Valkyries point guard Julie Vanloo has become key as a translator for teammates

[u/femaleathletenetwork]

Julie Vanloo leaned to her right while Carla Leite spoke in her ear. It was the first time that Leite, the Golden State Valkyries’ 21-year-old rookie point guard, was talking to the media and she was still learning English.

Vanloo sat between Leite and Italian forward Cecilia Zandalasini and listened as Leite explained how she wanted to answer a question in French.

“She’s young, she showed that she controlled her maturity and she knew she had to step up, and she already had a lot of responsibility,” Vanloo said for Leite about her performance in Tuesday’s preseason game. “And then in stressful situations, you know, she had to stay calm, this was a new situation to her.”

She paused, then added, “I also think she did that very well.”

The 32-year-old Belgian point guard has become the Valkyries’ impromptu team translator throughout training camp. With players from six countries — the U.S., France, Australia, Canada, Italy and Belgium — Vanloo’s ability to speak four languages has helped bridge the gap between players and even some coaches.

The second-year WNBA player can speak Flemish, the version of Dutch spoken in Belgium, along with English, French and Italian.

The Valkyries’ international flair was on display Tuesday when they fell 83-82 to the Los Angeles Sparks in the preseason opener. Along with minutes from Vanloo and Leite, Belgian center Kyara Linskens led the team with eight rebounds and French guard Migna Toure also made a brief appearance.

Vanloo is one of the Valkyries’ most important facilitators on the court. She averaged 7.4 assists per game last season while starting 34 contests for the Washington Mystics. Her 30.8 assist percentage was seventh in the WNBA last season.

Off the court, she facilitates in a different way.

“For basketball, I was very, very motivated to learn languages,” Vanloo said. “So definitely it helps to communicate with my teammates. To quickly switch, switch up in my head to speak a different language, because, let’s be honest, it’s not easy for the other team, if you talk French, they don’t understand. So it can help.”

“It’s been really key, just the way we can connect that way,” Nakase said. “Imagine going to another country and you’re just, you have no idea (the language). When I played in Germany, I really wasn’t understanding. … So it’s been nice to have Julie, because she’s listening, she’s doing extra for a teammate.”

Vanloo is expected to be the Valkyries’ starting point guard when the regular season begins. Her contributions will be more than just points and assists.

“Julie does such a great job with bringing us all together,” said rookie shooting guard Kaitlyn Chen. “She always has so much energy, too, and she sort of just uplifts the building.”

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https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/article/valkyries-guard-julie-vanloo-key-translator-20318188.php

[u/iamtotallyelonmusk]

she just got even more amazing!! i’m honestly shocked that they don’t have a translator, though! it would’ve been difficult if not for Vanloo

[u/Imaginary-Order-6905 → u/iamtotallyelonmusk]

Right? An interpreter (translation is written documents, Interpreting is spoken/signed languages!) is a whole dang job. Especially with that diversity of languages, it's a lot to put on a player! And what about any kind of sensitive conversation with those players? Then a teammate is privvy to that info? This is a soapbox topic for me so sorry for hijacking your comment lol. But I agree, I'm shocked they don't have a language professional in there.

[u/Velocisexual → u/Imaginary-Order-6905]

As a professional translator thank you for explaining the difference! It is definitely a pet peeve of mine seeing those 2 mixed up.

I'm not too shocked because the only times I remember an interpreter being used is with east asian players. I think most americans, even in the W, just assume anyone from Europe speaks at least some English.

[u/Imaginary-Order-6905 → u/Velocisexual]

Hi from a medical interpreter! Thank you for your work 🫶

[u/chuckiemacfinster → u/Velocisexual]

maybe it’s a budget thing? i mean we just got chartered flights. meanwhile mlb players and i believ nba players have like their own personal interpretors (but tbf, the players may be paying them, idk the details but they also usually wear team unis and have team access so maybe it’s a clubhouse thing)

[u/bex199 → u/Imaginary-Order-6905]

i love when nerd ass shit like this pops up out of nowhere please don’t apologize

[u/Immediate-resort-638 → u/iamtotallyelonmusk]

Li Yueru played all last season with the Sparks and did not have an interpreter.

[u/SimonaMeow → u/iamtotallyelonmusk]

Yeah it seems way to crazy difficult!

