Beijing Bound

World bridged gap against United States

The 2008 Summer Olympics have officially ended and softball may have had its last appearance. 
After eight months of training with the same 17 girls all over the world, we are all about to go our separate ways.
As I write this, I am sitting on a plane full of Canadian athletes enduring the 11-hour flight to Vancouver. 
Unfortunately, the day will only get longer as I still have two more flights to catch.
In regards to softball, these Olympics were one of the most memorable. 
For years, the United States has led the way. 
All of the other countries have worked hard to bridge the gap between the U.S. and the rest of the world. 
The development of the sport worldwide could not have been better exemplified than in these Olympics. 
For the first time, the U.S did not win the gold medal. 
The top four countries were Japan, United States, Australia and Canada. 
A fourth place finish was the best any Canadian softball team has ever had at the Olympics. 
Although we had higher expectations for ourselves, a fourth place finish is still something of which to be proud.
We finished the round robin with a 3-4 record putting us into the playoffs as the fourth place seed. 
We played the No. 3 seed from Australia and lost 5-3. 
It was a very exciting game and both teams had their opportunities to take the lead. 
After being down 2-0 early in the game, we responded with a three-run inning to take a 3-2 lead. 
The next inning, Australia tied it up and, in the top of the sixth, they scored two more to secure the win. 
The next big event for softball will be the vote this fall to get the sport into the 2016 Olympics. 
Although softball will not be in the 2012 Olympics, the national team will continue to compete in world and Pan American Championships.
Thank you to all of my supporters through this whole process. 
I greatly appreciate your interest in myself as well as the National Softball team. 
It was such an honor to represent my country and more specifically Newmarket. 

Support back home means a lot

With a 3-1 record after the first four days of competition, we are looking for a few more wins to get us into the playoff round.
In order to qualify, we need to win one of our next three games. In order to finish second overall and be guaranteed a medal, we need to win our next three games or at least beat Venezuela and Japan. Right now we feel like we are in a good spot and are confident in our abilities to be able to finish pool play with a 6-1 record. 
Yesterday morning we had a very exciting and nerve-racking game against China. Having a 1-0 lead going into the bottom of the seventh, China loaded the bases with nobody out. Strong pitching and solid defense allowed us to get out of the inning with a 1-0 victory. 
Following that game, we finished our game against the United States, starting in the top of the fourth. We kept our 1-0 lead going into the six, but the U.S. capitalized on some key errors and ended up beating us 8-1. Fortunately for us, that game did not have a major impact on our chances to get into playoffs.
Tonight, we play Venezuela at 7:30 p.m. China time (7:30 a.m. EST). They are generally a pretty scrappy opponent and it will be our responsibility to get our bats going early in order to deflate the air in their tires. 
I also want to take this time to thank all of our supporters back at home.  It means a lot to know that there are people rooting for us back on Canadian soil.

Rain puts damper on key game

We started Game 3 against the United States, but failed to complete it due to weather conditions. 
The game started off well as we jumped to a 1-0 lead in the first inning against the three-time Olympic gold medalists. Then, in the bottom of the second inning, the clouds opened up and the game was delayed for about an hour.
After the rain passed and the grounds crew fixed up the field, we were able to complete another inning. However, in the top of the fourth with a 3-2 count on the lead-off batter, the game was halted for another rain delay. 
We were unable to complete the game and have rescheduled it for tomorrow afternoon following the U.S.-Japan game. We play China at 9:30 a.m. and then the U.S. at about 3 p.m. and we'll start right where we left off — top of the fourth, 3-2 count on the batter, 1-0 lead. 
On a side note, yesterday evening we beat the Netherlands 9-2 in six innings. We are off to a great start, standing at two wins and no losses. 

Game 1 under our belts

Let the games begin! 
We have finally started what we have trained four years for as a program. We officially have game No. 1 under our belts with a very satisfying and exciting victory … only six more games till playoffs. 
The Olympic jitters and excitement have calmed down and we are ready to complete the task at hand. Trying to fall asleep last night was as unsuccessful as a child trying to fall asleep the night before a big birthday party. Despite the fact that few of us had limited sleep, we came to the field ready to play.
This morning, we played Chinese Taipai and beat them 6-1 in seven innings. We got off to a great start, scoring two runs in the second inning. We had solid defense and shut them out until the bottom of the seventh when they hit a solo home run. Apparently the game was live on TSN, so I hope some people had a chance to watch us in action.
One of the biggest highlights of the game was looking up in the stands and seeing all of the Canadian fans. We have more than 100 fans who flew from home to watch the games. 
My father, mother, sister and aunt were able to make the trip, but I know I have a lot of support from friends and family at home as well.
Tomorrow we play Netherlands at 7:30 p.m. China time (7:30 a.m. EST). 

