Katie Sowers: the woman who makes history in the Super Bowl

The appointment to define the champion of the Super Bowl LIV, will be next February 2 at the Sun Life Stadium, located in Florida, United States. It is known that those responsible for doing the halftime show will be Jennifer Lopez and Shakira. In addition, Demi Lovato will be in charge of singing the national anthem.

But returning to the two finalists, reaching the final stage of the championship is a milestone for the teams, which for several years had not seen the possibility of opting for a title.

The early departure of the New England Patriots, commanded by Tom Brady and who had the current title, cleared the way for the young quarterbacks of both teams (Patrick Mahomes of the Chiefs and Jimmy Garoppolo of the 49ers), to command their respective teams until the final stage of this tournament.

In fact, the originals of Kansas have only obtained the title once, in 1970. That is why the arrival until the end of this tournament is so important and the participation of Mahomes highlights the importance of winning. According to El País, what Mahomes did is unprecedented since "he has delighted the NFL by reviving a team that was relegated to glory."

On the other hand, those of San Francisco, last won the Super Bowl triumph in 1995, and in 2013 they had hope, but lost to the Baltimore Ravens. Now under the command of Kyle Shanahan and in a season in which they lost only once, against the Seahawks and by a tight score of 24-27, the 49ers want victory.

However, in a season where everything has been seen, the NFL final also has an unprecedented fact: that the assistant offensive coach of one of the finalist teams is an openly gay woman.

This is Katie Soweres, a coach who in 2017 entered the staff of the 49ers and became the second woman to be a full-time coach of an NFL team.

It should be noted that in the American football league, women are often seen in roles of team cheerleaders or artists invited to the halftime show, as El Universal recalls. This is precisely why Sowers participation is so important in the championship.

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From player to coach

Sowers played for the Kansas City Titans, a participating team in the Women's Soccer League (WFA), where she played as quarterback. In addition, and when she was a Titans player, she was also part of the squad of the US women's national soccer team in 2013. With the national team, she was able to help win the title of the IFAF Women's World Championship 2013, the international tournament for women in American football.

However, and according to ABC, the player suffered a hip injury that ended her career in 2016. Still, instead of sitting on the bench, she decided to go one step further as a coach. In this way, and in that same year, the Atlanta Falcons hired her as a training camp assistant.

Her short stay in Atlanta ended in 2017, when the 49ers decided to hire her as a seasonal offensive assistant until her promotion to her current position in 2019. Part of her promotion as a full-time trainer was due not only to the experience, but to her title in Kinesiologa.

According to the same medium, studying the movement of the human body helped her a lot when training professional athletes. "Since Sowers is surrounded by movement as the player rushes, passes and attacks the ground, she has the ability to understand the very principles of that movement."

With this knowledge, Sowers can anticipate the plays of the rival team, and understand and help improve those of her team, while understanding what the limitations of the 49ers players are.

Under her charge, she demonstrates that women are also able to lead a team, regardless of their gender or sexual preference, because as she has commented to various media, the fact of being rejected for her sexual orientation, “really struck me because it was the first time I really felt judged. I was very passionate about training and felt that my opportunities were limited (…). However, without that experience I would not be where I am today. ”

Regardless of the result of February 2, Sowers has already written a new chapter for women in a sport considered masculine. Since her appointment, not only four more women have entered as full-time coaches in the NFL, but her skill and knowledge has led the team losing only once in the season, taking advantage of the movements and talent of the players.