Softball at the 2004 Summer Olympics was held at the Olympic Softball Stadium in the Helliniko Olympic Complex from August 14 to 23. The United States (USA) won the gold while Australia (AUS) took silver and Japan (JPN) got bronze.
Catherine Leigh Osterman is a retired American softball pitcher originally from Houston, Texas. Osterman pitched on the USA Women's Softball Team which won the gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics and the silver medals in the 2008 and 2020 Summer Olympics. She was a collegiate four-time All-American and six-time professional All-Star, left-handed softball pitcher and former softball assistant coach. She completed her college eligibility in 2006 at the University of Texas at Austin, where she was a starting pitcher for the Longhorns since 2002. Osterman holds the Big 12 Conference pitching Triple Crown for her career wins, ERA, strikeouts, as well as shutouts, no-hitters, WHIP and perfect games, additionally claiming the NCAA Division I record for strikeout ratio (14.34). In the National Pro Fastpitch, Osterman was drafted #1 and is the career leader in strikeout ratio (10.90) and no-hitters (6). She is also one of NCAA's five pitchers to strikeout 1,000 batters with 100 wins, an ERA of under 1.00, and averaging double digit strikeouts. She was a member of the independent "This is Us" team. In May of 2020, she joined and eventually won the inaugural championship in the Athletes Unlimited Softball league as the top individual points leader. Osterman was also named #3 Greatest College Softball Player and the No. 1 pitcher in NCAA history.
Softball at the Summer Olympics was on the Olympic programme from 1996 to 2008. It was introduced at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Softball was removed from the programme for 2012 and 2016, but was added for a one off appearance, along with baseball, for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
The Connecticut Brakettes is a women's fastpitch softball team based in Stratford, Connecticut. The team has won many state, regional, national, and international tournaments.
The Netherlands women's national softball team is the national team of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is governed by the Royal Netherlands Baseball and Softball Federation. It is a member nation of the Confederation of European Baseball and the International Baseball Federation.
The China women's national softball team is the national team of the People's Republic of China. It is governed by the Chinese Softball Association and takes part in international softball competitions. They are ranked number four according to the 2006 ISF World Championship.
The Japan women's national softball team is the national team of Japan in international softball competitions. It is governed by the Japan Softball Association. They are currently ranked #2 in the world by the International Softball Federation. In four Olympic Games, since 1996 until 2008, Japan has won one gold medal, a silver medal and a bronze medal. In the top four nations at the Olympics, Japan is the second most successful national team, following the United States, and beating out Australia and China with one silver medal. After winning the gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics, the Japanese national team was defeated by the United States team at the XII Women's Softball World Championship in Caracas, Venezuela.
Haruka Saito is a Japanese softball player. She played in the Hitachi softball club from 1994 to 2006 and represented Japan as part of the Japan women's national softball team in the 1996, 2000, and 2004 Olympic Games. In 2000 and 2004, she played in the teams that won the bronze and silver medals, respectively.
The Syracuse Orange softball team represents Syracuse University in NCAA Division I college softball. The team participates in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Orange are currently led by head coach Shannon Doepking. The team plays its home games at Skytop Softball Stadium located on the university's campus.
Chinese Taipei women's national softball team is the national team for Chinese Taipei. The team competed at the 1986 ISF Women's World Championship in Auckland, New Zealand where they finished sixth. The team competed at the 1990 ISF Women's World Championship in Normal, Illinois where they finished with 6 wins and 3 losses. The team competed at the 1994 ISF Women's World Championship in St. John's, Newfoundland where they finished fifth. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished seventh. The team competed at the 2002 ISF Women's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished third. The team competed at the 2006 ISF Women's World Championship in Beijing, China where they finished eighth. The team competed at the 2010 ISF Women's World Championship in Caracas, Venezuela where they finished seventh.
Venezuela women's national softball team is the national team for Venezuela. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished eighth. The team competed at the 2002 ISF Women's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished tenth. The team competed at the 2006 ISF Women's World Championship in Beijing, China where they finished seventh. The team competed at the 2010 ISF Women's World Championship in Caracas, Venezuela where they finished fifth.
South Africa women's national softball team is the national team for South Africa administered by Softball South Africa. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished fifteenth. The team competed at the 2002 ISF Women's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished fourteenth. The team competed at the 2006 ISF Women's World Championship in Beijing, China where they finished fifteenth. The team competed at the 2010 ISF Women's World Championship in Caracas, Venezuela where they finished fifteenth.
United States women's junior national softball team is the junior national under-17 team for United States. The team competed at the 1985 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Fargo, North Dakota where they finished third. The team competed at the 1987 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma where they finished first. The team competed at the 1991 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Adelaide, Australia where they had 11 wins and 2 losses. The team competed at the 1995 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Normal, Illinois where they finished first. The team competed at the 1999 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Taipei, Taiwan where they finished second. The team competed at the 2003 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Nanjing, China where they finished second. The team competed at the 2007 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Enschede, the Netherlands where they finished first. The team competed at the 2011 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Cape Town, South Africa where they finished first. The team competed at the 2013 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Brampton, Ontario where they finished second.
The Asian Women’s Softball Championship is the main championship tournament between national women's softball teams in Asia, governed by the Softball Confederation of Asia.
Kiyohara Nayu is a Japanese softball player who plays as a catcher. She represented Japan at the 2020 Summer Olympics and won a gold medal.
Yuka Ichiguchi is a Japanese softball player who plays as a infielder. She helped Japan qualify for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Hitomi Kawabata (川畑瞳) is a Japanese softball player who plays as a infielder. She represented Japan at the 2020 Summer Olympics and won a gold medal.
Yu Yamamoto is a Japanese softball player. She competed in the 2020 Summer Olympics and won a gold medal.
Minori Naito is a Japanese softball player. She competed in the 2020 Summer Olympics and won a gold medal.
Saki Yamazaki is a Japanese softball player. She competed in the 2020 Summer Olympics.
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