The U.S. women’s soccer team is the heavy Olympic favorite, seeking a feat never achieved before
Jonathan Tannenwald, The Philadelphia Inquirer
The U.S. women’s soccer team is the heavy Olympic favorite, seeking a feat never achieved before
Maddie Meyer/Getty Images North America/TNS
In this photo from July 1, 2021, Tobin Heath (7) of United States celebrates with Christen Press (11), Alex Morgan (13), Lindsey Horan (9) and Emily Sonnett, (14) after scoring a goal against Mexico at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images/TNS)
Maddie Meyer/Getty Images North America/TNS
In this photo from July 1, 2021, Tobin Heath (7) of United States celebrates with Christen Press (11), Alex Morgan (13), Lindsey Horan (9) and Emily Sonnett, (14) after scoring a goal against Mexico at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images/TNS)
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
About the photo: Flames burn in the Olympic cauldron after being lit during the opening ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016.
The Associated Press has covered every modern Olympics, and that includes photographs of the Olympic flame both along the torch relay route and in the cauldron.
The Olympic flame was introduced at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics. The torch relay began eight years later ahead of the 1936 Berlin Games.
The flame begins its life at a lighting ceremony in Ancient Olympia, where the original Olympics were held for centuries.
Over the years, the flame has played a bigger and bigger role at the opening ceremony, with the identity of the final torch bearer — often former Olympic greats from the host country — being the topic of feverish discussion.
Muhammad Ali, a gold medalist at the 1960 Rome Olympics, lit the torch at the 1996 Atlanta Games. Four years later, Cathy Freeman lit the flame in Sydney and became the only person to light a cauldron and win a gold medal in the same games.
One of the most memorable lightings came at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics when Paralympic archer Antonio Rebollo shot a fiery arrow over the top of the cauldron, igniting the gases from within.
The torch relay for the postponed Tokyo Games began Thursday, but don’t expect to know the name of the person who light the cauldron on July 23 at the opening ceremony until moments before it happens.
And when it does, the AP will be there to document it.
AP FILE
About the photo: Flames burn in the Olympic cauldron after being lit during the opening ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016.
The Associated Press has covered every modern Olympics, and that includes photographs of the Olympic flame both along the torch relay route and in the cauldron.
The Olympic flame was introduced at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics. The torch relay began eight years later ahead of the 1936 Berlin Games.
The flame begins its life at a lighting ceremony in Ancient Olympia, where the original Olympics were held for centuries.
Over the years, the flame has played a bigger and bigger role at the opening ceremony, with the identity of the final torch bearer — often former Olympic greats from the host country — being the topic of feverish discussion.
Muhammad Ali, a gold medalist at the 1960 Rome Olympics, lit the torch at the 1996 Atlanta Games. Four years later, Cathy Freeman lit the flame in Sydney and became the only person to light a cauldron and win a gold medal in the same games.
One of the most memorable lightings came at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics when Paralympic archer Antonio Rebollo shot a fiery arrow over the top of the cauldron, igniting the gases from within.
The torch relay for the postponed Tokyo Games began Thursday, but don’t expect to know the name of the person who light the cauldron on July 23 at the opening ceremony until moments before it happens.
And when it does, the AP will be there to document it.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Doves are released during the opening ceremony for the Tenth Olympiad in Los Angeles on July 30, 1932. The athletes of various countries stand on the field.
AP FILE
Doves are released during the opening ceremony for the Tenth Olympiad in Los Angeles on July 30, 1932. The athletes of various countries stand on the field.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
The Olympic torch in Lustgarten, Berlin, is lit Aug. 1, 1936, where will be guarded by members of the Hitler Youth until it is brought to the Olympic stadium for the opening of the games in the afternoon. The torch relay was not always a fixture of the modern Olympics, which began in 1896. The relay tradition began with Adolph Hitler's 1936 Olympics in Berlin.
AP FILE
The Olympic torch in Lustgarten, Berlin, is lit Aug. 1, 1936, where will be guarded by members of the Hitler Youth until it is brought to the Olympic stadium for the opening of the games in the afternoon. The torch relay was not always a fixture of the modern Olympics, which began in 1896. The relay tradition began with Adolph Hitler's 1936 Olympics in Berlin.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
British athlete John Mark runs with the Olympic flame, left, and on right, lights the cauldron during the opening ceremony of the XIV Olympiad, in Wembley Stadium, London on July 29, 1948.
AP FILE
British athlete John Mark runs with the Olympic flame, left, and on right, lights the cauldron during the opening ceremony of the XIV Olympiad, in Wembley Stadium, London on July 29, 1948.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Australian athlete Ron Clark, bottom left, plunges the Olympic torch into the bronze bowl, to light the Olympic flame, which will burn throughout the XVI Olympic Games, in Melbourne, Australia, Nov. 22, 1956.
AP FILE
Australian athlete Ron Clark, bottom left, plunges the Olympic torch into the bronze bowl, to light the Olympic flame, which will burn throughout the XVI Olympic Games, in Melbourne, Australia, Nov. 22, 1956.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Italian student Giancarlo Peris holds the torch after lighting the Olympic flame in the tall tripod brazier on the perimeter of the Olympic Stadium in Rome, Aug. 25, 1960, at the formal opening of the XVII modern Olympiad.
