The Top 15 Softball Stories of 2021: #2… The Olympics Return (But with a Twist)
By
@BruntjensElla
December 30, 2021
The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games that were postponed last year due to COVID finally were held in July… that’s the good news. The bad news? Look at this photo and you can get a sense of how the pandemic still impacted the Games. Photo: USA Softball.
We continue our list of the Top 15 Softball Stories of 2021, which will run through December 31st when we’ll present our No. 1 story of the year.
Here are the previous stories (clink on link to read):
Also, on New Year’s Day 2022, we’ll list all 15 of the top stories of the year as well as run 15 more that were considered.
We’ve surveyed the softball community and talked internally as well to come up with what were the most impactful and relevant stories of the year pertaining to the world of fastpitch softball.
Where applicable, we are providing the text to the original articles and/or references when the story first happened.
To provide comments, insights or thoughts, email: [email protected].
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Today’s Story of the Year: #2
The Olympics Return in 2021 (But the Crowds Don’t)
After the 2020 worldwide outbreak of the COVID pandemic shutdown pretty much everything—including the Summer Olympic Games scheduled for Tokyo, Japan—the event was postponed until this year.
The Games did indeed take place from July 21 to July 27, 2021 in Yokohama Stadium and featured teams from six countries: host country Japan, plus the United States, Australia, Canada, Italy and Mexico.
The talent was great, the games competitive and the final was a repeat of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China—there was no softball played in the 2012 and 2016 Games in London and Rio—between Japan and the U.S. with (spoiler alert) the same result.
Even though Team USA beat Japan in a thrilling game to closeout pool play and run it’s record at the time to 5-0, the host team defeated the Americans 2-0 in the championship gme with Japanese pitcher Yukiko Ueno throwing a three-hit shutout gem for the victors.
Unfortunately for the sport, the competitors and the fans who would have loved to see world-class athlete and competition in softball, COVID continued to be an issue and spectators weren’t allowed because of safety and health concerns.
And it will be a while longer before Olympic play will be seen… by anyone.
The 2024 Olympic Games will be in Paris, France, which isn’t exactly a bastion of fastpitch fanatics and, shamefully in this writer’s opinion, baseball and softball as participating sports were rejected by the International Olympic Committee in place of—would you believe?—breakdancing.
Yes, breakdancing (technically “implantation breakdancing” or “breaking”) is newly added while skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing return, pushing baseball/softball and karate out.
The good news, however, is that the Games four years later will be in Los Angeles (2028) and since the host country has a say in the sports played, it’s all but a lock that softball will return.
And the location after that is Brisbane, Australia, and that bodes well for the sport too with the Aussie’s love and talent in fastpitch, but since that’s a decade away, so much either way could happen.
We’ll just have to hope we get COVID eliminated by then and can actually have fans in person cheering these great athletes on!
— Brentt Eads, Extra Inning Softball
To provide comments, insights or thoughts, email: [email protected].
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Here are several of the articles Extra Inning Softball published leading up to the games starting with the oldest first….
Tokyo Olympic Games: Will They Be Cancelled This Year? Some Are Saying “Yes”
Originally published Jan. 22, 2021, on Extra Inning Softball
A woman wearing a face mask poses for a photograph next to the Olympic rings in Tokyo, Japan. Polls in Japan are at 80% in favor of cancelling the Games this summer. Photo: Carl Curt, Getty Images via USA Today.
There is a lot of buzz connected to this summer’s Tokyo Olympic Games and much of it hasn’t been positive.
Within the last week, Extra Inning Softball has heard from a number of sources that the Games scheduled to start July 21 with softball kicking off the event are now in jeopardy of being cancelled because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Organizers in various sports have been told that, with the Coronavius closing borders and/or limiting travel in some countries, many are expecting Japan to be forced to call off the Games once again.
“Japan postponed the 2020 Summer Olympics for 12 months. The official stance at the moment is that all is being done to save them but behind the scenes opinions are shifting.”
The Japanese government has privately concluded that the Tokyo Olympics will have to be cancelled because of the coronavirus, and the focus is now on securing the Games for the city in the next available year, 2032 https://t.co/bsuB9wMt30
“The Japanese government has privately concluded that the Tokyo Olympics will have to be cancelled because of the coronavirus, and the focus is now on securing the Games for the city in the next available year, 2032.”
“According to a senior member of the ruling coalition, there is agreement that the Games, already postponed a year, are doomed. The aim now is to find a face-saving way of announcing the cancellation that leaves open the possibility of Tokyo playing host at a later date.
“No one wants to be the first to say so but the consensus is that it’s too difficult,” the source said. “Personally, I don’t think it’s going to happen.”
Thomas Bach, President of the Internal Olympic Committee. Photo: IOC
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and President Thomas Bach were quick to push back and refuted the Times story.
In an Associated Press (AP) story written by Stephen Wade and titled Amid cancellation talk, Tokyo Olympics `focused on hosting’ that was posted later Thursday night, the IOC issued a statement saying the Tokyo Games were moving forward with the support of Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.
“All our delivery partners including the national government, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee, the IOC and the IPC (International Paralympic Committee) are fully focused on hosting the games this summer,” the IOC statement read.
