Hall of Fame soccer star Julie Foudy is one of the most recognizable names in the sport. She played on the U.S. women’s national team from 1987 through 2004 and served as team co-captain from 1991 to 2000 and as captain from 2000 to 2004. Foudy was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2007 and today serves as an analyst and reporter for ABC and ESPN.

Foudy played in four Women's World Cups and is a two-time World Champion. She has also won two Olympic gold medals and one silver medal. In 2006, she and her husband founded the Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy, which is a summer camp and leadership academy offering soccer, lacrosse and softball for girls ages 12 to 18.

Foudy understands the importance of training and competition and the fuel that athletes need to do so. Carbohydrates can serve as that fuel. Carbs are not just bread and pasta. In the form of sugar, carbs are absorbed and can quickly be converted into energy having a positive impact on one’s performance.

Scott Sehnert has been a sports dietitian for almost a decade. He has a master’s degree in kinesiology from Michigan State University and a masters in nutritional sciences from the University of Kentucky. Sehnert currently works for Auburn University and also serves on the Board of Directors as the Education Chair for the Collegiate and Professional Sports Dietitians Association.

TheCelebrityCafe.com caught up with Foudy and Sehnert to discuss the importance of carbohydrates when competing, JFSLA, and to get some insight into the upcoming 2015 Women’s World Cup.

TheCelebrityCafe.com: You had such an amazing and successful soccer career filled with so many incredible moments. What would you say was the biggest highlight of your career?

Julie Foudy: Probably 1999. Winning the Olympics in 2004 was fabulous because it was our last. But ‘99 being here at home and winning that World Cup in the fashion we did of course with Brandi [Chastain] scoring the penalty kick. That was really something special to be at home and be able to do it in front of our own fans.

TCC: In 2006, you founded the Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy. Could you talk a little bit about the academy and its mission?

JF: I had been doing regular soccer camps for yearS and I thought that we were missing such an important element of sports. It’s great to teach a young child how to kick a soccer ball and how to play sports, but really the gift in sports to me has been about all the life lessons you learn by playing. From overcoming adversity, how to be a great teammate, dealing with setbacks and then marching forward and finding your voice and confidence and all these wonderful things. So that’s really what we teach at these leadership academies, besides the soccer component of course and how to find your voice and be a great leader in your community. And not just a leader on-the-field, but off-the-field as well. It has really been a passion of mine for many years now.

TCC: Can you explain the importance of carbohydrates for athletes during competition and how it can benefit their athletic performance?

Scott Sehert: I often use the NASCAR analogy to help try and explain that. NASCAR’s stock cars run at 8,000 and 9,000 rpms or 500 miles, so that’s a high intensity for a long period of time. Athletes, especially when they’re in competition, are always running at a high intensity and depending up the sport it’s for a longer period of time. They’re trying to pull away from defenders and trying to repeatedly jog to get rebounds or whatever it may be. The fuel source is going to be carbohydrates in the form of sugar and that’s really it.

You decrease the intensity of those stocks cars and run at a lower rpm and an athlete can lower their intensity, but it’s not going to help them maintain the speed at which they need to win. It’s part of the fuel for that high-intensity activity.

JF: One of the things I think gets lost in the conversation is that not all sugars are bad. If you’re given the right amount with the right amount of activity of course, that actually can help performance and that’s an important thing to remember for someone like me, who loses a lot on the soccer field and realizes how much it can help fuel you.

TCC: The Women’s World Cup starts next month in Canada. What should fans know about this year’s national team and what is your prediction for how things will go in the competition?

JF: I think what the fans should know about this year’s team is that they’re really good. Abby Wambach is the world’s leading-goal scorer. She’s at 180 goals, past Mia Hamm, so she’s doing really well.

The team won the last Olympics, but they didn’t win the last few World Cups, so it has been sixteen years since the U.S. has won. This time around they have the Group of Death, they’re in a really tough group. But I think if they’re healthy, we know they’re going in with a lot of confidence, if they stay healthy they have a really good chance of winning this World Cup which would be fantastic to bring it back to U.S. soil.

To learn more about JFSLA visit: www.juliefoudyleadership.com and you can follow Julie on Twitter @JulieFoudy and Scott at @TigerNutrition

Image courtesy of Carlos Diaz/INFPhoto.com