George Forsyth (footballer)

George Patrick Forsyth Sommer (born 20 June 1982) is a Peruvian politician and former international footballer who played as a goalkeeper. In 2018, he was elected as mayor of La Victoria District, Lima with the We Are Peru party. He resigned in October 2020 and announced his intention to run for President of Peru in the 2021 general elections.

George Forsyth
Mayor of La Victoria
In office 1 January 2019 – 12 October 2020
Preceded by	Harry Castro Durand
Succeeded by	Luis Gutiérrez Salvatierra
La Victoria District Councilman
In office 1 January 2011 – 31 December 2014
Personal details
Born	20 June 1982 Caracas, Venezuela
Political party	National Victory (2020-present)
Other political affiliations	National Restoration (2020) We Are Peru (2018) Christian People's Party (2010)
Spouse(s)	Vanessa Terkes ​ ​ (m. 2018; div. 2019)​
Alma mater	Peruvian University of Applied Sciences
Association football career Position(s) Goalkeeper Senior career* Years Team Apps (Gls) 2001–2002 Alianza Lima 0 (0) 2002–2003 Borussia Dortmund II 6 (0) 2003 Atlético Universidad 12 (0) 2004 Alianza Lima 9 (0) 2005 Sport Boys 4 (0) 2005–2007 Alianza Lima 42 (0) 2007–2008 Atalanta 0 (0) 2008–2016 Alianza Lima 173 (0) Total 246 (0) National team 2007–2014 Peru 7 (0) * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Early life and education

Forsyth was born in Caracas, Venezuela. His father, Harold Forsyth, is a Peruvian diplomat, ambassador to the United States and China, and former congressman.[1] His mother, María Verónica Sommer Mayer, is a former Miss Chile beauty pageant winner and her family is of German descent.[1][2] He was born in Caracas while his father served in the Peruvian embassy in Venezuela.[3] Forsyth lived a privileged childhood and was not exposed to the lifestyles of common Peruvians until he began his football career according to Americas Quarterly.[1]

Upon graduating high school, Forsyth enrolled in the Peruvian University of Applied Sciences to study industrial engineering and business administration, although he eventually dropped-out to focus on his football career.[4] Subsequently, he founded several companies including in the field of security (300); in the fashion and clothing field, (G&F); in the field of high physical performance, (VO2); and in gastronomy (a seafood restaurant) among others.[5]

Football career

Club career

During his adolescence, Forsyth played for FC Lannesdorf 07 in Germany. Then in 2001, he joined Alianza Lima, where he would begin his professional career. In that year, he was part of the squad that obtained the national title in the institution's centenary added to the classification for the 2002 Copa Libertadores. In 2002, he was the third goalkeeper for Borussia Dortmund.[6] He was part of the Alianza Lima team that won the national titles of 2003 and 2004.[7]

After a brief stint at Sport Boys of Callao in 2005, he returned to Alianza Lima to obtain the 2006 Decentralized Championship. This would be Forsyth's fourth national title, but the first where he was the undisputed holder, being considered the best goalkeeper of the season.[8]

On 20 February 2007, Forsyth made his debut in a Copa Libertadores against Club Necaxa. with a 2-1 defeat of his team, playing 43 minutes. At the 2007 Copa Libertadores, he played 3 games, receiving 6 goals, playing 223 minutes, remaining last without being able to qualify. In August 2007 he joined Atalanta, debuting on 29 August 2007 in the Italian Cup against Ascoli, with a 1-2 result in favor of Ascoli, and playing 127 minutes.[9]

He played with Alianza Lima at the 2010 Copa Libertadores.[10]

After the elimination in the Copa Libertadores, Forsyth was injured, and was replaced by Salomón Libman as the main goalkeeper. Forsyth was called up for the last game of the 2010 Torneo Descentralizado against University of San Martín de Porres, ending 1-1. After a season plagued of injuries, adding the harsh elimination against Universidad de Chile, Forsyth hoped to fully recover in 2011 in order to return as a starter. However, Alianza Lima was eliminated in the playoffs towards the group stage of the 2011 Copa Libertadores against Jaguares, with the score of 2-0 in Lima, and also in Chiapas. Finally, seeing that his chances of returning as the starter goalkeeper were slim, on Forsyth announced his departure from Alianza Lima on 3 March, but that he would return to the club to be the president.[11]