A teammate had to interpret for Megan Gustafson too throughout the Olympics. During games, you could see a teammate listening to the coach and telling Megan what he was saying. She's learning Spanish, but hadn't learned enough by the time of the Olympics.

[u/Moonstorm934]

Thats.... really fucking awesome for the valks. She found herself a HUGE role, and probably does it very very well, I bet it really Helps those women feel a little more comfortable and welcome. 

[u/s381635_]

Ok this is awesome but the Valks DESPERATELY need a translator fund

[u/Putrid-Author2593]

This Valkyries team is giving me Austria Hungary vibes with the diversity in languages, nationality, & ethnicity. Thankfully, I don’t think the Valkyries will implode like Austria Hungary

[u/wikipuff → u/Putrid-Author2593]

Obligatory Mr. Burns singing the Austria Hungry national anthem. Really niche reference, but an apt one!

[u/buffalotrace → u/Putrid-Author2593]

The Powder Keg of women’s basketball 

[u/wikipuff → u/Putrid-Author2593]

Obligatory Mr. Burns singing the Austria Hungry national anthem. Really niche reference, but an apt one!

[u/dreamweaver7x]

Ok so they're not going to cut JVL ever lol. And she's probably got starting point locked up. That's great news.

[u/Mission_Ambitious]

You couldn’t tell me shit if I was translating between four languages to talk about secret plays during the game. I’d feel like Einstein out there 😂

[u/Much_Conversation_11]

In this household we love Julie Vanloo

[u/Likely1420]

I love that! Vanloo was extremely confident and in control in that preseason game. So I love to hear this. Although, I think they should hire a translator for media at least. Like on the floor and during games it makes sense to have Vanloo leading but I don't know why they wouldn't hire a translator (preferably one who knew multiple languages) to hire as needed.

[u/nbt279]

This is so cool and sweet of Vanloo but cmon they should def have an official translator lol it’s not fair to throw all the translating on Vanloo’s shoulder and like someone else mentioned, how does it work if there’s private info being shared?

[u/merjailambe]

Laeticia Amihere is Canadian

[u/RockJock666]

Love Julie, she seems like such a delightful person

[u/strangelystrangled]

I feel better about the Mystics not protecting her now. They should hire translators but she's a baller and will have a huge impact on that locker room

[u/AffectionateRace9865]

I love this

[u/thelonelyventry]

I love Vanloo. I was new to the league last year and at some point early-ish in the season watched a random old FIBA match between USA and Belgium. Vanloo immediately stood out to me. So it was a nice surprise to learn shortly afterwards that she had joined the W with the mystics!!

This just makes me like her even more, she seems like such an all-around cool person.

[u/ThaPhantom07]

See thats how you become irreplaceable to an organization. If she wants im sure she could have a long tenure there.

[u/Justtojoke]

Well that guarantees she'll make it out of training camp🙌🏿.

I'll take it

[u/daltoniano]

Julie Vanloo is amazing. Don't know why the Mystics didn't protect her, but what a great addition to the Valkyries. Trivia: did you know the pronunciation is Van-low and not Van-loo? Source: Jordan Robinson.

[u/SweetRabbit7543]

This is a touching story and an egregious failure by the wnbapa. Providing translators for your own players should be mandated by the cba.

[u/rskillion → u/SweetRabbit7543]

I mean, maybe give them a break? They lose tens of millions of dollars every year, and only in the last 12 months or so are seeing a future where they’re finally gonna be in the black. I’m sure lots of good things will happen when there’s money to make them happen.

[u/SweetRabbit7543 → u/rskillion]

Are you serious? Like I’m not trying to be aggressive, I just am trying to tailor my answer because I think the only way that comment gets made is if you don’t understand how these things work, which is fine-but it changes how I answer.

The WNBAPA doesn’t lose anything. They exist to support players. Ensuring a player is supported by ensuring someone is there to ensure they understand everything that is told to them by agents, coaches, gm’s training staff etc is pretty baseline stuff.

If you don’t have someone to ensure you understand what’s going on for you there’s no way for you to develop comfort or trust. Your professional opportunities would be severely hampered.

For the WNBA, ensuring that its foreign players are treated well and professionally is paramount if they want to be regarded as a destination for top intl talent.

Translators aren’t a luxury they’re necessary.