“We hope that daily life can return to normal as soon as possible, and we will continue to make every effort to prepare for a safe and secure games.”
According to the AP article, Tokyo has already spent about $25 billion to organize these Olympics, most of which is public money.
Several reports of a cancellation began to surface this month when the Japanese government put Tokyo and other prefectures under a state of emergency order to counter a surge of rising COVID-19 cases.
“We have at this moment, no reason whatsoever to believe that the Olympic Games in Tokyo will not open on the 23rd of July in the Olympic stadium in Tokyo,” Bach told the Japanese news agency Kyodo on Thursday. He also said there is “no Plan B.”
Richard Pound, Senior IOC Member from Canada. Photo: IOC.
Senior IOC member Richard Pound said earlier in the week that the Olympics may be held largely without fans, making it a mostly television event.
According to Wade in the AP story: “The Switzerland-based IOC gets 73% of its income from selling broadcast rights and has seen its main revenue source stalled by the Olympic postponement. A largely TV-only event would suit the IOC better than a cancellation.”
“Unlike other sports businesses that offer hundreds of games, the IOC has only two main events to sell — the Summer and Winter Olympics.”
The Tokyo Olympic Games are expected to include 11,000 athletes along with “tens of thousands more including coaches, officials, judges, VIPS, media and broadcasters.”
“You may not like it but sacrifices will be needed, “ Bach said. “This is why I’m saying, safety first, and no taboo in the discussion to ensure safety.”
Japan has reported fewer than 5,000 deaths from the coronavirus and has handled the virus better than most countries. But the surge is not tapering off in Tokyo, a sprawling metropolitan area of 35 million.
Public opinion in Japan has also turned against the games with 80% in several polls saying they should be postponed again or canceled.
That may indeed be the case and, for softball fans, that would mean the earliest Team USA could once again play under the Olympic spotlight would possibly be 2028 at the Los Angeles Games, although it’s not been voted on yet (inclusion of baseball/softball).
The 2024 Paris Olympic Games have already ruled out baseball and softball participation.
— Brentt Eads, Extra Inning Softball
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Olympics News: Tokyo Games Organizers Brace for No Spectators
Originally published April 30, 2021, on Extra Inning Softball
Seiko Hashimoto (L, front row), president of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee, and Japan’s Olympic minister Tamayo Marukawa (R, front row) are pictured in Tokyo on April 28, 2021, during a teleconference with International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach (R, back) and Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike. Pool photo: Kyodo.
The Tokyo Olympic Games are about three months away, but there continues to be changing news seemingly every day about how the event will be run–and if it will, for sure, take place.
Japan is continuing to see a surge in COVID cases and the majority of those polled in the country prefer the Olympics not be held at all, at least at this time.
Earlier this year, it was decided that spectators from out of the country would not be allowed and now there is talk that all in-person spectators could be banned.
What would the Olympics be without people to cheer on the best athletes in the world? Hopefully, we won’t have to have these championship events take place in a vacuum of silence, but it looks more and more like that could be the case.
Below is an excellent article by Ayano Shimizu of the KYODO NEWS which details the latest on the Games…
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The organizing body of the Tokyo Olympics is prepared for the possibility of holding this summer’s global sporting event without spectators as the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage, the committee’s president said Wednesday.
“If the situation is expected to cause problems for the medical system, in order to put the highest priority on safety and security, there may come a time when we have to decide to go ahead with no spectators,” Seiko Hashimoto, Tokyo Olympics minister said after attending a virtual meeting with other organizers of the Tokyo Games.
During the five-party meeting, also attended by International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, the organizers agreed to make a final decision in June regarding spectator numbers at venues, due to the need to closely monitor the pandemic.
While the organizers have already decided to bar spectators from overseas, Hashimoto told a press conference it will be “extremely difficult” to stage the Olympics and Paralympics in front of full crowds if the current infection situation in Japan does not improve, adding she hopes to see as many people as possible in the stands.
The five parties, including the International Paralympic Committee and the central and Tokyo metropolitan governments, were planning to draw up a basic policy regarding domestic spectators by the end of this month.
People wearing face masks walk in in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, on April 26, 2021, after a third coronavirus state of emergency came into force the previous day in the western Japan prefectures of Hyogo, Osaka and Kyoto as well as in Tokyo. Seen in the background is an illustration of official mascots of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics that have been postponed to summer 2021. (Kyodo)
But they delayed the decision as highly contagious variants of the virus have been spreading rapidly in the host nation.
The Japanese organizers have been studying several possibilities, including limiting the number of spectators to 50 percent of venue capacity and only allowing the entry of people who have already purchased tickets, according to officials with knowledge of the planning.
The final decision regarding the Olympics will be in line with the Japanese government’s policy regarding the upper limit of spectators at sports events.
As part of efforts to ensure the safety of the games, the organizers also decided during the meeting to test all participating athletes for the virus on a daily basis in principle, using saliva samples.
According to the updated version of the organizers’ “playbook” for athletes released Wednesday, participants from overseas will need to take tests on two separate days within 96 hours of their departure time.
Thomas Bach, President of the Internal Olympic Committee. Photo: IOC
The rulebook also said each delegation needs to appoint liaison officers who will be responsible for working with the local organizers and Japanese health authorities to ensure that team members follow all health and safety restrictions.
