Bird, Alvarez to lead U.S. at Opening Ceremony
Fourtime Olympic women’s basketball gold medalist Sue Bird and baseball player Eddy Alvarez were chosen as U.S. flag bearers for the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics on Friday night.
Alvarez, who won a silver medal in speedskating at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, and Bird were chosen by a vote of fellow U.S. athletes. They are the first two to share the honor of leading the delegation into the ceremony.
Bird is the second U.S. women’s basketball player to carry the flag, joining current coach Dawn Staley, who did it at the 2004 Games.
“It’s an incredible honor to be selected the flag bearer for Team USA,” Bird said. “I know what that means, because I got to witness Dawn Staley go through it when she was selected in 2004. It’s an honor that is bigger than the moment in that you’ve been selected by your fellow Team USA athletes to represent the entire delegation, and it will last forever.”
Bird will be trying to win an unprecedented fifth gold medal with teammate Diana Taurasi, which would give them the most in golds in women’s basketball history.
Alvarez becomes the first baseball player to carry the flag for the U.S. The sport returned to the Games at the request of Japan after being absent from the previous two Olympics. He made his majorleague debut last year with the Miami Marlins, but has been in the minors this year.
U.S. softball 20: In Fukushima, Monica Abbott pitched a onehitter, center fielder Haylie McCleney and second baseman Ali Aguilar combined to throw out the potential tying run at the plate in the sixth inning and the United States beat Canada 10 on Thursday for a 20 start.
Abbott, a Santa Cruz native, struck out nine, walked three and needed 102 pitches to throw the Americans’ second consecutive onehitter. Cat Osterman, the Americans’ senior player at age 38, struck out nine over six innings and Abbott struck out the side in the seventh to finish an opening 20 win over Italy on Wednesday.
Amanda Chidester hit an RBI single in the fifth off loser Jenna Caira that scored McCleney, who went 3for3 with a walk and has reached base seven times in the two games.
Trying to regain the gold medal they lost to Japan in 2008, the Americans are getting just enough offense. The U.S. was 1for8 with six strikeouts with runners in scoring position.
Brisbane in 2032: Brisbane was picked to host the 2032 Olympics, the inevitable winner of a onecity race steered by the IOC to avoid rival bids.
The Games will go back to Australia 32 years after the popular 2000 Sydney Olympics. Melbourne hosted in 1956.
Brisbane follows 2028 host Los Angeles in getting 11 years to prepare for hosting the Games. Paris will host in 2024. Athlete/mother blasts IOC: The captain of Spain’s synchronized swimming team has complained about the “drastic measures” by Olympic organizers that have made it impossible for her to take her baby to the Tokyo Games.
Ona Carbonell used her Instagram account to say she had to leave behind her 11monthold son “despite the appearance of some news suggesting the possibility that we athletes could travel to the Tokyo Olympic Games accompanied by our infants or young children.”
Family members were not allowed to accompany athletes to Tokyo because of coronavirus restrictions but the International Olympic Committee had announced last month that nursing mothers would be allowed to bring their babies to Japan.
Carbonell told Spanish media that nursing mothers would have to leave the Olympic Village bubble to breastfeed their children, increasing their risk of infection and putting their teammates at a greater risk as well. The babies and caregivers have to stay at hotels.