MIAMI, Florida – Next month the Haitian Women’s National Team will attempt to become just the second Caribbean nation to qualify for a Senior Women’s World Cup when they take part in the Inter-Confederation Playoffs for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia/New Zealand.
Many of the current Haiti players have been part of a years-long process that saw the nation qualify for the 2018 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup, the first time that a Haitian Women’s National Team qualified for a World Cup at any age level.
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But a recent new addition to the squad has also provided a tremendous boost. It comes in the form of center back Claire Constant, who made her Haiti debut last summer in a pair of friendlies prior to the 2022 Concacaf W Championship in Monterrey.
Born and raised in the United States to a U.S. mother and a Haitian father, the former University of Virginia player recounted how she quickly became a key piece in Haiti’s Women’s World Cup quest.
“I always thought in the back of my mind that Haiti was a possibility since going to play in my first USA youth camp and seeing other youth players who have dual citizenship, but I didn’t have my dual citizenship at the time. In early April I was reached out to by someone in the Haitian federation and they said, ‘We know your father is Haitian, we want you to come play for us,’” said Constant in an exclusive interview with Concacaf.com.
“We looked at all the rules and figured everything out, and I was eligible to play. It was a process to get the passport and figure all of that out. We started that process in April and by the summer I was able to play for Haiti,” added Constant.
Joining a team that already boasted a strong core with the likes of Melchie Durmornay, Nerilia Mondesir and Roselord Borgella and others was always going to be tricky. Adding to the difficulty was that there was a language barrier. However, the warm nature of the Haiti squad made it an easy adjustment for Constant.
“It was a huge honor just to be able to play with all these great players. They have been playing together for a while, they have a routine, so going into it I was nervous. I just decided to keep my head down and do what I do, which is play center back and use my voice. But that’s the thing, there is a language barrier. The coaching staff speaks French, the girls speak Creole and French. I had taken French for about seven years, but it’s not strong and I only know a few Creole words, but we worked together. The girls welcomed me in,” said Constant.
