Estonian football player plans to finish high school at 47 (4 photos)

The best scorer in the history of the Estonian national football team, Andres Oper, has reached the finish line to receive his high school diploma.





Andreas Oper is 47 years old and still does not have a high school education. In the 90s, Andres Oper, starting his career in the top league of the Estonian championship, interrupted his studies at the gymnasium, and then he was so drawn into sports that he simply did not have enough time for school.



Oper played for the Estonian national team and achieved considerable success in the sporting arena: he was named Estonian Footballer of the Year three times, in 1999, 2002 and 2005, and won the Estonian Silver Ball award twice; in 2001 and 2005. In 2014, Oper ended his career, playing his last match for the Estonian national team. During his career with the national team, he scored 38 goals - a record that still makes Oper the country's top scorer.





As for his studies, only now has the athlete found time to finish his education.

"For a long time, something was bothering me. In the end, I got together and did it. It's never too late to start or finish. I reviewed my old report cards - as soon as football entered my life, my grades dropped. But I was still a good student - mostly fours and fives, a couple of threes. I just had some absences, and I fell behind. Back then, sports and studies didn't go together, but now the opportunities are completely different," says Oper.



The athlete is currently working as a coach for the Estonian national team, working with players aged 16-18. The footballer advises to take a closer look at his experience and not to forget about school.

"My message is to not lose focus on your studies, it is important. I want to be an example, although there are times when it is difficult to say something. I see that it is also difficult for them, because they have training in the morning. But now there are other opportunities to finish school," Oper noted.

The footballer admits that at first he was embarrassed to appear in class, and the first few days he even sat in the last row without taking off his hat.

"I was a little awkward. I tried to stand out as little as possible. One teacher, hearing my name, even turned on the light in the classroom to see who it was. But then I realized that there was nothing to be ashamed of,” he says.

Now the athlete is preparing for an important event in his life: on June 20, he will graduate from the Vanalinna Gymnasium for adults in the capital, the media reports.