“The IOC is fully committed to the successful and safe delivery of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020,” Bach said in his opening remarks at the online meeting, adding they will “strictly enforce” COVID-19 rules.
While Japan’s accumulative total of over 583,000 confirmed COVID-19 infections are fewer than many other countries, media polls have repeatedly shown that a majority of the Japanese people are not in favor of hosting the games this summer following a one-year postponement.
The organizers have emphasized the importance of testing athletes and visiting officials frequently to detect infections at an early stage and prevent the games from becoming a super-spreader event.
However, some medical experts have voiced concerns over staging the games at this juncture when new mutants of the virus are spreading in many countries, and when the strain on Japan’s medical system has been increasing.
On Wednesday, a senior Cabinet official said the Japanese organizers will secure about 30 hospitals capable of accepting athletes and officials during the Olympics.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has vowed to take steps to ensure the Tokyo Games are “safe and secure,” but he has been unsuccessful in bringing down infections.
Tokyo and several prefectures are under a third state of emergency until May 11 due to a recent spike in infections. The capital on Wednesday confirmed 925 cases of the virus, the highest figure since Jan. 28.
Under the emergency that took effect Sunday, large commercial facilities, theme parks, karaoke establishments and restaurants serving alcohol have been asked to close.
Meanwhile, Japan’s vaccine rollout, which has been criticized as too slow, only began for those aged 65 and over earlier this month, and it is impossible for much of the general public to be inoculated by the start of the Olympics on July 23.
The IOC and the Tokyo organizing committee have not made vaccination a requirement for athletes and officials. But the IOC has recommended they receive shots to protect the health of the participants and the Japanese public.
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Olympic News: Less than 50 Days Before Games Begin, One Country Arrives Very Early, Team USA Gets a Great Tune-Up and Japanese Volunteers Are Quitting by the Thousands
Originally published June 3, 2021, on Extra Inning Softball
Australia’s Olympic softball team poses after arriving at its hotel in Japan on June 1, 2020. Photo – Kyodo News.
While much of America’s attention is riveted on the Women’s College World Series—and rightfully so—there’s a lot going on around the world as we are less than two months away from the start of the Tokyo Olympics.
Here are some of the latest significant news items as it relates to the upcoming international sports event now less than 50 days away (and softball kicks it off!)…
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Australian softball squad 1st team to arrive in Japan for Olympics
Originally published June 1, 2021 in Kyodo News
Members of the Australian women’s softball team on Tuesday became the first group of athletes to arrive in Japan for a pre-Olympic training camp since the Tokyo Games were postponed more than a year ago due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The squad’s arrival at a hotel in Ota, around 80 kilometers northwest of Tokyo, came about 50 days before the opening of the Olympics and with the Japanese public, concerned about a surge in COVID-19 infections, largely opposed to holding such a global sporting event this summer.
Members of the Australian women’s softball team arrive at Narita airport on June 1, 2021. (Kyodo News)
The 20 “Aussie Spirit” players and nine staff, who came via Singapore, will hold training sessions in the city in Gunma Prefecture from Saturday through July 17. The team members, wearing their uniforms featuring Australia’s national sporting colors of green and gold, as well as face masks, waved to the press upon arrival.
All members of the delegation, who had received COVID-19 vaccinations, tested negative for the virus at Narita airport, according to Japanese health authorities, before heading to Ota by chartered bus.
The members will be under tight restrictions while in Japan, where infections have been declining at a slow pace partly because the vaccination rate has lagged far behind other developed countries.
The Australian team will move into the Olympic village before playing its opening Olympic match against Japan at Fukushima Azuma stadium on July 21, two days before the official beginning of the Tokyo Olympics.
Head coach Robert Harrow said that his team will be “respectful” of Japanese citizens and “fall in line with the rules applied to us during our stay to keep everyone safe.”
“We will be focused purely on our training during our time in Japan,” Harrow said in a statement released by the city government. “We are lucky enough to be the first team to open Olympic competition against Japan which is very exciting and a huge honor.”
Members of the national team will also be required to undergo daily virus testing and be prevented from interacting with the general public, with all sleeping, dining and meeting rooms confined to three floors in their hotel.
The players and staff will only be allowed to leave the hotel to travel to and from their training facilities. The team will train for over a month, during which it will play practice matches against clubs from the Japan Softball League and universities.
Australia was among the teams competing at the 1996 Atlanta Games when softball made its debut and it has gone on to win one silver and three bronze medals.
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Team USA edges USSSA Pride 3-2 with walk-off home run by McCleney
Information provided by USA Softball
While Australia’s national team was settling in to its new digs in Japan, the United States team got in a great scrimmage against many of the top pro players in the sport.
The “Stand Beside Her” tour, presented by Major League Baseball (MLB), returned to action last night (Wednesday, June 2, 2021) in Stillwater, Okla. as the USA Softball Women’s National Team (WNT) edged the USSSA Pride 3-2 in game one of the four-game series.
Both offenses were relatively quiet throughout the contest with the score remaining tied through the last four innings of play, but a walk-off home run from Haylie McCleney (Morris, Ala.) would break the silence and secure the victory for the Red, White and Blue.
