Washington, D.C
Spirit Head Coach Jonatan Giráldez Arrives in DC Following Historic Success in Final Season With FC Barcelona Femení
Giráldez will transition into the Head Coach role in the coming weeks, while Andrés González and Toni Gordo join Spirit Staff
Washington, D.C. (06/20/2024) – Five months after the Washington Spirit announced Jonatan Giráldez as its new Head Coach, Giráldez has arrived in Washington, D.C., the club announced today. The arrival comes shortly after Giráldez led FC Barcelona Femení to an historic continental Quadruple in his final season with the side, winning Liga F, the UEFA Women’s Champions League, Copa de la Reina and Supercopa de España Femenina.
Since his hiring by the Spirit, Giráldez’s plan has always been to integrate with the club following the 2023-24 FC Barcelona Femení season. During this time, Adrián González has served as the Spirit’s Interim Head Coach, leading the team to a 9-3-1 (28 points) record through 13 matches.
“I’m thrilled to join the Spirit and begin this next chapter with the club,” said Giráldez. “To be part of the vision Michele Kang has for the Spirit and women’s soccer globally is an exciting opportunity.”
Giráldez is set to assimilate into the Spirit staff, slowly taking over head coaching responsibilities to ensure the smoothest transition possible. Accordingly, Interim Head Coach Adrián González will remain in the acting position during this time. Once Giráldez fully assumes the Head Coach role, González will remain on the technical staff as an assistant coach.
Giráldez’s arrival has been much anticipated. He most recently led FC Barcelona Femení to its second consecutive UEFA Women’s Champions League victory, helping secure the team’s first-ever Quadruple in the same season, winning the Liga F, Copa de la Reina, Supercopa, and Champions League titles.
Giráldez began his tenure at FC Barcelona Femení in 2019 as an assistant before being promoted to be the club’s Head Coach in 2021 after just two and a half seasons. He went on to win Liga F in each of his three seasons. Additionally, Giráldez led Barcelona to 58 consecutive Liga F wins to start his head coaching tenure, including a perfect 30-0-0 record in his first season at the helm.
For his stellar coaching, Giráldez was named the IFFHS World’s Best Club Coach in 2023. He was also named a finalist for the UEFA Women’s Coach of the Year Award in 2023 and FIFA’s The Best Women’s Coach award in early 2024.
Giráldez is originally from Vigo in the Galicia community of northwest Spain. He and his partner Olaya welcomed their first child, a son, in 2023, just eight days before winning the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
Giráldez is joined by Andrés González and Toni Gordo, who were integral parts of his championship-winning staff at Barcelona. They will serve as Fitness Coach and Club Analyst, respectively, effective immediately.
Andrés González will serve as a Fitness Coach for the Washington Spirit, joining Dawn Scott’s Performance, Medical, and Innovation team. He also comes from FC Barcelona Femení where he served as the Strength and Conditioning coach since July 2022. Additionally, González served as an assistant Strength and Conditioning coach at Real Sociedad in Spain. He also has coaching experience at the youth level in Spain. He is from Ourense, Spain.
Toni Gordo will join the team as a Club Analyst after serving in a similar role at FC Barcelona Femení since 2016. He served in various analyst and video roles at FC Barcelona during this term, including stints with the Barcelona Femení B team and, most recently, six years with the first team Barcelona Femení squad. Prior to his time with FC Barcelona, Gordo served as the Sports Coordinator at CD Palafolls and a coach for CE Mataró in Catalonia. Gordo is from Mataró, Catalonia, Spain.
About The Washington Spirit
The Washington Spirit is the premier professional women’s soccer team based in Washington, D.C. and plays at Audi Field in Buzzard Point. The Spirit was founded on November 21, 2012 and is an inaugural member of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) the fastest growing sports league in the US. The club is home to some of the best players in the world who have won championships for both club and country. In 2024, the Spirit drafted an epic class of rookies who are already breaking records and wowing fans. For more information about the Spirit, visit WashingtonSpirit.com and follow the club on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Washington, D.C
Suburban family coordinated Jimmy Carter's Washington D.C. funeral: 'It was really beautiful'
WASHINGTON (WLS) — The public funeral celebrating former President Jimmy Carter’s life and legacy was coordinated by a family that hails from the Chicago suburbs.
