Cecilia Tait
Encyclopedia
Cecilia Roxana Tait Villacorta (born March 5, 1962 in Lima
) is a former Afro-Peruvian
volleyball player from Lima
, and a Peru
vian politician. Nicknamed La Zurda del Oro (The Golden Left-Handed Woman) she participated in three Summer Olympics with the Peruvian national team, finishing 4th in 1984 and receiving a silver medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics
in Seoul
. She received a silver medal at the 1982 World championship, and a bronze medal in 1986. Tait was inducted into the Volleyball Hall of Fame
in 2005.
, Gina Torrealva
and Denisse Fajardo, participated in different international competitions in 1979 (2nd place), 1980 (1st place) and 1981 (2nd place). In the 1982 Volleyball World Cup in Peru, she led her squad to a silver medal, losing only to the United States. Afterward, other, younger players joined the national team, including Gabriela Perez del Solar and Natalia Málaga
. After the Olympics of 1984 in Los Angeles, she moved to Italy to play there. Tait had already played professionally in Japan. She hurt her knee in 1987 but rehabilitated it well enough to star for the national team for the 1988 Olympics in Seoul. She captained the Peruvian team and was chosen as the world's best player as the Peruvians won cliff-hanger matches against Japan, China and the United States before losing a heart-breaker to the Soviet Union in the gold medal match. Tait by then was playing professionally in Brazil. She retired in 1991, after her 7th knee-surgery.
In 1998 Cecilia Tait entered politics, becoming elected municipal councillor in Villa María del Triunfo
, representing the Fujimorist
party Vamos Vecino. Tait was elected Congresswoman
in 2000, representing Perú Posible. She was the first Afro-Peruvian elected to Peru's Congress. The resignation of President Alberto Fujimori
led to new elections the following year in which she was reelected for the period 2001–2006. Tait sponsored several bills approved by the Congress that expanded sports programs for both the country's most talented athletes and poor school children as well.
Tait chose not to seek re-election in 2006 to Congress but remained in the public eye. She appeared on Peru's version of "Dancing with the Stars." She had to retire after her male partner accidentally broke her rib while lifting her up during rehearsals one week. In another reality TV show, she spent the weekend living with a poor family. One morning, she accompanied the head of the household as she sold ceviche before dawn. In an interview afterward, Tait said the weekend reminded her of the struggle endured by her mother when Tait was young and growing up in poverty.
The rise of Tait and four other Peruvian volleyball stars was highlighted in the Peruvian TV series Las Matadoras (Spikers) in 2010. The program, which mixed fact with fiction, drew huge ratings during its two months on the air. In this way, it introduced younger Peruvians to the country's greatest athletic squad in the past generation. The series ended by showing the epochal 1988 Olympic matches, when the entire country awoke before dawn to watch the games broadcast from Seoul.
Tait announced in October 2010 that she had successfully completed treatment for Hodgkin's Lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph glands. Her announcement was front-page news across the country. A Peruvian version of "60 Minutes" sent a camera crew to Boston, where Tait was on vacation, to broadcast a special report on the news.
In February 2011, former President Alejandro Toledo, running for president again, asked Tait to head his congressional list of candidates for Peru Posible. With the No. 1 position on the congressional ticket, Tait was featured in numerous news reports. She used those appearances to urge women in particular to get health check-ups and breast exams.
On April 10, 2011, Tait was elected again to Congress. She was the 10th highest vote getter in Lima, out of the 468 candidates from the various political parties. Tait said during the campaign that she wanted to return to Congress to expand decent health care to all Peruvians.
Tait remains a national icon and arguably the country's best female athlete ever.
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
) is a former Afro-Peruvian
Afro-Peruvian
Afro Peruvians are citizens of Peru mostly descended from African slaves who were brought to the Western hemisphere with the arrival of the conquistadors towards the end of the slave trade.-Early history:...
volleyball player from Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
, and a Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
vian politician. Nicknamed La Zurda del Oro (The Golden Left-Handed Woman) she participated in three Summer Olympics with the Peruvian national team, finishing 4th in 1984 and receiving a silver medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
. She received a silver medal at the 1982 World championship, and a bronze medal in 1986. Tait was inducted into the Volleyball Hall of Fame
Volleyball Hall of Fame
The Volleyball Hall of Fame was founded to honor extraordinary players, coaches, officials, and leaders who have made significant contributions to the game of volleyball. The hall is located in Holyoke, Massachusetts, where volleyball was invented in 1895 by William G...
in 2005.
