U.S. Dominance Caused Softball's Olympic Demise

[bullwark]

NY Times

By WILLIAM C. RHODEN

Published: July 9, 2005

LISA FERNANDEZ was sitting in the stands at the Softball City complex in South Surrey, British Columbia, late Thursday night when a representative of USA Softball bent down and whispered, "I have some bad news."

Fernandez stiffened.

"Normally, when someone says that, it's about a family member," Fernandez said yesterday in a telephone interview from South Surrey, where she was attending the Canada Cup.

Thankfully, the news was not about a family member, though it was almost as devastating. The International Olympic Committee had voted yesterday in Singapore to drop softball and baseball from the 2012 Games.

Fernandez sat in disbelief. Less than 11 months earlier, Fernandez was in Athens, pitching the United States women to a third consecutive Olympic gold medal. There was speculation that Jacques Rogge, the International Olympic Committee president, wanted to get rid of softball a couple of years ago, but the United States performance made it clear that while the team was still overwhelming, the global field was better than it had been.

"I thought there was no doubt that we had solidified our spot in the movement," Fernandez said. "I just sat there, looking at those 15 kids on the field representing the United States for the first time," she added, referring to the prestigious international women's fast-pitch competition. "Part of them died. After the game when the coach told them about the vote, their faces turned white, and I don't think they fully understand the impact of what happened. This is devastating."

The I.O.C. decision will affect thousands of players around the world, but make no mistake, this vote was aimed at the United States - a backlash against the lopsided dominance of women's softball and the perceived arrogance of the men's baseball.

If the United States Olympic Committee has any spine, it will warn the I.O.C. that we might boycott the Beijing Games in 2008 if this vote is not, at least, reconsidered. If the I.O.C. plays hardball with our softball, the U.S.O.C. should play hardball back.

Bob Watson, Major League Baseball's disciplinarian, said yesterday, "This was not just a slap in the face at the United States, but a slap at the sport of baseball."

In North Carolina, Ron Radigonda, the executive director of USA Softball, said the vote was "unimaginable."

"We knew there was a possibility but not a probability," he said.

A three-time gold medalist, Fernandez was the cornerstone of the United States team and the face of women's softball. The sport made its Olympic debut as a medal sport at the 1996 Games in Atlanta, where Fernandez led the United States to its first gold medal.

The United States women are being punished for being too good. In Athens, they outscored their opponents, 51-1, and pitched eight consecutive shutouts before Australia scored in the gold medal game.

Opponents groused, pointing out that the United States women play college ball and some play professionally. The Australian coach, Simon Roskvist, complained to reporters in Athens after losing the gold medal game, "They've got 40 million players to select from."

You do not penalize excellence. As we've seen in men's Olympic basketball, the world will eventually catch up.

"They didn't penalize the men," Fernandez said, referring to the Dream Team. "No one wanted to kill the men's basketball when they were winning by 30 and 40 points. That's what Olympics are about: allowing programs to improve. That's what makes it so special when the rest of the world catches up."

Some members of the I.O.C., citing cost and attendance, were not willing to wait.

But while my heart aches for the women, I don't have much sympathy for the United States men. They are being punished for not doing their best by not sending their best players. While the steroid issue was thrown around as an excuse for yesterday's vote - Major League Baseball had never embraced Olympic-caliber drug testing - the real stone in the I.O.C.'s shoe was M.L.B.'s refusal to send a dream team of professionals to an Olympic Games.

Baseball points to scheduling: "Major League Baseball has a 162-game schedule in 182 days," said Watson, who put together the 2000 gold-medal-winning team. "I don't see how they could stop the season longer than three or four days."

Unlike the National Hockey League and the National Basketball Association, which sent star pro players to the Olympic Games, baseball sent talented young professional players for the first time in 2000. "We sent our best young guys -Double A, Triple A and a couple of vets," Watson said. "And we won the gold medal. What more do you want?"

That's fine. Except that the United States failed to qualify for the 2004 Games. The United States women have been consistently stellar and are being punished for it. After a 30-year effort to make softball an Olympic sport, the United States women's celebrated success in three consecutive Olympics and they mistakenly assumed the goal had been achieved and that the rights they had won were set.

"This is something I thought we had beaten," Fernandez said.

The lesson of yesterday's vote goes back to a fundamental principle of the game: Never take your eye off the ball - or the beast.

[Markeymark]

There will still be a world championship, it just won't be the Olympics with all the high-profile recognition.