Imagine learning the entire vocabulary of your favourite sport B次元官网网址� in Icelandic. ThatB次元官网网址檚 one of the challenges North Saanich soccer player Katie Kraeutner faced when she turned pro in Iceland.

Kraeutner, 24, plays as a winger and in central midfield for I虂BV Vestmannaeyjar. She has played in the Iceland Pro WomenB次元官网网址檚 League for the past two years and now speaks fluent Icelandic.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 been a great experience,B次元官网网址� she says. B次元官网网址淚celandics are next-level friendly and kind. The transition has been surprisingly seamless.B次元官网网址�

Off-season activities at the office....Happy Thursday!

B次元官网网址� Katie Kraeutner (@kraut22)

I虂BV Vestmannaeyjar play on a small island to the south of the mainland and their soccer pitch is often listed as one of the most picturesque in the world, ringed by a dramatic landscape of lava rock peaks.

B次元官网网址淧laying there was very surreal. I love nature, but sometimes weB次元官网网址檙e training and it takes a lot for me not to daydream,B次元官网网址� she says with a laugh.

Pre-season is February to April, when the team train indoors, before the season kicks off outdoors in May, ending in September.

Kraeutner is one of the marquee players for her club and says the Icelandic weather assists her style of play, as the often gusty winds make the team play technical ball-on-the-ground soccer.

She estimates that 35 per cent of the players in the league are non-Icelandic and there is an expectation that the foreign imports perform.

B次元官网网址淭here is a bit more added pressure being a foreign player, because youB次元官网网址檝e come all this way and theyB次元官网网址檝e paid good money for you when they could have spent it on someone else,B次元官网网址� she says.

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KraeutnerB次元官网网址檚 team won the Icelandic Cup in her first season and adds to a list of accolades, such as Big Ten Tournament Champion and Big Ten Conference Champion, she earned at the University of Nebraska before she turned pro.

Kraeutner has played 45 matches, logging 3,822 minutes, and racked up two goals and 10 assists for I虂BV Vestmannaeyjar. Previously, she played for the Canada U-20s, scoring a goal and notching three assists in three games.

It was during her second year at university that Kraeutner realized becoming a professional soccer player was a possible career choice.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 something IB次元官网网址檝e always dreamed of since I was a little kid. There are so many female pro soccer players ahead of me who paved the way. The sport still has so much room to grow.B次元官网网址�

As the sport grows, so does KraeutnerB次元官网网址檚 stature and she is looking to move to one of the bigger European leagues, in either England, Norway or Sweden. There, she hopes to one day play in the prestigious European Champions League.

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B次元官网网址淎nywhere IB次元官网网址檝e travelled, soccer has been my stability and comfort, so as long as soccer is there, and IB次元官网网址檓 playing at a high level, I donB次元官网网址檛 find it hard to adjust to the environment or culture of the country.B次元官网网址�

Kraeutner is disciplined and has a set routine to calm and focus herself before a game.

B次元官网网址淲hen we get to the locker room, itB次元官网网址檚 right leg first and laces tied up, then itB次元官网网址檚 onto the left leg,B次元官网网址� she says before adding with a laugh, B次元官网网址淥therwise itB次元官网网址檚 going to be a bad day.B次元官网网址�

Asked about her success, Kraeutner says hard work and having fun go hand-in-hand, and have led her to this exciting stage in her career.

nick.murray@peninsulanewsreview.com
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