Team USA’s pitching staff took care of business in the circle with a combined total of 14 strikeouts, with Monica Abbott (Salinas, Calif.) fanning six Pride batters followed by Cat Osterman (Houston, Texas) who struck out five in two innings.
Ally Carda (Elk Grove, Calif.), who got the start in the circle for Team USA, kept the Pride off the board through two innings of play, allowing just two hits and two walks while striking out two batters – the last of which came at a crucial moment with bases loaded in the top of the second.
Solid defense and clutch hitting earned the U.S. Women's National Team 🇺🇸 a 3-2 victory over the USSSA Pride in game one of the four-game series.
— USA Softball Women's National Team 🇺🇸 (@USASoftballWNT) June 3, 2021
Michelle Moultrie (Jacksonville, Fla.) got things started for the U.S. offense by taking a pitch to the elbow in the bottom of the second inning. She then moved into scoring position after a base hit from Kelsey Stewart (Wichita, Kan.), which set the stage for some situational hitting from Aubree Munro (Brea, Calif.) who laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Moultrie to third, and Janie Reed (Placentia, Calif.) who followed suit with a sac-fly to left field to put the U.S. on top, 1-0.
Keilani Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) took over pitching duties for the Red, White and Blue in the top of the third inning, allowing a home run and a single before firing back with a strikeout. Another single by the Pride would send a runner home and put them on top, 2-1 before another pitching change for Team USA would bring Abbott into the circle. The lefty heat-thrower ended the threat with a strikeout and ground out to send the U.S. back to the plate, trailing the Pride, 2-1.
Team USA didn’t stay down for long, though as Ali Aguilar (Orangevale, Calif.) led off the bottom of the third with a hard line drive to right field followed by a walk to Valerie Arioto (Pleasanton, Calif) to put runners in scoring position for the U.S.
Amanda Chidester
Amanda Chidester (Allen Park, Mich.) produced with a solid ground ball up the middle to plate Aguilar and tie the game, 2-2. Despite loading the bases with a walk by Stewart later in the inning, the U.S. was unable to muster anymore runs.
Abbott continued dealing in the next two innings, striking out five Pride batters and allowing zero baserunners. Osterman entered the circle in the top of the sixth, following suit with Abbott’s performance by striking out the first three batters she faced.
Despite a solid showing on defense, Team USA’s bats stayed quiet, keeping the score tied at two going into the seventh.
The Pride found some hope early in the inning, getting two baserunners off two walks by Osterman. A groundout would advance the runners to second and third, before another walk would load the bases for the Pride. Osterman zoned in with bases loaded and one out, retiring the next two batters she faced with back-to-back strikeouts to keep the Pride at bay.
A pitching change for the Pride in the bottom of the seventh would look to switch things up for Team USA’s 1-2-3 batters who were set to lead off the inning, but all it took was four pitches for McCleney to take care of business as she homered over the left field fence to secure the 3-2 walk-off victory for Team USA.
Team USA returns to the field for game two against the Pride on Friday, June 4. Held at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Complex, Team USA will square off against the Pride at 11 a.m. CT before the 2021 NCAA Women’s College World Series (WCWS) begins its evening session. The WNT will round out the four-game series against the Pride back at Cowgirl Stadium on June 6–7 with a 5 p.m. CT matchup on Sunday, June 6 and a 12 p.m. contest on Monday, June 7.
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Over 10,000 volunteers of the 80,000 unpaid overall have said they won’t wok the Games due to concerns over the COVID pandemic. Photo: Carl Curt, Getty Images via USA Today.
10,000 volunteers drop out; Tokyo Olympics open in 50 days
Report published on June 3, 2021 by Stephen Wade and Kantaro Komiya of Associated Press
TOKYO (AP) – The countdown clock for the Tokyo Olympics hit 50-days-to-go on Thursday, and the day also brought another problem for the delayed games.
About 10,000 of 80,000 unpaid volunteers for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics have told organizers they will not participate when the games open on July 23.
Organizers said some dropped out because of worries about COVID-19. Few volunteers are expected to be vaccinated since most will have no contact with athletes or other key personnel.
Only about 2-3% of Japan’s general population has been fully vaccinated in a very slow rollout that is just now speeding up. Conversely, the IOC expects at least 80% of athletes and residents of the Olympic Village to be fully vaccinated.
“We have not confirmed the individual reasons,” organizers said in a statement. “In addition to concerns about the coronavirus infection, some dropped out because they found it would be difficult to actually work after checking their work shift, or due to changes in their own environment.”
Organizers said the loss would not affect the operations of the postponed Olympics.
Unpaid volunteers are a key workforce in running the Olympics and save organizers millions of dollars in salaries. Volunteers typically get a uniform, meals on the days they work, and have daily commuting costs covered. They pay their own lodging.
A study done for the International Olympic Committee on volunteers at the 2000 Sydney Olympics said their value was at least $60 million for 40,000 volunteers.
To mark 50 days, organizers unveiled the podiums, costumes and music that will be used during the medal ceremonies. Organizing committee president Seiko Hashimoto again promised the Olympics will be safe for the athletes.
“The Tokyo 2020 organizing committee will absolutely make sure to protect the health of the athletes,” she said.
