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© 2012 AFPU.S. beats Japan 2-1 to win gold in women's soccer
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© 2012 AFP
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CrazyJoe
"The thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat."
Yubaru
The women played a great game and just got beat. There is nothing to hang their heads down about, they should be very proud of their accomplishment. Congratulations for winning the silver and thank you.
Now I hope you ladies get first class seats on your flight back to Japan! Or at least one class better than the men!
sonnoujoui
2 clear penalties not given to Japan. 2 gifts to the USA. What a farce.
paulinusa
It was a well fought contest by both teams. U.S. gets gold , Japan silver, and Canada bronze. Not such a bad outcome.
Daijoboots
Congrats Japan on their silver and a good game to watch. My lack of quality sleep has never been so rewarding!
Lunchbox
Yay, now we can get back to the Olympics! I'm so bored with the media frenzy around Nadeshiko hogging the spotlight from all the other Olympians for the past year.
Congrats on Silver by the way, should be proud.
LostinNagoya
Congrats USA. Some are saying that both victories over Japan and Canada are undeserved, but that's sports. A thrilling match, at least it ended up in penalties - which is unfair, IMO.
my2sense
Good job to both teams. Now back to the games/other sports NHK. That goes for women's wrestling too.
umbrella
Well thank god that's over. Apparently there are other sports and other countries in the Olympics....
Tatanka
So, will they get to fly Business Class back to Japan???
bass4funk
Congrats USA, USA! Great game, NO doubt! I'm so proud of our girls!!! It had all the excitement that the men couldn't deliver. I have to say, Japan did an awesome job, they proved to the world they are a force to be reckoned with. I have nothing but respect for them. Out of all the other teams, Japan was the best and the ladies had class, great sportsmanship, they have a great future ahead of them. Even though they didn't win gold, they walk away with silver and they should walk away that they made it to the finals and destroyed some very good teams. I know it's not easy, but even the US women's team knew, it wasn't going to be an easy win. And yes, I do Japan gets a first class trip back home, after all they went through, they most definitely deserve it!
toguro
"2 clear penalties not given to Japan. 2 gifts to the USA. What a farce."
@sonnojoui:
There were missed calls on both sides of the ball. Eat sour grapes much? LOL
toguro
It was a very good game. Congratulations to both teams. Team Japan has nothing at all to be ashamed of. They left it all on the field, and gave it 110%. I was very impressed with the game.
mrcliff
Good game Japan. I was cheering for the US but, I like it when you guys do well.
danalawton1@yahoo.com
That the USA and Japan both made it to the final match in both the World Cup and Olympics shows clearly that luck really was not a factor.... the coincidence would be just too great. I rarely see a Soccer match that does not have questionable calls and elements of luck but in this case two quite evenly matched superior teams fought a hard match. Had Japan really been superior today then they'd have scored more goals and won despite circumstance... it really comes down to that. The great teams overcome adversity and score. Had the USA lost today then I'm sure the calls that had not gone their way would have stood out more.
bass4funk
@mrcliff
You summed it up. Great game, know doubt Japan is my next favorite team!
Yubaru
On another soccer note, the bronze medal game between France and Canada was something else. France had something like 25 shots on goal compared to Canada's 5 including the winner! Congratulations too to Canada!
CrazyJoe
Keep your heads up high Nadeshiko Japan! Every second of the game was worth watching even at those wee hours.
hoserfella
I think hubris caught up with a few members on this team, one of whom said Japan "wanted" the gold medal more than the US in an interview yesterday.
CrazyJoe
“Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but the ability to start over.”
smithinjapan
Sounds like it was a pretty great game, and the Japanese women have absolutely nothing to hand their heads about. Sure, hoserfella may be right about the hubris thing -- and the media definitely should feel ashamed for feeding into it and adding pressure otherwise -- but both teams played their hearts out and (again, by the sounds of it) it was intense.
I have to say that while you cannot really compare the men's and women's camps in Olympic soccer (given that women use their professionals while the men can only use the under 23s), the women's soccer in this round has thusfar been more exciting (I want to see the Korea/Japan match tomorrow morning, though!), particularly from the semi-finals.
The fact that it really could have been anyone's gold when it came to the semis, and the outcome is something the teams should be mostly proud of.
Alphaape
So does the Silver medal mean that the Japanese women have done better than the Japanese men in Olympic soccer? What's more important, will they get to travel Business Class vice the men since they have won the Silver.
smithinjapan
toguro: "Eat sour grapes much?"
I agree with your sentiment towards the poster in question, but you're misusing sour grapes. "Sour grapes" would be if Nadeshiko Japan, or a fan of theirs, came on and said, "It's okay -- we really didn't want to win gold anyway. The Olympics aren't important". Someone complaining about the result when it really wasn't all that unfair is just bitter (or sour).
I haven't read about any outrageous calls, like in the Canada/US game.
Carcharodon
Great game, highlights were enjoyable. the US woman scare me though. They be tough girls.
hobart_mark
U.S.A. rocks!!!!!!!!
LostinNagoya
JT could have a "edit" function, it would be good.
By
I meant: "at least it didn't end up in penalties..."
Wakarimasen
I guess this means Premium Economy again.
nath
Congratulations to both Japan and the USA for jobs well done!
shanabelle
Congratulations to team USA for winning the gold, and to Nadeshiko Japan for playing their hearts out. That was a great, memorable game played in good spirit.
Mark Mays
@tideofiron - you know nothing about jingoism if you aren't in the states. There's just no escape from it. No way it is worse in Japan.
The ref did play an unfortunate role in the game today. Aside from the handling call not given, there was another clear penalty when a US player literally tackled a Japanese player in the box, both arms wrapped around and brought her down.
