The coach of Rwanda’s women’s football team, Grace Nyinawumuntu, has been suspended by the national federation (Ferwafa) as a result of her inflammatory comments on Ghana’s Black Queens.
After Rwanda lost to Ghana in an African Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifier, Nyinawumuntu said the Ghanaian players were like men, a comment that clearly violates the rules of the game.
According to Nyinawumuntu’s remarks, her team’s 7-0 loss in the game played in Kigali on Wednesday was a result of them being intimidated by the Ghanaian players’ physicality.
She stated, “They have girls who we think have male hormones. They are girls who are like men. Our team was scared… when they got to the pitch, they conceded because they were scared.”
Rwanda’s football federation (FERWAFA) sent a statement to AFP confirming the coach had been “suspended until further notice, due to (the) inappropriate choice of diction she used after the game between Rwanda and Ghana”.
FERWAFA said “the remarks made by the coach of the national women about the players of the Ghana national women’s team are in violation of the rules and values of football in Rwanda.
“We remind members of FERWAFA to desist from behaviour and remarks that are not aligned with the truth, have no factual basis and are not professional.”
Former player Nyinawumuntu, who in 2014 became Rwanda’s first female professional football coach, was fired as the head coach of AS Kigali Women in 2017 after the team’s players accused her of sexual harassment. When she successfully sued AS Kigali Women for wrongful termination, the club was forced to pay the woman $47,000 in damages (44,000 euros).