Support for the Olympics continues to lag in Japan with 50-80% — depending how the question is phrased — saying the games should not open on July 23.
Tokyo is officially spending $15.4 billion to organize the Olympics, and several government audits say it’s much more. All but $6.7 billion is public money. The IOC’s contribution is about $1.5 billion.
Japan has attributed just over 13,000 deaths to COVID-19, far lower than most comparable countries, but higher than many Asian neighbors.
On Thursday, the Japanese soccer association said a member of the Ghana team had tested positive upon arrival in Tokyo. The player was separated from the team and placed in quarantine.
Earlier in the week, soccer players from Jamaica were unable to go to Japan because of issues with coronavirus testing. They were to have played the Japanese national team in a friendly.
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Olympic Prep: U.S. Women’s National Team Arrives in Iwakuni, Japan for Training Two Weeks Ahead of Start of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games
Originally published July 6, on Extra Inning Softball
Team USA is now in Japan and will play four doubleheaders over the next week in preparation for the Tokyo Olympic Games which start July 21, 2021. Photo: USA Softball.
Coming off the conclusion of the “Stand Beside Her” tour, presented by Major League Baseball (MLB), the USA Softball Women’s National Team (WNT) has arrived in Iwakuni, Japan as they look to close out their pre-Olympic preparations with a series of training sessions and exhibition games held at Atago Sports Complex July 6-13.
Team USA Head Coach Ken Eriksen
Thanks to the hospitality and efforts made by the City of Iwakuni and Marine Corp Air Station (MCAS) Iwakuni, the Red, White and Blue will have the opportunity to train and compete in a series of doubleheaders against Japan professional softball teams July 9-13 before traveling to Tokyo, Japan where Team USA will begin its quest to a fourth Olympic Gold Medal at the Tokyo Olympic Games scheduled for July 21-27.
“We are so fortunate to have great relationships with the City of Iwakuni, the people of Iwakuni, and with the Marine Corp Air Station Iwakuni,” said Women’s National Team Head Coach, Ken Eriksen. “They have provided us with many opportunities to train while we have been in Japan over the last three years, including our preparations for the 2018 World Championships where we qualified for the Tokyo Olympics. We are excited to be back and are looking forward to seeing our friends as we prepare for the Olympic Games.”
The U.S. WNT will kick off exhibition matchups on Friday, July 9 with a doubleheader against Iyo Bank Vertz followed by three more doubleheaders scheduled for July 11-13 against Toyota Terriers and Hitachi Sundiva. Fans across the globe will have the opportunity to follow along with each game via live stats.
A full schedule and link to live stats can be found at USASoftball.com.
The City of Iwakuni is located 436 miles from Tokyo and houses the Atago Sports Complex, which will serve as the site for the training camp. Previously, the City of Iwakuni and MCAS Iwakuni hosted the WNT in July 2018 prior to the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Women’s World Championship in Chiba, Japan.
The Tokyo Olympic Games are just two weeks away!
The six-day training camp provided the squad the opportunity to conduct rigorous workouts and practices prior to the Olympic-qualifying tournament. Practices were made public for citizens of Iwakuni, service members and family at MCAS Iwakuni, while members of the WNT also participated in a local clinic for students. The U.S. ended its stay by playing a doubleheader against Japanese professional team, Toyota Red Terriers, before going on to win Gold and qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Following training and exhibition games in Iwakuni, Team USA will take flight to Tokyo, Japan on July 14 for the highly anticipated Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, where the sport of softball returns to the Olympic stage for the first time since 2008.
Re-sparking the Olympic Dream for millions of softball athletes and fans across the globe, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will mark Team USA’s fifth Olympic Games appearance after finishing atop the podium in 1996, 2000 and 2004 and earning the Silver Medal in 2008.
The world-ranked U.S. WNT joins No. 2 Japan, No. 3 Canada, No. 5 Mexico, No. 8 Australia and No. 10 Italy as the six teams who will vie for the Gold Medal starting July 21-27.
A full schedule of the Tokyo Olympic Games can be found at USASoftball.com with television channels and times being released at a later date.
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Breaking News: Toyko Olympics to Be Held Without Spectators Because of COVID Pandemic
Originally published July 8, 2021, on Extra Inning Softball
Photo taken on July 8, 2021, shows the National Stadium ahead of the July 23 opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics. (Kyodo)
The Tokyo Olympics beginning in just a few weeks suffered another major blow when organizers announced this morning that competitions, including the softball games, will not have fans in the stands.
The following release was issued this morning by Kyodo News…
The Tokyo Olympics will be held without spectators at venues in the Japanese capital due to a spike in coronavirus infections, Olympic minister Tamayo Marukawa said Thursday after organizers made the unprecedented decision just two weeks ahead of the opening of the global sporting event.
The announcement, abandoning their earlier plan to stage the Olympics in front of a limited number of fans, came after the Japanese government decided to put Tokyo under another state of emergency until Aug. 22, amid rising concern the games could trigger a further surge in infections.
The new policy of barring spectators in the host city was agreed on at a meeting attended by International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach and representatives of the four bodies, the games organizing committee, the International Paralympic Committee, as well as the Japanese and Tokyo metropolitan governments.
