(We made a list. We checked it twice. From now until New Year’s Eve, we are counting down the top ten headlines of 2018. Today, we look at #2 on our list.)
2. Team USA earns berth in 2020 Olympics
Softball returns to the Olympic Games in 2020 after an eight-year absence, and this summer’s slate of international softball saw the United States clinch the first qualifying berth for the Games.
The United States ultimately only needed to reach the championship game of the World Championships in Chiba, Japan to clinch their spot in Tokyo in 2020. Set to face off against Japan for the world title, the US earned their way into the the Games by default; as the host country, Japan was already “in” the field of six teams.
Although the United States was long considered a lock to not only appear in the 2020 Games, but also contend for the gold medal, the team’s officially qualifying for the event sparked much celebration from all corners of the sport in the US. The dream of countless young players has been to play in the Olympics, and though the eventual roster will carry fewer than twenty players, those dreams became a reality once again for many.
Former Olympic great Cat Osterman also announced her return to the pitching circle to mount an attempt to be on that 2020 roster, a story that was #8 on our list of top headlines of 2018.
Team USA has medaled in every Olympics that softball has been played, including earning the Gold in 1996; 2000; and 2004; and the silver medal in 2008, the last time that softball was played in the Olympics.
