Kyle Bekker knew this would be his last season playing professional soccer.
asserted
this → know → soccer
He didn’t know that he’d spend much of it sidelined — first by a cancer diagnosis and treatment, then by a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament.
asserted
he → know → ligament
Still, as the Forge FC captain prepared to announce his retirement on Thursday, he spoke of the campaign as a personal success.
asserted
he → prepare → success
“This was not the year that I thought it was going to be, in a sense,” Bekker said.
asserted
Bekker → think → sense
“But I think it allowed me to take a step back, kind of take account for the entire career I’ve had, the whole body of work, and sort of right some wrongs that I kind of wish I had the opportunity to do at a much earlier age, right?
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I → think → age
You don’t learn until you sort of fall on your face.”
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you → learn → face
The 36-year-old midfielder is the only captain Forge has ever known, and he’s been a foundational player in the Canadian Premier League.
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he → know → League
Playing professional soccer in Canada was something Bekker didn’t dream of growing up in Oakville, Ont., because the opportunities were so limited.
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opportunities → play → Oakville
He came up through the Sigma FC academy and played four seasons at Boston College before being selected third overall by Toronto FC in Major League Soccer’s 2013 SuperDraft.
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He → come → SuperDraft
Over four years, he played 58 MLS regular-season games with Toronto, FC Dallas and the Montreal Impact, then played for San Francisco and North Carolina in the North American Soccer League.
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he → play → League
In 2018, Bekker received a call from his former coach at Sigma, offering a chance to be part of the new CPL.
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Bekker → receive → CPL
“He was playing in the U.S. and the first phone call was to pitch him on this project that none of us knew where it was going to lead,” said Bobby Smyrniotis, now Forge’s head coach and sporting director.
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Smyrniotis → play → us
“And it’s eight years later, (almost) 250 games for him later, and being part of a club that has accomplished everything with him at the forefront.
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that → ’ → forefront
It’s been absolutely fantastic to see.”
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It → see → ?
What Smyrniotis saw in Bekker wasn’t simply a player who brought great technical abilities, but also a mature, honest young man who could be a trailblazer and mentor for up-and-coming athletes.
uncertain
who → see → athletes
“I thought there was no better person who could represent what we wanted to do on the field and off the field for that next generation of players that we were bringing in here,” he said.
uncertain
he → think → that
Bekker played 239 games for Forge across all competitions, amassing 27 goals and 32 assists.
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Bekker → play → goals
He tallied 27 of those assists in CPL regular-season play, the second most in the league’s history.
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He → tally → history
During that time, Forge won four CPL championships and finished the regular season atop the standings three times.
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Forge → win → standings
The club also reached the Canadian Championship final twice, and the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals once.
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club → reach → final
“When I first came in, by no means did I think that we’d be playing Champions League … and playing in these massive games that the Forge faithful have just become accustomed to,” Bekker said.
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Bekker → come → that
“Like, we’re playing MLS teams year in and year out.
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we → play → teams
We’ve had incredible results every time we’ve come up against them.
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we → have → them
We’ve lifted trophies.
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We → lift → trophies
“It’s so ridiculous to think how much we’ve achieved in such a little time and how much there still is to go.”
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we → ’ → time
Before the 2026 campaign began, Bekker sat down first with Smyrniotis, then with Scott Mitchell, chief executive officer of Forge’s owner, Hamilton Sport Group, and told them about his plans to retire at the end of the season.
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Bekker → begin → season
Then came startling news — Bekker was diagnosed with testicular cancer.
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Bekker → come → cancer
After undergoing surgery, he began working his way back into the Forge lineup.
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he → undergo → lineup
Doing so meant putting into practice so many of the lessons he’d learned across an expansive career, from how to be a good teammate to the importance of trusting the process.
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he → do → process
“The road to recovery was never going to be a linear one, and there were highs and there were lows,” Bekker said.
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Bekker → go → recovery
“And it was sort of ‘How do I navigate this to get back to what I felt that I was capable of doing and being for the group?’ …
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I → navigate → group
“And by no means am I perfect in any sense, but sort of with that reflection, it was a new perspective and it definitely helped a lot.”
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it → help → reflection
The midfielder played his first game of the season on May 2.
uncertain
midfielder → play → May
Last month, there was more bad news when Bekker was hurt while playing against Supra du Quebec in the Canadian Championship semifinals.
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Bekker → be → semifinals
Learning the knee injury would end his season came at a notable time.
asserted
injury → learn → time
“I get the MRI confirmation that my ACL is ruptured, all that stuff and two days later, I have to go for a six-month checkup to make sure that I’m still cancer-free,” he said.
asserted
he → get → checkup
“And all of a sudden, the knee’s not a really big situation for me for a few days.”
asserted
knee → ’ → days
Bekker — who remains cancer-free — had already decided his professional playing career was at its end.
asserted
career → remain → end
The knee injury simply meant the end came sooner than expected.
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end → mean → ?
“I made this decision when I was completely healthy — or at least knew I was completely healthy from the outside looking in,” he said.
asserted
he → make → outside
…and 11 more, not listed.
The Aporia
