http://www.canadasoccer.com/eng/nationals/profile.asp?id=97plus
Atiba Hutchinson is a Canadian soccer success story. Much of the credit for his development goes to the coaching that he received in his youth in the Brampton Youth Soccer club and also to the Canadian Soccer Association's national teams programs at the Under-20 and Under-23 level. As a player on the Toronto Lynx roster, he was able to hone his playing skills for a brief period before acquiring a professional position
overseas.
Hutchinson spent most of 2001 and early 2002 training with Canada's U20 and U23 national teams and represented Canada at the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship in Argentina. Back home, Atiba played high school soccer for Notre Dame Secondary in his hometown of Brampton. He declined soccer scholarship offers from NCAA schools opting instead for the Lynx because of the higher calibre of play.
Before joining Toronto, he played briefly for York Region Shooters of CPSL as a forward showing his scoring potential. He was signed soon after by the Lynx and moved up to A-League. Atiba joined the team in mid-season debuting on the road in Montreal as a sub. His impressive pace and control showed he was up to the challenge of playing at the A-League level. Hutchinson played in Toronto's final 4 regular season games and then went to Sweden for trials. During his short tenure with the Lynx, he was used mainly as an attacking midfielder on the right wing, but his skills allowed him to play comfortably at almost any position.
Atiba was transferred from the Toronto Lynx to Osters IF of the
Swedish First Division in January 2003. During 2003 he was one of their best players scoring 6 goals – a remarkable accomplishment for a midfielder playing on a struggling team. He also played for Canada U20 in 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship and showed his versatility performing well in a defensive role. Canada posted their best showing ever at the WYC, narrowly losing to Spain in the quarterfinals. Hutchinson was named to the tournament all-star team.
After the WYC, there was interest from clubs in MLS and throughout Europe – Atiba's performance even earned him a tryout with Udinese of Italy's Serie A. However, he decided to continue his career in Sweden, where he was already a fan and media favourite. Osters had been relegated the previous year so the team transferred Hutchinson to Helsingborg in Sweden's Premier League (Allsvenskan).
In addition to playing for his club team in 2004, Hutchinson played for Canada's Under-23 national team in qualifying games for the 2004 Athens Olympics. He has also played for Canada's senior men's national team 10 times in international competition. Recently, he was involved in Canada's World Cup Qualifying games, scoring in a September 10, 2004 match in Honduras.
