7/7/2015
By Ivan Pereira
The U.S. women’s soccer team is going to get a hero’s welcome from the city Friday.
Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday that the champs will have their own ticker tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes.
The team, who won their first World Cup in 16 years after they defeated Japan on Sunday, will be joined by the mayor and “special guests” at 11 a.m.
Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, who first pitched the idea to the mayor Monday, said she was thrilled since this will mark the first time a women’s sports team was honored with a parade.
“This team will turn the Canyon of Heroes into the Canyon of Heroines. It will be a history-making parade for a history-making group of athletes,” she said in a statement.
The parade will start at Battery Plaza at 11 a.m. and move north to City Hall at Broadway and Barclay Street for a rally. New Yorkers interested in attending the City Hall portion of the celebration can log onto nyc.gov/paradeWednesday between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. to apply for tickets.
The team had their first celebration in Los Angeles Tuesday and their East Coast fans couldn’t contain their excitement on social media.
The MTA said they will announce service changes related to the parade Wednesday.
The city held its last ticker tape parade in February 2012 to celebrate the Giants victory in Super Bowl XLVI.
It’s unclear how many people will attend this Friday’s celebration.
The last woman received the honor was in 1960 for figure skater Carol Heiss after she won the Olympic gold medal.
Brewer said she hopes the soccer stars can inspire the city’s young girls to go the distance.
“With an emphatic victory that captivated a record-breaking national audience, they have demonstrated how far we’ve come,” she said.
(with Rebecca Harshbarger)
