Jessie Fleming

About

Jessie Alexandra Fleming (born March 11, 1998) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for National Women’s Soccer League club Portland Thorns and captains the Canadian national team.
Fleming played college soccer in the United States for the UCLA Bruins from 2016 to 2019, before turning professional and spending four years with English club Chelsea. She was a member of Canada’s gold medal-winning side at the 2020 Summer Olympics, where she scored the team’s only regular-time goal in the final on a penalty kick, as well as the first goal in the penalty shoot-out.

Fleming was born in London, Ontario to Michaele and John Fleming, who are both originally from Toronto. She has an older brother, Tristan, and a younger sister, Elysse. As a child, she competed in soccer, hockey (including in a full-contact boys’ league), track and field, and cross-country. She started playing soccer at the age of three for the London-based Nor’West Optimist Soccer Club, where she remained until 2016.
Growing up, Fleming and her father regularly watched FC Barcelona together, closely following the midfield play of Andrés Iniesta, Sergio Busquets and Xavi, and she…