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Japan beats U.S. to win softball gold Today 06:10 am JST Today | 11:27 am JST YOKOHAMA
They marched single file onto the podium near shortstop with the blank expressions of the condemned.
When silver medals were handed out, they dangled them around each other’s necks like weights.
Eyes were red and damp. Perfunctory waves for the cameras were managed. Hands fidgeted with bouquets of sunflowers.
Stunned, yes. Heartbroken, yes. Most precisely: devastated.
“It stings,” Cat Osterman would say more than two hours later. “I’ve never been on a team that had so much fight.”
Just not enough.
Japan won its second straight Olympic softball gold medal, beating the United States 2-0 Tuesday night behind 39-year-old Yukiko Ueno in an emotional repeat of the 2008 victory in Beijing.
Japan Beats US 2–0, Turns Incredible DP to Win Softball Gold
YOKOHAMA, Japan won its second straight Olympic softball gold medal, beating the United States 2–0 Tuesday in an emotional repeat of its 2008 victory in Beijing that again left the Americans in tears.
Yukiko Ueno took a one-hitter into the sixth inning, five days after her 39th birthday, and Japan snuffed out an American rally attempt with an acrobatic double play in the sixth inning that will long be replayed.
Japan led 2–0 when Michelle Moultrie singled leading off the sixth off hard-throwing 20-year-old left-hander Miu Goto.
Goto dealt Haylie McCleney her first strikeout of the Olympics with a 69 mph pitch at the hands, then allowed a single to Janie Reed.
Janie Reed (OREGON) stood out with two hits, but the team struggled to break through all night.
Reed’s triple in the first inning put the U.S. in scoring position early on with only one out. But her attempt to score from a dropped strike three went unrewarded, as Japan turned the double play at first and home to end the inning.
Japan took the lead in the fourth off of an RBI single from Mana Atsumi and tacked on another RBI single from Yamato Fujita in the fifth.
As the final inning began, Japan threatened to extend their lead even further. But with two out and a runner on first, Fujita hit a looping fly ball to left field, only to see Reed read it perfectly, scaling the wall to make a spectacular catch and robbing Japan of the home run to keep the U.S. in the game.
Jul 27, 2021
Gold is on the line in a much-anticipated softball showdown and one of the best gymnasts of all-time looks to win her first medal of the Games on Day 4 of the Tokyo Olympics. Unfortunately, an approaching tropical storm could also affect play in a variety of sports.
Here are the key events to look out for, and if you’re wondering where to watch the action in Japan, check your local TV listings or make use of this handy streaming guide by The Japan Times.
Surfing: Weather wreaks havoc
One of the debut sports at the Olympics is also one of the competitions most affected by weather. In fact, much of the schedule, and whether the competition is a go on a given day, is decided by one man.