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June 15, 2008

Rodrigo Martinez, 15, Is Fighting Cancerous Tumor

By Glen Rosales
For the Journal
       Rodrigo Martinez first noticed something wasn’t quite right after a March soccer tournament in California.
    “I woke up the next day and I had this pain in my hip,” he said. “I thought I might have suffered an injury.”
    But by the next day, it was even worse.
    “I went to the doctor and he told me to go the hospital,” Martinez recalled.
    It turned out he had Ewing’s Sarcoma, which is a type of cancer in which bone tumors form usually in children and young adults.
    The diagnosis came on his birthday in April, when he was told he had a tumor on his hip.
    His life was immediately turned upside down. Gone were his days playing for the boys under-15 Elite FC Gladiators and his dreams of helping the team as it starts the U.S. Youth Soccer Far West Regionals this week in Hawaii.
    Gone were thoughts of playing soccer at all, at least for some time.
    “Soccer was all I did,” said Martinez, who will be a sophomore at Sandia in the fall. “It’s a big part of my life. I just keep touching the ball and wishing I could help the team.”
    That will have to wait, however, for he has undergone four chemotherapy treatments and awaits hip surgery to remove the tumor in July. Because the surgery is scheduled so close to the regional tournament, he’s not even able to make the trip to Honolulu to support his team.
    That, however, doesn’t mean his team isn’t behind him 100 percent.
    Before the recent State Cup Tournament, his teammates and coaches shaved their heads in a show of solidarity.
    “That was a great thing for me,” Martinez said. “It was nice seeing them with their heads shaved.”
    The Gladiators said it was the least they could do in support of their stricken teammate and friend.
    “I gave him a call right away,” said goalkeeper Dennis Sanchez, who was away at his boarding school in Minnesota when he heard the news. “I was definitely really sad for him because he’s such a great person. He can get through this.”
    Forward Nico Muniz, who attends Rio Rancho High School, said the news shook him up.
    “I cried,” he said. “I can’t imagine waking up one day and not being able to play. I can’t imagine that being taken away and that you’re fighting for your life instead.”
    Muniz said as soon as he found out, he texted Martinez, then visited him at his home and at the hospital.
    “I just wanted to be there for him,” he said.
    It gives the players a different perspective on life and on soccer, Muniz said, and makes this year’s regionals even more significant for them.
    “It makes every game important,” he said. “It happened to him so it just shows you that every game could be your last. So you better make every game count.”
    Gladiators coach Gabe Nosseir said the team will be missing a key component.
    “He’s a solid player and a solid person,” he said. “He comes from a soccer family. Everybody in the family plays. He has one of the best attitudes on the team.”
    While there’s nothing good about what’s happened, it at least provides a life lesson for a team that has been blessed with good fortune throughout its years, Nosseir said.
    “It’s kind of brought the team together,” he said. “It’s brought a level of spirit for the team. And it gives the kids a sense of reality. All the families are pretty comfortable and they haven’t had to struggle on a daily basis. This kind of brings them out of their fantasy world that soccer is all there is. It’s good for them to learn about life.”
    As for the Martinezes, Nosseir said they’ve been a tremendous family.
    “The way they’ve handled this is pretty amazing,” he said. “They’ve remained positive. I haven’t heard one negative thing. Being negative doesn’t help anything.”
    Martinez said that was something he realized pretty quickly.
    “At first I thought, ‘Why me,” he said. “But I have a lot of support and I realized I have to try to live me life the best I can. I can’t wait to get back on the field and playing with my team.”
    Up next
    New Mexico’s boys representatives in the U.S. Youth Soccer Far West Regionals, June 16-22 in Honolulu:
    Under-13: N.M. Rush Stingers Striker IV
    U-13, wild card: Striker IV
    U-14: Alameda Argonauts
    U-14, wild card: Rio Vista Attack
    U-15: Elite Gladiators
    U-16: Striker V
    U-17: Classic Red Star
    U-18: Rio Vista ’90
    U-19: No representative
   

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