“It is extremely regrettable that the games will be staged in a very limited manner in the face of the spread of novel coronavirus infections,” Seiko Hashimoto, president of the organizing committee said. “I am very sorry for ticket holders and local residents who were looking forward to the games.”
At the outset of the virtual meeting, which was open to the press, Bach said he and IPC chief Andrew Parsons continue to be “committed” to delivering the games safely with the Japanese organizers.
“We have shown this responsibility since the day of the postponement,” Bach said. “And we will also show it today, and we will support any measure which is necessary to have a safe and secure Olympic and Paralympic Games for the Japanese people and all the participants.”
Seiko Hashimoto (seated, L), head of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee, and Japan’s Olympic minister Tamayo Marukawa (seated, R) are pictured in Tokyo on July 8, 2021, during five-party talks ahead of the games’ opening later in the month amid the coronavirus pandemic. Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike (in screen, L), International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach (not in picture) and International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons (in screen, R) also attended the meeting remotely. (Pool photo) (Kyodo)
Even with the decision, it is still uncertain what the Olympics will look like when they take place between July 23 and Aug. 8 following a first-ever postponement last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, despite the organizers’ repeated pledges to stage a “safe and secure” games.
Having already barred Olympic spectators from overseas, the five organizers decided late last month to allow the venues’ capacity to be filled up to 50 percent, a maximum of 10,000 people per venue, on the assumption the COVID-19 situation in Tokyo would turn for the better supported by Japan’s belated vaccination rollout.
After Tokyo started to reel from a COVID-19 rebound, the Japanese government and the organizing committee once planned to lower the spectator cap to 5,000.
However, Tokyo on Wednesday reported 920 new infections, registering the highest daily count since mid-May, while medical experts continue to warn of the dangers of going ahead with the games when many countries are grappling with the rapid spread of the highly contagious Delta variant of the virus.
International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach waves from inside a vehicle at a Tokyo hotel on July 8, 2021, following his arrival in Japan ahead of the July 23 opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics. (Pool photo) (Kyodo)
On Thursday, Tokyo reported 896 new cases of the virus, exceeding the number logged a week earlier for the 19th straight day.
Since pushing back the games in March last year, the government had been hoping that having as many spectators as possible and inbound visitors to the country would help revive its economy from a coronavirus-induced downturn.
Not allowing fans in Tokyo will also deal a heavy blow to the organizing committee, which initially projected the ticket revenue to be 90 billion yen ($820 million).
Bach attended the remote meeting from his hotel after arriving in Tokyo earlier in the day.
According to the organizing committee, Bach will quarantine at his hotel for three days. He is set to visit the athletes’ village in Tokyo’s Harumi waterfront district and hold meetings with the organizing body, both in person and remotely.
The IOC is also arranging for Bach to visit Hiroshima, which was devastated by a U.S.-dropped atomic bomb in World War II, on July 16, the starting day of an Olympic truce adopted by the United Nations.
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Olympic News: More on the USA Walk-Off 2-1 Win Over Japan to Finish Pool Play at 5-0
Originally published July 26, 2021, on Extra Inning Softball
Kelsey Stewart rounds the bases after her walk-off home run in the bottom of the 7th beat Japan 2-1. Photo – USA Softball.
Last night the USA came from behind to score a thrilling bottom of the 7th walk-off win over Japan to close out pool play with a bang.
We covered the story last night and give you two more perspectives on the contest which is a preview of the two teams that will play in the Gold medal game later today U.S. time.
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Team USA Earns Come-From-Behind Win over No. 2 Japan After Kelsey Stewart’s Walk-Off Home Run
Release issue by USA Softball
In a contest that pitted world-ranked No. 1 Team USA against No. 2 Japan, the rivalry did not disappoint as the Red, White and Blue came-from-behind to record a 2-1 walk-off victory in their final round robin game of the Tokyo Olympics.
Clinching their spot as the home team in tomorrow’s Gold Medal matchup, the U.S. overcame a one-run deficit and prevailed in the bottom of the seventh inning after a walk-off home run from Kelsey Stewart (Wichita, Kan.).
Team USA Head Coach Ken Eriksen
“I’m proud of the way we performed today,” said U.S. Olympic Softball Team Head Coach, Ken Eriksen. “I thought we hit the ball well, we just so happened to be hitting it right to the Japan defense. They made some great defensive plays on us as well; they move the ball quick which makes it difficult. Going forward into tomorrow’s game, we’re just going to have to continue putting the bat on the ball and start hitting it in the gaps.”
“To think that in March of 2020 there may have been the chance of the Olympics not happening and here we are in the Gold Medal Match versus a great program in Japan,” he added. “I don’t think you could ask for a better opportunity to play on the world stage.”
Japan scored their lone run of the game in the top of the first inning after taking advantage of two fielding miscues by the U.S. defense. A hard ground ball that was bobbled by Stewart at third base would put the leadoff batter on while a sac bunt quickly advanced her to second.
A bloop base hit to left field would put another runner on base for Japan before a passed ball got away from Aubree Munro (Brea, Calif.) to allow a run to score. Ally Carda (Elk Grove, Calif.), who got the start in the circle for Team USA, stepped up with a big two-out strikeout to allow the U.S. to escape the inning without anymore damage.
