Story Sebastián Krieger
Translation Juliana Zerda
While in Quebec boys dream of becoming hockey champions, children in Colombia generally want to be soccer players or cyclists, due to national heroes like James Rodríguez, 2014 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot winner, or Egan Bernal, the first Latin American to win the Tour de France. However, against the strong mainstream and even against the will of his father —who didn’t want to see his son dealing with an ugly injury—, Gustavo Rocha played his luck with Rugby, one of toughest sports ever. And he fell in love.
Gustavo is a talented Colombian rugby player who has recently taken on the position of head coach for St. Lambert male rugby team. He was born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia’s capital, where he developed a passion for rugby at an early age thanks to the scarce news coming from this sport so “exotic” for the Colombian audience; he was hypnotized by the images of an oval ball flying from hand to hand. So, through dedicated training, he sharpened his skills and quickly made a name as a talented player within the Colombian rugby community. He joined several professional teams, including Colombia’s national team “Los Tucanes”.
After graduating as economist, following a career opportunity with local government, Gustavo moved to Barranquilla, Colombia’s fourth city with more than 2 million inhabitants. But his love for rugby led him to found the cities first Rugby club: Mokaná Rugby Club. He also co-founded and coached Barranquilla Universidad del Norte male and female rugby teams.
His heart still belongs to rugby,
and of course, to his wife,
a Colombo-Canadian artistic designer
Today, more than ten years later, his heart still belongs to rugby, and of course, to his wife, a Colombo-Canadian artistic designer —also a retired semi professional rugby player who’s to blame for his “landing” in Ile des Soeurs—, and his eight year old son, who is making his own promising way in hockey with Verdun’s Maple Leafs.
Known for his exceptional leadership qualities, determination, and tactical cleverness, Gustavo’s reputation led him to become St. Lambert’s new head coach for the male division. His main objective is to win the second provincial league and to return to compete in the first league. He also wants to strengthen the youth division, which is currently being created. The major challenges? Strengthen trust among players, coaches and executive committee, consolidate a new game scheme and motivate the players. Gustavo states that the club’s players have been very respectful, and he knows that by demonstrating his knowledge and commitment, he will continue to gain confidence in every training session. But in the end, what Gustavo wishes most is that his players learn to love rugby as much as he does.