On 31 July 2011, with the departure of Gustavo Costas to Saudi Arabia and the arrival of Miguel Ángel Arrué as Alianza Lima's new coach, Forsyth was called up as starter for a match against Unión Comercio, that ended 0-0.[9]

International career

Forsyth earned seven caps for Peru between 2007 and 2014.[7]

Political career

George Forsyth's political career began in 2010 when he ran for District Councilman of La Victoria, as part of the Alberto Sánchez-Aizcorbe's National Unity list, which won with 34% of the valid votes. As the first councilman, he served simultaneously as Lieutenant Mayor to Sánchez-Aizcorbe.[12]

In 2014, he became acting mayor, under the license of the then mayor Alberto Sánchez for his run for mayor of Lima at the municipal elections. In this position, he became the first active soccer player to assume a high municipal position in Peruvian history.[13][14]

Mayor of La Victoria

At the 2018 municipal elections, Forsyth retired from football and was nominated for mayor of the La Victoria by the We Are Peru party. He was subsequently elected as mayor with 34.6% of the vote.[15]

Forsyth's tenure has been described as "tough-on-crime", with the ex-footballer assuming office in January 2019.[1][16] At the beginning, he moved the mayor's office to the San Cosme Sports Complex, a vulnerable area due to the greater concentration of urban and informal commercial growth in the district in front of the Gamarra commercial emporium. On the other hand, he sealed an agreement with the president of the Judiciary for the installation of a Flagrancy Court in the district. Likewise, he reached a formal agreement with the National Prosecutor's Office for the installation of a Corporate Provincial Prosecutor's Office of the Public Ministry.[17]

With Peru having about seventy-three percent of workers working informally in 2019,[18] Forsyth fought against informal vendors in La Victoria.[1] He ordered the three day closure of the Gamarra in order to remove informal and illegal commerce that competed with the complex.[19] In late-2019, Forsyth spent three months training to be a reservist for the Peruvian Army and graduated in December 2019.[20] Those observing Forsyth's time as mayor have not been able to make conclusions about his leadership.[1] He resigned as mayor in October 2020 and announced his intention to run for President of Peru in the elections.[21]

2021 Peruvian presidential campaign

In April 2020 poll had him as the only major political figure with a net positive image.[22] In September 2020, Forsyth became a full-member of the National Restoration party after months of speculation of a potential presidential run at the 2021 general election.[23]

Following the removal of Martín Vizcarra and the beginning of the 2020 Peruvian protests, Forsyth said that he disagreed with demonstrations, stating "This is not the time to take to the streets, we are going to have our revenge next year in the elections".[24] He later backtracked on his statement, saying Peruvians "have their legitimate right to go out and protest and people have to demonstrate and raise their voices, very carefully and without violence".[25]

A video on an account portraying to be linked to hacktivist group Anonymous was spread denouncing corruption in Peru and described Forsyth as the only "clean" presidential candidate, though Peruvian media and official Anonymous accounts later reported that the group denied support for any political candidates.[26][27] Anonymous would later allege that Forsyth created the fake video himself as promotion for his presidential campaign, threatening him with possible hacking activity.[26][27][28] Forsyth later denied involvement with the video [27]

Ideology and views

A member of the center-right Evangelical National Restoration party, Forsyth describes himself as a centrist and focused on combatting crime during his tenure as mayor.[1][29] Political scientist Dr. Paula Muñoz of the Universidad del Pacífico described Forsyth as "a pro-business guy", while Americas Quarterly wrote "his views on big economic issues are less clear".[1]

Personal life

During his mayoral candidacy in 2018, Forsyth married Peruvian actress Vanessa Terkes on 25 August 2018.[30] Weeks after taking office in January 2019, Forsyth announced that Terkes was leaving to Mexico due to alleged death threats against the couple, leading rumors of a separation.[30] The two were married for eight months until they divorced in May 2019.[30] Days after their divorce, Terkes presented charges of domestic violence against Forsyth to the Public Ministry of Peru on 31 May 2019, with her lawyer stating that she experienced psychological abuse from Forsyth during their marriage.[30][31] Forsyth denied the allegations, saying that his municipal government was "building a place for women, girls who have been violated" and stating "I respect all women very much".[32]

