Crowds turned out to honor the U.S. women’s soccer team with a ticker tape parade in New York City Friday. The team defeated Japan to win the World Cup on Sunday. It’s been more than half a century since a female athlete was honored with a parade in New York. The team’s victory will also be commemorated with a granite marker in Lower Manhattan.
Transcript
KELLY MCEVERS, HOST:
The rock-star week for the U.S. women’s soccer team involved some confetti today. The team’s World Cup win was celebrated in New York City with a history-making tickertape parade. Bridget Bergen reports from member station WNYC.
BRIDGET BERGEN, BYLINE: Hours before the parade kicked off, 11-year-old Erin Burke claimed her spot on Broadway known in New York as the Canyon of Heroes. This is the first tickertape parade for an all-woman sports team, and she wasn’t going to miss it.
PAM BURKE: It’s so cool because, like, they’ve never had one before. It’s, like, so inspiring.
BERGEN: Her mom, Pam Burke, drove from New Jersey at six a.m. this morning because her daughter is a soccer player, even though she never got to play herself.
BURKE: You know, there wasn’t as many opportunities for me that the girls have now.
BERGEN: You almost sound like you’re choked up about it.
BURKE: (Laughter). Yeah. It’s emotional, I guess.
BERGEN: That emotion erupted into excitement.
UNIDENTIFIED CHILDREN: (Chanting) USA, USA.
BERGEN: As a dozen floats carrying all 23 of the team’s players round their way from the tip of Manhattan to City Hall Park, a flurry of confetti fell from buildings along the route.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BILL DE BLASIO: Are you ready for a party?
BERGEN: Mayor Bill de Blasio told the crowd, when the team brought home that trophy, they also brought home a message.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
DE BLASIO: About the strength of women.
(APPLAUSE)
DE BLASIO: And about the need to create a more equal society for all.
(APPLAUSE)
BERGEN: Each member of the team took the stage, and in another honor, each was presented with a key to the city. For NPR News, I’m Bridget Bergen in New York.
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