AP FILE
Italian student Giancarlo Peris holds the torch after lighting the Olympic flame in the tall tripod brazier on the perimeter of the Olympic Stadium in Rome, Aug. 25, 1960, at the formal opening of the XVII modern Olympiad.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Japanese runner Yoshinori Sakai runs with the Olympic torch to light the cauldron, right, during the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Oct. 10, 1964.
AP FILE
Japanese runner Yoshinori Sakai runs with the Olympic torch to light the cauldron, right, during the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Oct. 10, 1964.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
The Olympic Torch burns during the opening day ceremony in Mexico City, Oct. 12, 1968.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Runner Guenther Zahn stands near the Olympic flame he lit above the Olympic Stadium on Aug. 26, 1972, during the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympic Games in Munich, Germany.
AP FILE
Runner Guenther Zahn stands near the Olympic flame he lit above the Olympic Stadium on Aug. 26, 1972, during the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympic Games in Munich, Germany.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Gymnastics athlete Sandra Henderson, left, and track and field athlete Stéphane Préfontaine Lighting of the Olympic Flame during the 1976 Montreal Olympics, July 17, 1976.
AP FILE
Gymnastics athlete Sandra Henderson, left, and track and field athlete Stéphane Préfontaine Lighting of the Olympic Flame during the 1976 Montreal Olympics, July 17, 1976.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Soviet athlete Sergei Belov runs with the Olympic flame past the Olympic team from Afghanistan during opening ceremonies of the 1980 Summer Olympic Games in Moscow on Saturday, July 20, 1980. A number of teams boycotted the ceremony to protest Soviet intervention into Afghanistan.
AP FILE
Soviet athlete Sergei Belov runs with the Olympic flame past the Olympic team from Afghanistan during opening ceremonies of the 1980 Summer Olympic Games in Moscow on Saturday, July 20, 1980. A number of teams boycotted the ceremony to protest Soviet intervention into Afghanistan.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Rafer Johnson, 1960 gold medalist for the decathlon, lights the Olympic torch during the Opening Ceremonies of the 23rd Olympiad in Los Angeles in 1984.
AP FILE
Rafer Johnson, 1960 gold medalist for the decathlon, lights the Olympic torch during the Opening Ceremonies of the 23rd Olympiad in Los Angeles in 1984.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
An arrow carrying the Olympic flame leaves the bow of Antonio Rebollo to light the Olympic Torch and open the XXV Olympic in Barcelona on Saturday night, July 25, 1992.
AP FILE
An arrow carrying the Olympic flame leaves the bow of Antonio Rebollo to light the Olympic Torch and open the XXV Olympic in Barcelona on Saturday night, July 25, 1992.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Boxing legend Muhammed Ali lights the Olympic flame, as American swimmer Janet Evans looks on during the 1996 Summer Olympic Games opening ceremony in Atlanta, July 19, 1996.
AP FILE
Boxing legend Muhammed Ali lights the Olympic flame, as American swimmer Janet Evans looks on during the 1996 Summer Olympic Games opening ceremony in Atlanta, July 19, 1996.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Australian runner Cathy Freeman stands under the Olympic torch after lighting the flame at the opening ceremonies for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, Sept. 15, 2000.
AP FILE
Australian runner Cathy Freeman stands under the Olympic torch after lighting the flame at the opening ceremonies for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, Sept. 15, 2000.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
The Olympic cauldron rises in this multiple exposure photo, left, after Nikolas Kaklamanakis, right, lit it during the Opening Ceremony of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Friday, Aug. 13, 2004. The photo at left is a single frame time exposure interrupted at six intervals while the Olympic cauldron rises after being lit.
AP FILE
The Olympic cauldron rises in this multiple exposure photo, left, after Nikolas Kaklamanakis, right, lit it during the Opening Ceremony of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Friday, Aug. 13, 2004. The photo at left is a single frame time exposure interrupted at six intervals while the Olympic cauldron rises after being lit.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
AP FILE
Jorge Alberto Oliveira Gomes lights the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016.
AP FILE
Jorge Alberto Oliveira Gomes lights the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016.
Will this be the last time Americans dominate the Olympics?
Kim Kyung-Hoon/Pool Photo via AP
The torch is prepared to be lit during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Torch Relay Grand Start in Naraha, Fukushima prefecture, northeastern Japan, Thursday, March 25, 2021. The torch relay for the postponed Tokyo Olympics began its 121-day journey across Japan on Thursday and is headed toward the opening ceremony in Tokyo on July 23.
Kim Kyung-Hoon/Pool Photo via AP
The torch is prepared to be lit during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Torch Relay Grand Start in Naraha, Fukushima prefecture, northeastern Japan, Thursday, March 25, 2021. The torch relay for the postponed Tokyo Olympics began its 121-day journey across Japan on Thursday and is headed toward the opening ceremony in Tokyo on July 23.