Olympic opening ceremonies unbelieveable

The 2008 Summer Olympic Games have officially began.
I hope most of you had the opportunity to be able to witness one of the most spectacular opening ceremonies. Maybe I am biased. I am finding these blogs more and more difficult to write because it is so hard to articulate exactly how I feel. 
Despite several hours of standing and waiting, the experience made it worth it. Canada marched in as the 63rd team and, therefore, didn’t actually get into the stadium until 10 p.m. The opening ceremonies officially began at 8:08 p.m. on 08/08/08. 
The best part of the whole ceremony was when we were waiting in the tunnel just metres away from being in the stadium — the point where you can see the light of the stadium but not quite what it looks like on the inside. As a Canadian team, we were all singing the anthem loud and proud. The energy of that moment was exhilarating. Everyone had goosebumps as we anxiously awaited hearing our country be called into the stadium. There is no picture, no video clip and no journal entry that will ever replicate the emotion and excitement of that moment. 
Walking into that stadium was unbelievable. That was the biggest crowd I have ever been recognized by.  For the first quarter of the track, everyone was encouraged to put their cameras away and take in the moment. It was hard to believe what I was experiencing was reality. The other neat part was that we were among so many sport celebrities and in that moment, all of the athletes in that stadium were there for the same reason — to represent their countries with pride. 
Three more sleeps until we begin competition. This dream I have been chasing since childhood is finally becoming real.   

Olympic village stunning

I’m writing this one day before the official start of the Olympics. What an incredible thing to be able to say, this day seemed like it would never arrive.
The village is everything I could have imagined and so much more. The accommodations are fantastic and the village is gorgeous. I don’t think there are enough, or even the right words, to vividly describe how they have designed the village. 
Team Canada is situated in 2-1/2 towers. There is an athletes’ lounge with a video game room, a video room, a snack corner, computer lab and wellness centre. We also have our own medical centre where we can seek medical attention such as massage and chiropractic services. Our team is in two apartment suites on the ninth floor. Each suite has six bedrooms and a few bathrooms. My roommate and I were fortunate enough to be placed in the master bedroom, which consists of a huge bedroom, a storage room and a two-sink bathroom. 
Across from our building is a place called the Super Residence Center. They have three of these buildings spread across the village and they consist of an arcade, computer lab and a beautiful room filled with furniture and tables for people to use wireless Internet, read, play cards, etc. 
The cafeteria is enormous. There’s an abundance of food to choose from for each meal, all quite delicious. They have a workout centre and a pool in the village. There is a building called the international zone where they have everything from a souvenir store, to a hair salon. 
We have had two practices at the softball stadium since we have arrived. Most of our practices have been on the adjacent fields, but, today, we were allotted one hour in the main stadium. The stadium looks amazing. Since we were last here in October, they have done so much to the field in regard to decorating as well as adding a significant amount of extra seating. Apparently the stadium holds about 10,000 people and the games are all sold out. Our event does not start until Aug. 12 and it finishes Aug. 21. 
As a team, we feel ready. We are ready to trust the preparation that we have put in prior to this tournament. Everyone is anxious to get the tournament under way. We know that, at this point, it not a matter of practising to learn any new skills, but just to get in our repetitions and maintain what we have developed to this point.

Adjusting to life in Japan

Time is narrowing down so quickly. The fact that we are going to the Olympics is becoming more of a reality every day. Before, it seemed like it would never come and now it feels like time is on fast forward. 
We arrived in Japan July 23, after our 10-hour flight into Tokyo. Most of us didn’t get a wink of sleep the whole flight, so we were all fun to be around. Unfortunately, we had another six-hour bus trip until we arrived in Sendai, which is where we would play our next few games. By the time we got to our hotel, it was about midnight Japan time and we had officially been awake for at least 24 hours.   
We got settled into our rooms and had just lay down for about five minutes when the whole room started to shake. Within seconds, we quickly realized we were experiencing an earthquake. Having no idea what to do, my roommate and I ran out to the hallway to find the rest of our team trying to figure out the same thing. After a few minutes, the shaking stopped and a Japanese announcement came on the speakers — fortunately (sarcasm) for us, we had no idea what it said and assumed everything was fine. We woke up in the morning to find a letter informing us we had experienced a large earthquake that hit about 200 km away, but not to worry because the hotel is very anti-earthquake.
Since the quake, our time here in Japan has been wonderful. We are all amazed at how westernized it really is. Almost all the buildings have both Japanese and English writing. Several people are able to speak both languages. We are in a beautiful hotel that is surrounded by tons of shops and buildings.  Everyone here is incredibly welcoming and extremely respectful. The food is very reasonable; you are always able to find at least something that is identifiable. 
The day after we arrived, we had our first practice at the stadium — definitely a climate adjustment as it is incredibly humid here. About 10 minutes into practice, several of us literally look like we came out of a shower. Friday, we played the Netherlands (an Olympic contender) and beat them 6-0. Saturday we travelled about an hour to play a University team and beat them 7-1.
Today, we travel to a new location to train and play a few games against some of the Japanese pro teams. 

