paris Saint-Germain through June 2022 with an option for an extra year.[21]

International career[]

Labbé made her first senior international appearance as a second-half substitute for Canada in an 8–0 win over Singapore on July 27, 2008.[22]

Due to an injury to starting goalkeeper Erin McLeod, Labbé was named as the starting goalkeeper for Canada in the 2016 Rio Olympics. She kept two clean sheets during the tournament, backstopping Canada to a bronze medal.

On May 25, 2019, Labbé was named to the roster for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup.[23]

She was named to the Canadian roster for the 2020 Summer Olympics, serving as the starting goalkeeper.[24][25] She suffered a rib injury partway through the opening match against Japan, missing a group stage game against Chile due to the injury.[26] She then went on to post a clean sheet against Brazil in the quarterfinals and another clean sheet against the United States in the semi-finals. On August 6, 2021, she backstopped Canada to a gold medal, defeating Sweden in a penalty shootout.[27] During the final penalty shootout, she was noted for her calm demeanor, grinning at the Swedish shooters and only conceding two of the six kicks.[28][29] After Canada won gold medal, the federal Minister of National Defence Harjit Sajjan tweeted to her, stating "From one MND to another, thank you for defending the flag and for helping bring home this long awaited gold medal to Canada!", referring edits on Labbé's Wikipedia article that changed her position on the field to "National Minister of Defence".[30]

Career statistics[]

Club[]

As of June 27, 2021[31]
Club League Season League Playoffs Domestic Cup Continental Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Piteå IF Damallsvenskan 2009 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 20 0
2011 17 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 17 0
Total 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 37 0
KIF Örebro Damallsvenskan 2012 21 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 23 0
2013 21 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 25 0
2014 20 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 21 0
Total 62 0 0 0 7 0 0 0 69 0
Washington Spirit NWSL 2016 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 0
2017 17 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 17 0
Total 25 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 25 0
Calgary Foothills WFC UWS 2018 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0
Linköpings FC Damallsvenskan 2018 9 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 12 0
North Carolina Courage NWSL 2019 16 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 17 0
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 4 0
Total 18 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 21 0
Rosengård Damallsvenskan 2021 10 0 0 0 3 0 4 0 17 0
Career total 166 0 1 0 13 0 6 0 186 0

Personal life[]

Labbé has been in a relationship with Canadian Olympic cyclist Georgia Simmerling since 2016.[32][33][34] They were engaged in August 2021.[35][better source needed]


During her childhood, she played ice hockey with Spruce Grove Minor Hockey, eventually quitting the sport at the age of 11.[13] She has spoken openly about her struggles with major depressive disorder.[36][37]

Honours[]

Canada

Club

References[]

  1. ^ "List of Players – Canada" (PDF). FIFA. July 28, 2014. p. 3. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
  2. ^ "UCONNHUSKIES.COM :: University of Connecticut Huskies Official Athletic Site :: Women's Soccer". Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  3. ^ "National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) Canadian Players for 2016 Season". Retrieved February 8, 2016.
  4. ^ "Stephanie Labbé — Washington Spirit". washingtonspirit.com. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  5. ^ "Estelle Johnson, Stephanie Labbé named to NWSL Team of the Month for June » Washington Spirit". June 30, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  6. ^ "Stephanie Labbé, Estelle Johnson named to NWSL Team of the Month for April » Washington Spirit". May 4, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  7. ^ "Canadian goalkeeper Labbe takes medical leave from NWSL club". The Canadian Press. September 7, 2017.
  8. ^ Cochran, Ayana (February 15, 2018). "Washington Spirit release rights to Stephanie Labbé". Vavel.
  9. ^ Smith, Kevin (March 19, 2018). "Team Canada women's soccer goalkeeper looks to make Calgary FC men's squad". Global News.
  10. ^ Kaufman, Bill (May 3, 2018). "Female athletes blow whistle on soccer league for barring Stephanie Labbe from men's team". Calgary Herald. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
  11. ^ "Goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé taking legal action against Premier Development League - CBC Sports". Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  12. ^ "Stephanie Labbé Joins Calgary Foothills WFC". UWS. May 30, 2018.
  13. ^ Jump up to: a b "What Happened When I Tried to Play Men's Soccer | By Stephanie Labbé". The Players' Tribune. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  14. ^ "Officiellt: Linköping värvar kanadensisk landslagsmålvakt". July 10, 2018. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  15. ^ "Paul Riley Twitter". February 11, 2010. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  16. ^ "Stephanie Labbé Talks NWSL Return, NC Courage, Mind/Body Care". August 2, 2019. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  17. ^ Morris, Neil. "A craving for challenge brought Stephanie Labbé to the Courage – Equalizer Soccer". Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  18. ^ "VAN DIEST: Canadian goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe off and running with NWSL Challenge Cup". torontosun. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  19. ^ "Canadian No. 1 goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe signs with Sweden's FC Rosengård". CBC. December 21, 2020.
  20. ^ "Rosengårds nya supernolla: "Inget lag kan stoppa oss"". Sydsvenskan. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  21. ^ "Stéphanie Labbé au Paris Saint-Germain". PSG.FR (in French). Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  22. ^ "Canada Routs Singapore in Soccer Tuneup". TSN. July 27, 2008. Retrieved June 19, 2013.
  23. ^ "Together We Rise: Canada Soccer announces squad for the FIFA Women's World Cup France 2019". Retrieved May 25, 2019.
  24. ^ "'Absolutely massive': Stephanie Labbé's father and local community reacts to Olympic gold win". Edmonton. August 7, 2021. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  25. ^ "Karina LeBlanc - L'arrêt de Stephanie | Sports". Radio-Canada.ca. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  26. ^ https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/1924210755729
  27. ^ "Canadian women's soccer team delivers thrilling Olympic gold-medal victory over Sweden". CBC. August 6, 2021.
  28. ^ "Olympic gold gives Canadian soccer goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé licence to thrill". thestar.com. August 6, 2021. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  29. ^ "Stephanie Labbe kept smiling during gold medal shootout and Canadians loved it | Offside". dailyhive.com. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  30. ^ Cole Fortner. "Canadian goalkeeper's wiki page updated jokingly naming her defence minister". News 1130. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
  31. ^ "Canada - S. Labbé - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Women Soccerway". ca.women.soccerway.com. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  32. ^ "A look at Canadian world Cup goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe". The Chronicle-Journal.
  33. ^ Davidson, Neil. "Canadian goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe 'super-confident' ahead of Women's World Cup". The Canadian Press. Retrieved June 5, 2019 – via Victoria Colonist.
  34. ^ Karstens-Smith, Gemma (February 26, 2019). "'I never gave up:' Track cyclist Georgia Simmerling rebounds from horrific injury". Retrieved August 8, 2019 – via Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
  35. ^ @gsimmerling (August 16, 2021). "A camping trip we'll never forget