Famous Latinx Birthdays

Photo from foxsports.com. Click HERE .  ¡Feliz cumpleaños a ... Néstor Araujo! (1991-       ) A professional soccer player from Mexico who plays for the Spanish club Celta de Vigo as well as the Mexican national team, Araujo missed the 2018 World Cup in Russia due to a knee injury. Araujo represented Mexico in the 2011 Copa América, the Copa América Centenario, and the 2017 FIFA Confederations. He won a gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics when Mexico defeated Brazil in the finals. Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, Araujo is one of six children. He used to get up before school to help his mother sell in the market as well as go to the nearby Jalisco stadiums on weekend to help his father re-sell tickets for a profit. He credits his older brother, Felix, also a soccer player, with inspiring him and "straightening him out" when he was not reaching his full potential as a player on one of Mexico's main teams, Cruz Azul. "Now I'm much more mature. I know what is ...

Photo from marca.com. Click HERE .  ¡Feliz cumpleaños a ... Israel Jiménez! (1989-      ) A Mexican soccer player who won a gold medal with the Tri in the 2012 Summer Olympics, when the team defeated Brazil in the finals, Jiménez  now plays for the Tigres in the Liga MX. The youngest in his family, he was raised Catholic in Monterrey, Mexico. He has said about his family: "No habría podido conseguir nada sin ellos. Llega el momento en que la crítica te sube al cielo y después te deja caer, pero los que siempre están a tu lado son los que cuentan. La medalla de oro y todos los éxitos que pueda tener van para mis familiares ... " (Read more HERE ). For resources for teaching Spanish, Level 1 through AP, CLICK HERE.

¡Feliz cumpleaños a ... Guillermo Ochoa (Francisco Guillermo Ochoa Magaña)! (1985-      ) Photo from skysports.com. Click HERE .  Guillermo Ochoa, or "Memo," as he is commonly called, is a Mexican soccer player (goalkeeper) for both the Belgian club Liege and the Mexican national team. He has been widely praised for his performance in Mexico's 2018 World Cup game versus Germany, which they won 1-0 with help from Ochoa's nine saves (see one of them  HERE ). Ochoa was also Mexico's starting goalkeeper for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, where he made four saves in a game against Brazil, including a powerful header from Neymar. Ochoa and Mexican model Karla Mora married in July of 2017 and have two children together, a daughter (2013) and a son (2015). Ochoa wears #13 because his birthday is July 13th. For resources for teaching Spanish, Level 1 through AP, CLICK HERE.