Home crowd buoys team's performance

July 21st
Just two more days until we get on a plane and travel to Japan. We just finished the end of our Canada tour, finishing third to Australia in the Canada Cup. It was a 10-day tournament which featured five of the eight Olympic teams competing in Beijing this summer.
We finished the round robin with a 6-0 record. In round robin, we played 26 of a possible 42 innings. This came as a result of several run rule scores that brought most of our games to an early end.
The best game of the round robin came on the last day against Australia. Both of the teams went into the game 5-0, the winner would finish first in the pool and the loser second. The attendance at the game was the largest crowd the Canada Cup has ever had in the 15 years it has run. There was close to 5,000 fans and several had to stand in the adjacent field’s bleachers to see over the stands. As a player, it was exhilarating to to play in front of a home crowd of that size. We ended up winning the game 8-2, putting us first in our pool.
Playoff round started on Friday and we played our first game against a club team from Washington. After beating them, we played Chinese Taipai (Olympic contender) that same night. We beat them 6-3, putting us into the undefeated game against Japan. We lost to Japan 6-0 on Saturday night, putting them directly into the championship game and us in the semifinal against Australia. We ended up losing to Australia Sunday morning 3-1 in a very close ball game Japan ended up winning the whole tournament with a score of 3-2 over Australia. This is the last international tournament leading into the Olympics.

Tourney provides brief respite from life on the road

We are finally back on Canadian soil and enjoying every minute of it.
We have now been in Ontario for about a week. Our first game on Canadian soil was in Brampton Canada Day and we ended up beating Venezuela 1-0. After the game, the local players were allotted a day to go home and visit family. It was my first time home in a few months and the last time until Christmas. Despite how short it felt, I was so grateful to sleep in my own bed.
On July 3, a dinner was held in Kitchener for a meet and greet with the team. My parents surprised me by inviting both sets of grandparents and two of my good friends from high school. It was a great opportunity to visit with family and friends.
Following our day off, we had two pretty long and hard days leading up to the Tri-Nations Cup. On July 4, we did a mini clinic/meet the team event with a few local teams that won a lottery to come on the field with us. It was refreshing to see the enthusiasm and passion these kids share for the game.
Last night, we played our first game of the Tri-Nations cup, against Australia, the No. 3-ranked team in the world, winning 8-2 in seven innings. We had a great crowd, very lively.
The Rowbust team, a dragon boat-racing team for breast cancer survivors, attended the game and brought along several family members. We met up for dinner following the game and I don’t think I have ever seen such a fun and energetic group. They were such a treat to be around.
Tonight, we play No. 2-ranked Japan at 8:30 p.m. at Peter Hallman Park. The outcome of that game will determine our seeding and game times for tomorrow. The semi-final will be Wednesday at 4 p.m. and the final will be at 6:30 p.m. If anyone is interested, we would love the support.

Storms and Stingers

Today wraps up the end of our very challenging trip in Rockford, IL. We are on our way to Akron, Ohio via bus. Ever since our arrival in Rockford on Thursday, nothing has gone as planned.
It started with about nine of us not having hotel rooms and having to get ready for our game in a large banquet room. It ended with us departing three hours later than scheduled after our bus broke down, not to mention the several other mishaps that took place in between.
Despite all the chaos, we were able to keep one thing consistent — our performance on the field. We swept the four-game series against the Rockford Thunder professional team, playing at a different park as a result of their field being flooded.
There was no question as to why they decided to pick this particular field after what took place at our Friday night game. I think I might have played on one of the most water absorbent fields in North America. Just before our game, thunderstorms literally put the whole field under water. The dugouts were flooded and every inch of dirt was covered with water. Thinking there was no way we would play, we packed our stuff just in time to find out we would be playing in less than an hour. I kid you not when I say that you would have never known it even rained. It was unbelievable and, as promised, we were playing 45 minutes later.
Probably my biggest highlight of the trip took place Saturday morning before our game. As we were walking into the park, someone on the team noticed one of the fans from the other diamond was sitting in Canada chairs. Having been in the U.S. for about a month now, it is always a treat to see fellow Canadians. However, it gets even better when I notice that it is a Newmarket Stingers men’s fast pitch team. Right away, everyone makes the connection that they are from my hometown. Who would have ever guessed I would run into fellow Newmarket residents while I was in Rockford, IL? Turns out they were playing in the U-23 world championships.
What a small world.