Leading the women’s national basketball team to Olympic qualification for the second consecutive cycle, veteran captain Pamela Rosado wrote another chapter in her brilliant playing career this year, one that is nearing its end and has left an indelible legacy for future generations of women athletes.

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After more than two decades of achievements with the national colors, her dedication and commitment are reflected in gold medals won in Central American and Caribbean Games and Pan American Games, as well as participation in two World Cups of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and two Olympics in Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. To this day, Rosado remembers that first and historic Olympic qualification for the Puerto Rican women’s team as the most gratifying moment of her career.

“Nobody imagined it. We dreamed it, but we didn’t see it coming. We also came from going through many difficult situations, we were not visible. So, to be able to qualify for the first time for the Olympics was wonderful, an honor, and even more so when you do it with the Puerto Rican uniform,” said the excited captain of the National Team as she recalled the qualification for Tokyo 2020, Olympics that were held in the summer of 2021.

In Paris 2024, Rosado averaged 6.3 points and 5.0 assists - Puerto Rico’s leader in this category - per game. She averaged 26.8 minutes per game, second on the team.

Locally and since her professional debut at the age of 13, Rosado has left an unmatched mark in the Women’s National Superior Basketball (BSNF) where, over 19 seasons, she has won two championships and has been recognized as Most Valuable Player in the 2014, 2015 and final 2019 seasons, consolidating herself as a key figure in Puerto Rican sport.

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“As an athlete I feel that I have fulfilled all my dreams. The truth is that I am very happy, and proud to have obtained every achievement on and off the island,” reflected the star of the Montañeras de Morovis as she reviewed the triumphs in her career as a player; a stage that will soon come to an end and will give way to a new one to continue contributing to the sport she loves so much.

“I am already 38 years old so, yes, at any moment I will make the decision to retire, but I don’t want to leave the courts. I want to continue contributing as a coach (trainer) in minor categories and with the adult team later on, if I am given the opportunity, but I know that I have a lot to contribute to basketball from that other facet,” said Rosado.

Her tireless interest in helping to continue developing women’s basketball on the island probably has to do with her first-hand knowledge of the barriers that, as a child, she experienced firsthand in a sport traditionally seen as masculine.

“I am from Quebradillas and, at that time, there were not many women’s teams on the island, so I started playing on men’s teams, with other boys, until years later I joined Las Pollitas de Isabela,” she recounted about her beginnings at just 6 years old, after her parents decided to enroll her in the same sport practiced by her older brother, whom she always followed to the courts.

“The boys (on the team) had no problem with me playing with them, but I did encounter obstacles with adults, with parents who questioned why a girl was playing with boys and made comments, but in the long run those negative criticisms motivated me to continue fighting,” said ‘La Guerrera’, who says she longs for the day when the sport will do justice to women.

“It has been very difficult for us female players to stand out and to be given the visibility we deserve, even though we have achieved a lot. We have qualified twice for the World Cup, twice for the Olympics and we are still not looked at the way they look at men’s sports. It has always been an uphill battle, but we do not give up because there are many girls who see us and we have to set an example,” she said about the gender gap that still persists and faces.

As if being the captain of the National Team were not enough, Pamela is also a teacher by profession at the Ernestina Bracero Pérez public school in Toa Baja, where she currently teaches students from fourth to sixth grade.

“Many of us have to work (in other things) since we can’t make a living from our sport, as a male basketball player can. Every day I get up to do my job and then go to practice because, after all, I decided to play basketball and I have to be responsible,” she said, noting that the key to her success lies in her great support network: her family.

In the constant struggle to balance her workload, her personal life and a sports career, Pamela recognizes that the biggest sacrifice has been being away from her loved ones.

“The biggest sacrifice is not being able to share many times with them. There are special, difficult moments, such as my mother’s illness, when I have been out of the country. There are many sacrifices that a woman athlete has to make, but I am blessed that great achievements have come with those sacrifices, so for me it will always be an honor and I am grateful for the unconditional support of my family,” she said.

At a time when women’s basketball is gaining momentum, particularly in the United States in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WBNA) and the prominence of figures such as Caitlin Clark, A’ja Wilson or Breanna Stewart, among others, Rosado makes a strong call to support the development of the BSNF.

“What we need is for them to believe in us. Private companies, the government, that they start to bet on us and give a little more to support us, for us to continue doing what we are passionate about, because the talent and the level are there. We see that the WNBA is already growing and the local league is growing too, but we want more. We want the courts to be full,” she said.

Rosado will undoubtedly go down in history as one of the maximum references of Puerto Rican basketball, having paved the way for many girls who dream of shining on the court, just as she did in her childhood.

“I would tell that 6-year-old Pamela that dreams come true and that hard work pays off, that the effort of every day leads you to great things that you may see far away, but today she can enjoy the triumphs with her teammates and for the people of Puerto Rico,” said the Woman of the Year with tears in her eyes.

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This content was translated from Spanish to English using artificial intelligence and was reviewed by an editor before being published.