Sinclair to miss Arnold Clark Cup in wake of mother's death

Canada will be without talismanic captain Christine Sinclair for the inaugural Arnold Clark Cup later this month in England.

Canada Soccer said the 38-year-old forward from Burnaby, B.C., is missing the tournament following the death of her mother Sandi, who had been battling multiple sclerosis.

Sinclair, the world's all-time leading goal-scorer with 188, was extremely close to her mother and has been prominent in raising funds to help with MS research.

In a 2017 interview with The Canadian Press, Sinclair called her mother "the strongest person I know."

Sinclair's mother had been living in a suburban Vancouver care home. Her father, Bill, died in April 2016, less than four months before the Rio Olympics. He was 69.

Sandi Sinclair coached a young Christine and went on to become president of the local club that Christine and her brother played on.

Canada coach Bev Priestman offered condolences Monday on behalf of the national team.

"I can only imagine to lose your mum is a really difficult time in your life," Priestman told reporters. "As a team, we're right behind Christine and collectively we made the decision for her to be around loved ones at this really really difficult time."

In a 2018 blog for the MS Society of Canada, Sinclair opened up about her mother.

"When I was a young girl, I remember my mom started using a cane. I never understood why," she wrote. "It wasn’t until the first time I saw her cry that the answers began to unfold in front of me. I was no older than 12 when I found out my mom was living with multiple sclerosis.

"When you’re a kid, your parents are indestructible, and that’s what my mom was to me. Indestructible. But as years went by, I watched MS chip away at aspects of her life, and her fight