What was Hope Solo’s sentence for driving while impaired?

Former USWNT keeper Hope Solo has acknowledged the “destructive” influence that alcohol has had on her life in an open letter after pleading guilty to driving under the influence on March 31. The 40-year-old, who made 202 appearances for her national side and won the World Cup in 2015, expressed her happiness at seeing the light at the end of the tunnel after going through rehabilitation. Solo received a suspended sentence and a fine for the offense.

A double Olympic champion with the USWNT, Solo is also one of the most influential athletes in the fight for gender equality in the United States.

Known for her charisma on the pitch, Solo won several awards during her USWNT career, which ran from 2000 until 2016. However, she has struggled with personal issues off the pitch and was arrested in March after police officers in North Carolina found her asleep in her car, intoxicated and with her two-year-old twins in the back seats.

In a letter published on social networks on Monday, Solo admitted that she had “underestimated” the damage that her addiction to alcohol was causing her and her family.

Solo issues statement

“It’s been a long road, but I’m slowly coming back from taking time off. I pride myself in motherhood and what my husband and I have done day in and day out for over two years throughout the pandemic with two-year old twins. While I’m proud of us, it was incredibly hard and I made a huge mistake. Easily the worst mistake of my life”, Solo wrote.

“I underestimated what a destructive part of my life alcohol had become,” she added.

The former keeper pleaded guilty over the events of March 31, when she was accused of child abuse and resisting a police officer. The judge cut her sentence from two years to thirty days, which she will not serve as the court recognized the thirty days she had spent in a rehabilitation clinic.

Solo was also ordered to pay $2,500 in fines and $600 for the costs of her blood tests, which according to The New York Times returned an alcohol level of 0.24, three times higher than the driving limit permitted by North Carolina law.

“The positive side of making such a big mistake is that the lessons are learned quickly. Learning these lessons was hard and sometimes very painful,” Solo said.

She thanked her husband for his unconditional support and her lawyers for respecting her personal well-being.

“I also want to thank the wonderful women I met at Hope Valley Treatment Center. The women of Hope Valley are true leaders in their work, with great insights on how to live a healthier and more balanced life,” she wrote.

Last April 29, Solo announced on social media that she would enter a rehabilitation clinic to try to come to terms with her problems with alcohol.

Born in Richland, Washington, in 1981, Solo enjoyed a successful career in the United States, where she played with the Philadelphia Charge, San Luis Athletica, Atlanta Beat, Magic Jack, Seattle Sounders and Seattle Reign, and in Europe, where she represented Gothenburg and Lyon.

As goalkeeper for the US team, she won Olympic gold in Beijing 2008 and London 2012 and the 2015 World Cup. She also won five Algarve titles, in 2005, 2006, 2008 , 2010 and 2011.