Background
Cecilia Tait was born in Lima on March 5, 1962. She never knew her father, Eric Tait, who was a well known pianist at the Hotel Criollon in downtown Lima, but who abandoned the family before she was born. Cecilia and her six brothers and sisters (they have a common mother but four different fathers) mostly grew up in Lima. Cecilia began playing volleyball on the dirt street outside their home in the Lima neighborhood of Nueva Esperanza in the district of Villa Maria del Triunfo. She was so enraptured with the sport that she used to sleep with a volleyball. She caught the attention of the president of one of Lima's better teams when she was 12. Cecilia was a diamond in the rough. Smart, dedicated and with tons of natural ability, she was elevated to the national juvenile team by her 15th birthday. Under the coaching of Man Bok Park, from South Korea, Tait alongside other Peruvian Volleyball players such as Rosa GarcíaRosa García
Rosa Gisella García Rivas is a women's volleyball player from Peru. She participated in several Summer Olympics with the Peruvian national team, finishing 4th in 1984 and receiving a silver medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul....
, Gina Torrealva
Gina Torrealva
Gina Torrealva is a female volleyball player from Peru. She participated in several Summer Olympics with the Peruvian national team, finishing 4th in 1984 and receiving a silver medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.-References:...
and Denisse Fajardo, participated in different international competitions in 1979 (2nd place), 1980 (1st place) and 1981 (2nd place). In the 1982 Volleyball World Cup in Peru, she led her squad to a silver medal, losing only to the United States. Afterward, other, younger players joined the national team, including Gabriela Perez del Solar and Natalia Málaga
Natalia Málaga
Natalia Málaga is a volleyball player from Peru. She participated in four Summer Olympics with the Peruvian national team. She placed sixth in 1980, fourth in 1984, won a silver medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, and placed 11th in 2000.-References:...
. After the Olympics of 1984 in Los Angeles, she moved to Italy to play there. Tait had already played professionally in Japan. She hurt her knee in 1987 but rehabilitated it well enough to star for the national team for the 1988 Olympics in Seoul. She captained the Peruvian team and was chosen as the world's best player as the Peruvians won cliff-hanger matches against Japan, China and the United States before losing a heart-breaker to the Soviet Union in the gold medal match. Tait by then was playing professionally in Brazil. She retired in 1991, after her 7th knee-surgery.
In 1998 Cecilia Tait entered politics, becoming elected municipal councillor in Villa María del Triunfo
Villa María del Triunfo
Villa María del Triunfo is a district of the Lima Province in Peru. It located in the Cono Sur area of the city of Lima.Officially established as a district on December 28, 1961, the current mayor of Villa María del Triunfo is Silvia Barrera . The district's postal code is 35.-Geography:The...
, representing the Fujimorist
Fujimorism
right|thumb|[[Alberto Fujimori]], founder of FujimorismFujimorism or Fujimorismo is a political ideology in Peru, established by former president Alberto Fujimori.-History:...
party Vamos Vecino. Tait was elected Congresswoman
Congress of Peru
The Congress of the Republic of Peru or the National Congress of Peru is the unicameral body that assumes legislative power in Peru.Congress consists of 130 members of congress , who are elected for five year periods in office on a proportional representation basis...
in 2000, representing Perú Posible. She was the first Afro-Peruvian elected to Peru's Congress. The resignation of President Alberto Fujimori
Alberto Fujimori
Alberto Fujimori Fujimori served as President of Peru from 28 July 1990 to 17 November 2000. A controversial figure, Fujimori has been credited with the creation of Fujimorism, uprooting terrorism in Peru and restoring its macroeconomic stability, though his methods have drawn charges of...
led to new elections the following year in which she was reelected for the period 2001–2006. Tait sponsored several bills approved by the Congress that expanded sports programs for both the country's most talented athletes and poor school children as well.
Tait chose not to seek re-election in 2006 to Congress but remained in the public eye. She appeared on Peru's version of "Dancing with the Stars." She had to retire after her male partner accidentally broke her rib while lifting her up during rehearsals one week. In another reality TV show, she spent the weekend living with a poor family. One morning, she accompanied the head of the household as she sold ceviche before dawn. In an interview afterward, Tait said the weekend reminded her of the struggle endured by her mother when Tait was young and growing up in poverty.
The rise of Tait and four other Peruvian volleyball stars was highlighted in the Peruvian TV series Las Matadoras (Spikers) in 2010. The program, which mixed fact with fiction, drew huge ratings during its two months on the air. In this way, it introduced younger Peruvians to the country's greatest athletic squad in the past generation. The series ended by showing the epochal 1988 Olympic matches, when the entire country awoke before dawn to watch the games broadcast from Seoul.
Tait announced in October 2010 that she had successfully completed treatment for Hodgkin's Lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph glands. Her announcement was front-page news across the country. A Peruvian version of "60 Minutes" sent a camera crew to Boston, where Tait was on vacation, to broadcast a special report on the news.
In February 2011, former President Alejandro Toledo, running for president again, asked Tait to head his congressional list of candidates for Peru Posible. With the No. 1 position on the congressional ticket, Tait was featured in numerous news reports. She used those appearances to urge women in particular to get health check-ups and breast exams.
On April 10, 2011, Tait was elected again to Congress. She was the 10th highest vote getter in Lima, out of the 468 candidates from the various political parties. Tait said during the campaign that she wanted to return to Congress to expand decent health care to all Peruvians.
Tait remains a national icon and arguably the country's best female athlete ever.