For all that’s been said about the U.S. women’s soccer team this year, there has been unusually little talk about the Olympics’ biggest soccer story line.
In the 25 years since women’s soccer became an Olympic sport, no reigning World Cup champion has ever won gold at the following Summer Games.
Not the U.S. superpowers of the 1990s and today; not the German dynasty that won back-to-back World Cups in the 2000s. There have been six opportunities for it to happen, and it never has.
The question of why has been out there ever since women’s soccer joined the Summer Games in 1996. There have been lots of answers over time, from post-World Cup fatigue (and in recent years, a deluge of sponsor commitments) to increased parity in the sport. And of course, a knockout competition always produces upsets.
This year, the U.S. women will be the seventh reigning World Cup champion to try to win Olympic gold. Will they break the hex, or will they be the latest team to succumb to it?
The history
Norway had the first chance after winning the 1995 World Cup in Sweden, a tournament in which it beat the United States — reigning World Cup champion from 1991 — in the semifinals. The Americans got revenge in the 1996 Olympics, beating Norway in the semifinals and China in the gold medal game.
You need only mention the year 1999 to know what happened that summer at the Rose Bowl. But a year later in Sydney, Australia, Norway dethroned the dynasty led by Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Brandi Chastain, and Briana Scurry with a 3-2 extra-time win in the gold medal game.
Germany won back-to-back women’s World Cups in 2003 and 2007, including a win over the U.S. in Portland, Ore., in the 2003 semifinals. Yet there were Olympic semifinal losses in 2004 and 2008, to the U.S. in the former tournament and Brazil in the latter. The Americans beat Brazil in both gold medal games.
Japan won the 2011 World Cup, beating a resurgent American team in the final. The next summer in London, the U.S. beat Japan in the final, 2-1, with Carli Lloyd scoring both — the second straight gold medal game in which she scored the winner.
In 2015, Lloyd led the Americans back to the World Cup summit, with a hat trick in the final to crown a 5-2 win over Japan and end a 16-year World Cup title drought. But a year later in Brazil, Sweden stunned the U.S. with a penalty kick shootout win in the quarterfinals, leaving the Americans with their worst-ever major tournament finish.
The current cycle began in 2019, when the U.S. ran over the most stacked women’s World Cup field ever. The Americans won all seven games without needing penalty kicks, a feat never achieved by their legendary predecessors. (The 2015 team tied Sweden in the group stage, the 1999 final went to penalties, and the 1991 team played six games in a 12-team field.)
More than just favorites
The COVID-19 pandemic’s delaying of the Olympics by a year means that this tournament is the first that has not come in the year right after a World Cup.
The extra rest players have had as a result means that the post-World Cup fatigue often cited by title-winners (including a deluge of off-field sponsor commitments) isn’t as much of a factor. But of course, the pandemic has created an entirely different set of challenges.
Just ask American star Alex Morgan, one of many Olympians barred from bringing their young children to Japan in order to reduce the number of foreigners entering the country.
Though the world has changed a lot since 2019, the top of the Olympic odds board is the same. The U.S. is the overwhelming favorite to win gold, thanks to its stacked squad and a weaker-than-usual field. European powers France and Germany failed to qualify, while usual contenders Canada, Great Britain, and Australia have been underwhelming lately.
The Americans’ top rivals for gold are likely to be the Netherlands, led by prolific forwards Vivianne Miedema and Lieke Martens, and Brazil, led by dazzling playmakers Marta and Debinha. Japan could be a dark horse, playing at home with a young squad that’s been growing toward this summer.
But really, it’s the U.S. vs. the field. And the odds became even better when FIFA and the IOC recently agreed to expand Olympic rosters from 18 players to 22. The Americans’ depth is their greatest asset, and the four players who had been alternates — forward Lynn Williams, playmaker Catarina Macario, defender Casey Krueger, and third-string goalkeeper Jane Campbell — will now be available for games.
Though game day rosters will remain at 18 players, having all 22 players to pick from means U.S. coach Vlatko Andonovski can rotate his team as much as he needs to across the group stage’s three games in seven days.
Extra motivation
The truth is, the U.S. team’s quest to make history hasn’t come up much because it hasn’t needed to. The women’s soccer world already knows, and doesn’t need reminding — especially this U.S. team’s veterans, who are trying to do what Hamm, Abby Wambach, and so many others couldn’t.
Yes, this team is ready to play with a chip on its shoulder again, even as women’s soccer’s biggest superpower.
The players haven’t forgotten how much they were criticized for running up the score in the 2019 World Cup, by the same kinds of people who lavish praise on men’s sports teams who do the same. Sweden is too good a team to let that happen, No. 5 in FIFA’s global rankings.
But if the door opens elsewhere in the tournament, don’t be surprised if the Americans charge right through it.
They’ve already found motivation beyond the field. As Morgan packed her bags for the flight, instead of packing supplies for Charlie she packed fuel for her fire.
“I’m going to miss my baby girl so much this month,” she wrote on Instagram. “Charlie girl, I’ll make it worth it!”
You could feel the rest of the world shudder as they read.