Rick Jasculca, a Chicago public affairs executive, worked for and with Carter for years, and considered him family.
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It was a somber day that included stories of Carter that brought laughs, as well as tears.
Thursday was a national day of mourning to honor and remember Carter; President Joe Biden delivered a eulogy.
“Throughout his life he showed us what it means to be a practitioner of good works, a good and faithful servant of God and of the people,” Biden said.
The gathering was a time for the nation to come together, to put aside politics and join the Carter family in remembering the legacy of the 39th president.
“They were small town people who never forgot who they were and where they were from, no matter what happened in their lives,” grandson Jason Carter said.
Jasculca worked on Carter’s 1976 presidential campaign, and did advance work when Carter became president.
He later joined his daughters, Lauren and Aimee, and son, Andrew, working with the Carter Center.
The four family members served as overall coordinators of the ceremony Thursday in Washington, D.C.
Jasculca reflected on the ceremony before returning to Chicago.
“It was really beautiful. You know, I think it really captured the totality of Jimmy Carter,” Jasculca said.
It was a sentiment echoed often during Thursday’s ceremony.
“He had the courage and strength to stick to his principals, even when they were politically unpopular,” Jason Carter said.
Jasculca considered Carter a second father, who became dear to his entire family.
“My grandkids call me ‘Bop’; that’s their name for me. And they call President Carter ‘Bop Jimmy,’” Jasculca said.
Jasculca said, during their ceremony, he had a few moments. But, the emotions really hit him after.
“But, when we got to Andrews Air Force Base, and I knew this was the last time, you know, I’d be able to say goodbye, I just I, I’ll be honest, I bust out crying on the tarmac,” Jasculca said.
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Washington, D.C
Capitol Police arrest man attempting to set his car on fire amid Trump DC visit with GOP senators
The U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) said that they arrested a person who attempted to set his car ablaze near the U.S. Capitol building during President-elect Trump’s visit late Wednesday.
“Twice today our officers stopped a man who could have been a danger to the Capitol Hill community,” U.S. Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger said. “This vigilance is critical during this time of heightened security.”
The agency said that during Trump’s visit with Republican senators and his time paying respect to President Carter, a 35-year-old man from Virginia attempted to set his car on fire.
POLICE ARREST MAN AFTER ATTEMPTING TO CARRY MACHETE, 3 KNIVES INTO US CAPITOL, HOURS BEFORE TRUMP ARRIVES
A general view of the U.S. Capitol Dome in Washington, D.C. (Reuters/Jonathan Ernst )
Police said that just before 5:30 p.m., USCP officers were alerted to a man who had parked on First Street, NW, near the Grant Memorial, and had lit a bag on fire atop his vehicle.
POLICE ARREST MAN AT US CAPITOL WHO HAD BOTTLES OF FUEL, FLARE GUN, BLOW TORCH
When officers ran over to the man, the bag extinguished on its own.
The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C. (Reuters/Jason Reed)
Out of an abundance of caution, the USCP said that the vehicle was declared suspicious, and the agency’s Hazardous Incident Response Division cleared the vehicle.
Officials determined that the car was not a danger at approximately 7 p.m.
The car had been spray-painted. Investigators determined that accelerants were in the bag. The driver was arrested for unlawful activities.
The U.S. Capitol Police stopped a man from entering the Capitol at a security checkpoint, after he was found to allegedly have a machete and three knives in his bag. (U.S. Capitol Police)
Hours prior to this arrest, the USCP detained a man who attempted to carry a machete into the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC).
The Capitol Police said in a social media post that the incident happened just after 2 p.m., when officers working at a security screening at the CVC’s north doors spotted a machete in the man’s bag.
The X-ray machine was stopped as the bag went through, then police arrested 44-year-old Mel J. Horne, of Washington, D.C., before securing the machete.
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Police said Horne was arrested for multiple counts of carrying a dangerous weapon and will be interviewed by investigators to determine his motive.
Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
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