Quick Facts
Aquarius
Biography
Elena Gracinda Santos (born 6 February 1997) is a South African professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Turkish Women's Football Super League club Fatih Karagümrük. She also holds American citizenship.
Private life and early years
Elena Gracinda Santos was born in a Cape Verde-descent family to Mario Santos and Lisa Audet in Johannesburg, South Africa on 6 February 1997. She has two brothers Luis and Mario. She went to the United States, and received later United States citizenship.
In the United States, she went to Conard High School, where she played soccer and captained the school squad. Playing in the forward/midfielder position,she was the top goalscorer and held the school record for goals. She was a top player in the division, and was also picked as one of the best players in the state. She was named to All-CCC West team. She received a four-star ranking from the academy soccer website TopDrawerSoccer.com, and 150 national ranking from the sports management company IMG.
After finishing the high school, she attended Fairfield University in 2015. She played two seasons for the college team Fairfield Stags, and scored six goals in 31 matches.
In 2017, Santos entered University of Connecticut (UConn) to major in Communication studies. There, she played in the college teamUConn Huskies. She netted five goals in 35 games played in 2017 and 2018. She played also at the post-season college football all-star game Senior Bowl of the New England Women's Intercollegiate Sailing Association (NEWISA) in 2018.
The 1.70 metres (5 ft 7 in) tall Santos kicks with right foot and plays in the wing attacker position.
Club career
NJ/NY Gotham FC
Santos played for NJ/NY Gotham FC Reserves in the Women's Premier Soccer League of the United States.
Galatasaray
In March 2022, she moved to Turkey, and joined the newly established club Galatasaray S.K. in Istanbul to play in the Women's Super League.