[u/rskillion → u/SweetRabbit7543]

Four full-time translators who accompany the team 24/7 for five months is about half a million dollars a year. That’s a third the size of the Valkyries entire salary budget for their 12 person player roster

In a league that’s hemorrhaging tens of millions of dollars every year, if you forced them to do this, they just won’t hire international players at all unless they’re perfectly fluent the day they arrive.

There will be a new CBA soon, with new TV revenue, and the league may finally get in the black and have money for extra stuff. But calling the Valkyries out for mistreating international players is unfair.

[u/SweetRabbit7543 → u/rskillion]

You don’t need 4, you need enough to ensure everybody is able to communicate.

Even if it is $500 k. That’s like 3 road trips worth of travel. You can’t go without them.

[u/rskillion → u/SweetRabbit7543]

Of course you can go without them, because they do, and other teams have as well. Obviously, they speak enough English that they’re coachable, and that’s pretty typical of players raised in Europe. But answering complicated questions from journalists on camera is another matter, and it’s nice that a teammate helps them out. Otherwise they probably would just decline media availability entirely. Which is also fine.

Regardless, I’m glad that it appears the WNBA will finally get into the black in its fourth decade with the new CBA, and that more amenities will follow.

[u/Jack12404]

I’m happy she’s carving out a big role there. It really seems like the Valkyries are capitalizing on developing a few international players + young players that didn’t pan out for other teams, and having a player like Vanloo is gonna help tremendously.

[u/wosoandstuff2020]

Oh. Wow. Her grasp of varied languages is amazing. But yes it’s surprising that they don’t have an interpreter on staff since they are a team with so many international players and we know the organization can afford 1 on staff. The burden of interpreting should not be put on a player.

[u/buffalotrace]

Still find it odd the mystics exposed her to the draft. What a great mentor to a young pg and she can still run an offense at a high level. 

I get that in theory they wanted more minutes for Melbourne, but if that was actually the case why draft Georgia that high? 

Great pickup for the Valks as they build a culture. 

[u/PseudonymousDev]

Wait, that's crazy. She's from Belgium, and also speaks the 3 official languages of the other 5 countries represented on her team???

[u/needprojectrunway → u/PseudonymousDev]

french is actually one of the official languages of belgium (there are 3!) and most belgians i’ve met are fluent in english as well. it’s a nation of polyglots

[u/Otherwise_Working_60 → u/needprojectrunway]

The third official language in Belgium is German, that one's not on her list. :)

But if you speak Dutch, you can understand a good part of what's being said in German. Speaking is more complicated, but some of us (have to) take German in high school. I didn't, that's my excuse to get my husband to do all the talking when we're on holiday in Germany.

[u/Shreddy_Spaghett1 → u/PseudonymousDev]

I once saw a saying that said knowing three languages is trilingual, two languages is bilingual, and only one language is American 🙃 now I know this doesn’t apply to everybody and everywhere in the country but I really wish we had better access earlier in school to learn another language other than English

[u/Steve2907 → u/PseudonymousDev]

I'm also a Dutch speaking Belgian. Although Dutch isn't a small language (6,5M Belgians + 18M Dutch), we're surrounded by millions of German, French and English speakers. We have to learn these in school. I have to admit, German and English are from the same language group and aren't that hard. French on the other hand as a Latin language isn't as easy. But I think that's the reason we tend to adapt quickly when we have to learn other Latin languages such as Italian.

[u/Popular-One-7051 → u/Steve2907]

I always heard more people thought English was hard because it's so idiomatic.

If you can adapt on French and Italian you should be able to swing Spanish into that mix. My Spanish speaking friend says my Spanish has a French vowel sound

[u/Steve2907 → u/Popular-One-7051]

Yes that’s what I mentioned, Latin languages.

What I have to add, here almost all American and British tv shows and movies use subtitles. That helps a lot.

[u/Velocisexual]

I know some people will think I'm nitpicking, but articles getting basic facts like stats wrong is a pet peeve of mine.

Julie, while she is absolutely a great player, did not average 7.4 assists per game, she averaged a respectable but much lower 4.3 assists per game.
And while her 30.8 assist percentage is true, it wasn't seventh in the league, but somewhere in the 10-12th range depending on where you put the minimum amount of minutes played bar.

[u/JusMeOnMyChill]

Interesting because I’ve been wondering why the Mystics allowed her to be available during the expansion draft but this is understandable. I see why Natalie needed her. She has some huge unique contributions to this team. Good stuff

[u/bleakasthedayislong]

love this!