Both offenses were quiet through the second and third innings with Carda retiring four of the six batters she faced with a strikeout. Japan picked up their second base hit of the game in the top of the fourth, but Carda continued her dominance with two more strikeouts and a ground out to leave the runner stranded. Despite the U.S. putting a runner on with a hit-by-pitch to Amanda Chidester (Allen Park, Mich.) in the bottom of the frame, the Japan defense once against shut down the at-bat with a double play to maintain their 1-0 lead.
A two-out single from Japan would give them their fourth baserunner of the game but another strikeout from Carda would send the U.S. back to the plate. Ali Aguilar (Orangevale, Calif.) drew a walk to put the leadoff runner on in the bottom of the fifth, but another double play by the Japan defense would quickly clear the bases before a ground out ended the inning.
Cat Osterman (Houston, Texas) entered the circle in the top of the sixth, striking out the first two batters she faced before Carda returned for the remainder of the inning. The Japanese offense managed to bloop a two-out base hit to left field, but Carda remained solid under pressure with her ninth strikeout to end the at-bat.
Team USA leveled the score in the bottom of the sixth after back-to-back singles from Haylie McCleney (Morris, Ala.) and Janie Reed (Placentia, Calif.) put runners on for the U.S. With two outs and the tying run on third, Valerie Arioto (Pleasanton, Calif.) sent a ground ball through the left side of the field to plate McCleney and tie the game.
A walk to Aguilar then loaded the bases before a deep fly ball from Delaney Spaulding (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) looked to the add to the U.S. score but was caught just shy of the fence line to end the inning.
Monica Abbott (Salinas, Calif.) took over pitching duties in the top of the seventh, issuing a quick 1-2-3 inning with a strikeout and two groundouts to send the Eagles back to the plate for a chance to end the game before extra innings came into play.
All that was needed, though, was an at-bat from Stewart as she sent the second pitch she saw over the right field fence to seal the 2-1 walk-off victory for the Red, White and Blue.
The home run marked Team USA’s first long ball of the Tokyo Olympics while sealing their undefeated record through opening round.
The U.S. pitching staff of Carda, Osterman and Abbott totaled 12 strikeouts in the final round robin contest while limiting the Japan offense to four hits. Dominating through the entire opening round, today’s performance improved the overall strikeouts to 53 without an earned run being allowed by the U.S. pitchers.
At the plate, McCleney continued to spark the U.S. offense while Reed and Arioto picked up crucial base hits in addition to Stewart’s home run.
Team USA improves to 5-0 at the Tokyo Olympics and now looks ahead toward their fifth-consecutive Olympic Gold Medal game, which will take center stage tomorrow, July 27 at 8 p.m. JT / 7 a.m. ET following the Bronze Medal contest at 1 p.m. JT / 12 p.m. ET.
Tomorrow’s matchup between No. 1 Team USA and No. 2 Japan will mark the two countries third meeting for the Olympic Gold Medal after going head-to-head in the 2000 Sydney Olympics and 2008 Beijing Olympics.
In 2000, it was the Red, White and Blue who finished atop the podium with a 2-1 (eight innings) win over Japan while the Japanese earned the Gold in 2008 – softball’s last Olympic appearance – after the U.S. suffered a 3-1 loss.
Kelsey Stewart has a knack for walk-off hits in Japan.
Stewart hit a game-ending home run leading off the seventh inning, and the United States rallied late to beat Japan 2-1 Monday and win the Olympic softball group stage — and with it the right to bat last in the gold medal game.
“It’s like you dream about when you’re a little kid, about hitting a home run at the Olympics, let alone a walk-off,” Stewart said.
In August 2018, Stewart’s single capped a three-run 10th inning off Japan ace Yukiko Ueno that gave the U.S. a 7-6 win at the Women’s Softball World Championship in Chiba, earning the Olympic berth.
She had been 1 for 12 with no RBIs at the Olympics before she drove the 98th pitch from Yamato Fujita (0-1) just over the glove of leaping right fielder Yuka Ichiguchi for the first U.S. home run of the tournament.
“She was starting to wear down because she had so many pitches on her arm,” Stewart said.
American players ran onto the field to celebrate their second straight walk-off win.
“I knew she was strong,” Fujita said through an interpreter, remembering Stewart from 2018. “I think the ball was too easy for her.”
Trying to bounce back from their 3-1 loss to Japan in the 2008 gold medal game, the Americans finished the group stage 5-0 while Japan dropped to 4-1.
Stewart’s first-inning error had led to Japan’s run. She bobbled Saku Yamazaki’s leadoff grounder to third, and following a sacrifice and Hitomii Kawabata’s single, Yamazaki scored on Aubree Munro’s passed ball.
Japan rested Yukiko Ueno, the 39-year-old who beat the U.S. in the 2008 gold medal game started by Cat Osterman, and Miu Goto. Fujita and catcher Yukiyo Mine lost track of the outs, starting to run off the field after Michelle Moultrie struck out for the second out of the third.
Fujita, a 30-year-old right-hander who had pitched just once before in the tournament, didn’t allow a hit until Haylie McCleney (an Olympic-best 9 for 14) singled to left leading off the sixth.