References

1. O’Boyle, Brendan (19 August 2020). "This Soccer Star Could Be Peru's Next President". Americas Quarterly. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
2. https://www.spiegel.de/sport/fussball/peruanischer-nationaltorwart-ein-deutscher-sommer-in-venezuela-a-491176.htm
3. "La increíble historia de George Forsyth: de modelo e ingeniero a portero y alcalde". Infobae.
4. "George Forsyth, candidato de Victoria Nacional, por Federico Prieto Celi". lucidez.pe.
5. "George Forsyth | Ellos y Ellas". ellosyellas.com.pe.
6. "FUTBOLPERUANO.COM: George Forsyth: "Dentro de poco daré que hablar"". web.archive.org. 9 January 2003.
7. "George Forsyth". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmerman. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
8. "Lo que debes saber de George Forsyth". www.msn.com.
9. "George Forsyth y su dura crítica a Pelusso: "Paraba en la piscina, Mario Viera era el técnico"". libero.pe. 3 February 2020.
10. De 2014, 19 De Septiembre. "La increíble historia de George Forsyth: de modelo e ingeniero a portero y alcalde". Infobae.
11. LR, Redacción (21 May 2019). "¿Quién es George Forsyth, el alcalde amenazado por la mafia en La Victoria?". larepublica.pe.
12. Fernández, Christian (27 January 2011). "George Forsyth juramentó como nuevo regidor de La Victoria". RPP.
13. "Elecciones 2018: George Forsyth y 10 futbolistas que pasaron a la política". www.msn.com.
14. Perú, Redacción El Comercio (13 September 2014). "George Forsyth asume provisionalmente alcaldía de La Victoria". El Comercio Perú.
15. "El exportero de Alianza George Forsyth gana alcaldía de La Victoria, en Lima". La Vanguardia. 8 October 2018.
16. "George Forsyth: Las mafias ya están tomando las calles de La Victoria". canaln.pe.
17. Perú, Redacción El Comercio (1 March 2019). "George Forsyth inspeccionó sedes de Juzgado de Flagrancia y Fiscalía Corporativa". El Comercio Perú.
18. "Lima's Gamarra market: The benefits of moving to the formal economy". International Labour Organization. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
19. Peru21, Redacción (3 February 2019). "¿Por qué Forsyth sí y los otros no?". Peru21.
20. "Alcalde Forsyth se convirtió en reservista del Ejército". Panamericana Televisión. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
21. de 2020, 12 de Octubre. "George Forsyth renuncia a la Alcaldía de La Victoria de cara a las elecciones de 2021". RPP Noticias.
22. LR, Redacción (5 June 2019). "Forsyth, único político a quien la mayoría le da calificación positiva". larepublica.pe (in Spanish). Retrieved 21 August 2020.
23. "Restauración Nacional confirmó inscripción de George Forsyth al partido, que ahora se llamará Victoria Nacional". www.elcomercio.pe. 23 September 2020.
24. Castillo, Sophia (10 November 2020). "George Forsyth: "No es momento de tomar las calles, vamos a tener nuestra revancha en las elecciones"". RPP (Peru) (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 December 2020.
25. "George Forsyth ahora cambia de opinión: "[La gente] está en su legítimo derecho de salir a protestar" - Diario ExpresoDiario Expreso". Expreso. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
26. "¿Qué sucedió entre George Forsyth y Anonymous?: difunden video de hackers apoyando al candidato - Caretas Política". Caretas (in Spanish). 26 November 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
27. "George Forsyth le responde a advertencia de Anonymous - VIDEO". Libero (in Spanish). 27 November 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
28. Sanchez, José (27 November 2020). "George Forsyth sobre video de Anonymous: "No creemos en esa forma de hacer política"". RPP (Peru) (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 December 2020.
29. Chuquillanqui, Fernando (23 September 2020). "George Forsyth | Restauración Nacional confirmó inscripción del alcalde al partido, que ahora se llamará Victoria Nacional". RPP (Peru) (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 December 2020.
30. "Vanessa Terkes y George Forsyth: La historia de amor que terminó en una denuncia por violencia | ESPECTACULOS". Peru21 (in Spanish). 3 June 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
31. Cruz, Yohel (9 June 2019). "Vanessa Terkes afirma que necesitará tratamiento psicológico tras agresiones de George Forsyth [VIDEO]". RPP (Peru) (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 December 2020.
32. "George Forsyth niega ser un agresor tras denuncia de Vanessa Terkes: "Yo respeto mucho a todas las mujeres"│VIDEO | OJO-SHOW". Ojo (in Spanish). 24 June 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2020.