Janie Reed, whose husband, Jake, was claimed by Tampa Bay off waivers from the Los Angeles Dodgers earlier in the day, reached on an infield hit with a bouncer to shortstop for just her second hit in 13 at-bats, and Valerie Arioto hit a two-out RBI single.
Ally Carda, a 28-year-old right-hander, allowed an unearned run and four hits over 5 1/3 innings in her Olympic mound debut, striking out nine and walking none.
Monica Abbott and Osterman had combined to throw all 29 innings in the first four games.
“Ally Carda has had tremendous success against them,” U.S. coach Ken Eriksen said of Japan. “Ally was scheduled for this game as soon as the Olympic team was named, because we knew the schedule. … If we had to win this game to get into the gold medal game, Ally Carda was still going to get the ball.”
Osterman, a 38-year-old lefty, faced two lefties in the sixth and struck out both.
Abbott (3-0) pitched a perfect seventh, adding to two complete game wins and two saves.
“It was a great opportunity for us to be able to experience all three pitchers today before the gold medal game tomorrow,” Japan coach Reika Utsugi said through an interpreter.
A 6-foot-3 lanky left-hander, Abbott is likely to start the gold medal game scheduled for Tuesday, a day before her 36th birthday. Rain is in the forecast.
“I wouldn’t doubt that you might see four pitchers tomorrow,” Eriksen said.
CANADA 8, ITALY 1
Danielle Lawrie and Lauren Regula, sisters of former Major League Baseball players, combined on a four-hitter in a game shortened to six innings under a rout rule.
Larissa Franklin drove in three runs for Canada (3-2), which headed to a bronze medal game against Australia or Mexico.
Lawrie, the 34-year-old sister of former major leaguer Brett Lawrie, allowed an unearned run and four hits in three innings. Regula (1-0), the 39-year-old sister of retired All-Star Jason Bay, struck out five in three hitless innings.
Jen Gilbert, who had been hitless in seven at-bats, had a go-ahead home run over the center-field cameras in the second. Born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, the 29-year-old Gilbert lives in Denton, Texas.
Franklin hit an RBI double in the third, and errors by shortstop Joey Lye and reliever Alexia Lacatena led to three unearned runs in the fifth, which included Franklin’s first sacrifice fly and an RBI single by Jenn Salling, who is 7 for 12.
Victoria Hayward hit a two-run double in the sixth and Franklin followed with another sacrifice fly.
Greta Cecchetti (0-4) allowed three runs — two earned — and five hits in four innings for Italy (0-5), which was outscored 21-1.
Erika Piancastelli caused an Italian team celebration when her second hit, an RBI single in the third, drove in the country’s first Olympic run.
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Breaking News: Japan Tops USA 2-0 for Gold Medal in Tokyo Olympics
Originally published July 27, 2021, on Extra Inning Softball
Japan defeated the USA 2-0 to capture the Gold Medal in the first Olympic softball played since 2008. Photo: Olympics.com.
For the second consecutive Olympics—though they were 13 years apart—Japan has defeated USA in the Gold Medal game, 2-0.
Behind the stellar pitching from Team Japan’s Yukiko Ueno, who went five innings and gave up just two hits while striking out five, and Miu Goto, who finished the final two innings while giving up just one hit, Japan shut out Team USA which finished 5-1 in the Games.
The Americans were only able to muster three hits with two coming from Janie Reed batting in the 2-spot. Leadoff Haylie McCleney, who had an outstanding run throughout the first five games, went 0-for-3.
The Americans’ best chance to score came in the bottom of the first when Reed tripled with one out but she was thrown out trying to steal home on a based ball. On the same play, Amanda Chidester would make it to first on the dropped third strike and advance to third base after two more wild pitches, but would be left stranded when Valerie Arioto struck out.
Team Japan scored one run in the 4th inning and an insurance run in the 5th and would finish with eight hits.
The only run the Japanese would need game with two outs in the 4th after Yamoto Fujita had singled to open the inning and moved to second on a sacrifice and third on a ground out. On a 1-2 count, Mana Atsumi singled off pitcher Ally Carda to plate Fujita.
In the 5th, Yamamoto singled with two outs and moved to second on a wild pitch by Monica Abbott before Yamato Fujita would drive her in with a single to right field.
Fujita was the offensive star of the game, going 2-for-4 with an RBI and run scored.
For the US, Cat Osterman pitched two innings giving up a pair of hits, Carda went 2.2 innings giving up both runs to take the loss and Abbott closed with 2.1 innings and giving up three hits.
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The Games did indeed take place from July 21 to July 27, 2021 in Yokohama Stadium and featured teams from six countries: host country Japan, plus the United States, Australia, Canada, Italy and Mexico.
The 2024 Olympic Games will be in Paris, France, which isn’t exactly a bastion of fastpitch fanatics and, shamefully in this writer’s opinion, baseball and softball as participating sports were rejected by the International Olympic Committee in place of—would you believe?—breakdancing.
While Australia’s national team was settling in to its new digs in Japan, the United States team got in a great scrimmage against many of the top pro players in the sport.
The announcement, abandoning their earlier plan to stage the Olympics in front of a limited number of fans, came after the Japanese government decided to put Tokyo under another state of emergency until Aug. 22, amid rising concern the games could trigger a further surge in infections.