It isn't simply a matter of "calls not going your way" in this case. Save that for a ref that missed a chance to issue a yellow card or an offside call. If they came to my court I'd call it "gross negligence" on the refs part. Those are game changing moments, stopping a clear goal scoring opportunity that should have given a penalty, and a red card should have been shown. Twice.
That's not "sour grapes."
dmhondz
Congratulations to both teams! That fine save by Solo that could have tied the game at 2-2 was such a beauty and a hearthbreaker at the same time.
The_True
This is what happen when people get over confident!
GW
congrats to the yanks but too bad the refs figured highly in their last two matches
YongYang
Fantastic same. The joy and fun at which the Japanese team recieved there medals actually made me cry. Brilliant stuff.
smartacus
The sportsmanship of Japan was really a pleasant change from the other events. After their initial disappointment, the Japanese women picked themselves up, bowed and waved to the crowd and started enjoying themselves with their silver medals. That's the way it should be.
lrodriguezsosa
Way to go Japan! You have a great future.
oldsanno
http://www.cbssports.com/olympics/blog/eye-on-olympics/19762227
America is so lucky?
paulinusa
Why was it so predictable that a few of you just wouldn't accept a loss by Japan's team without resorting to carping about something or another? Face up to it: There is NO controversy with the outcome of this match. Good for the US AND Japan.
Mocheake
U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!
freakashow
Great game! Congratulations to the U.S. for winning the gold medal and to Japan for playing your hearts out. Both sides created many chances to score and the U.S. just made one more of it count than Japan did. Iwabuchi looked especially great as a substitution in the second half. She is only 19 years old and is one to watch in the future.
I was just a bit appalled that the U.S. women would don white shirts (which were obviously pre-planned and printed beforehand) emblazoned with the words "GREATNESS" right after winning the game. It looked like "World Champion" shirts professional athletes don after winning the Superbowl or NBA championship. I could understand running around the stadium each with an American flag waving, but wearing T-shirts that proclaim you're the greatest is a bit classless. Never seen anything like that in any Olympics.
freakashow
This was an interesting comment I found in a Sports Illustrated article about the game:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/olympics/2012/08/09/olympics-usa-japan-soccer-gold.ap/index.html
Just goes to show that the Japanese had more class not to whine about missed calls than some other teams would.
SuperLib
It''s always nice to have a new international sport to get excited about. Looks like women's soccer is stepping up to the plate. The future with Japan, the US, Canada, and others should be pretty cool to watch.
bicultural
Great game. Well played by both teams.
smithinjapan
freakashow: "Just goes to show that the Japanese had more class not to whine about missed calls than some other teams would."
Depends on how obviously wrong the call was. 'Getting away' with something in soccer is far more common than, say, being 'charged' with something wrong. Yeah, the ref missed the 'hand ball' call for sure, but it's a whole lot worse than if, for example, someone gets HIT by a ball in the shoulder and the result is a call against the team and them ultimately losing the game. Apples and oranges. The Japanese squads actually made a number of complaints to refs and judges throughout the Olympics, and as with 'other teams' that might complain about something, in most cases it is justified and not at all about 'class' (or classlessness). From what I've read there were a couple of calls that should have gone to the Americans as well.
Tokiyo
Come on, let's keep it classy.
Good game, fun to watch and happy for both teams. Would have been nice for Japan to win Gold, but good for America as well. Too bad there are people cheering that have to ruin it for everyone.
I don't know if you can teach classy to the inbred...
missray
It was a fantastic game to watch and both teams gave it their all. Congratulations to both of them. The Japanese team was especially very classy as mentioned in the following news article:
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/olympics--japan-classy-in-defeat-to-u-s--in-women-s-soccer-final.html
It was great to see them compose themselves after the loss and show glee being on the podium accepting their silver medals.
freakashow
smithinjapan: You're right. Both the America and Japan had calls go against them in this game, just like in the U.S.-Canada semifinal. In the end, the winners of both matches were deserved winners.
JDB829
Whew! Gokurosama, Nadeshiko! You ladies did very well! Silver! Thanks for the thrills and memories! And what a thrill for Carli Lloyd! From missing that PK in the WC to a double in the Olympics Gold Medal match! That is the stuff of legends folks! Just goes to show what can happen when you stick with something! Once again, well done Nadeshiko!
Yubaru
There were a number of missed calls, as noted, and those calls MAY have affected the outcome of the game, maybe not. But those missed calls make the controversy.
Yes the US won, and Japan lost, but overall ALL the teams in the tournament are winners
Mort Mortadella
I thought Japan played beautifully today. I was appalled by the two non-calls (hand ball and bear hug) that probably significantly affected the game but I understand that these things sometimes happen. USA won the game but Japan won my respect with their team work and sportsmanship.
lostrune2
At least this time, the refs didn't insert themselves into the game and instead just let the players play their game - and boy, did both teams play their game, congrats to both.
So now, the USA is 4-0 in Olympic "revenge" games - each time the team that knocked them out in the previous World Cup, they beat in the following Olympics. And continues to medal in every Olympics and World Cup.
Congrats to Canada too, who learns that sometimes things do go a team's way even when it doesn't seem deserved (they were out-shot by France by a whopping 25-4).
So congrats to North America and Asia confeds.
TokyoGas
I was watching the highlights on BBC One and when the handball happened the announcer said that it was worse than the missed call in the Canada game. lol. I thought it was a funny comment.
But we all know that in Soccer, missed calls, along with dud calls, happen all the time.
As far as which team out played which team... It may be something interesting to talk about, but at the end of the day, the results are what people will remember.
toguro
"I agree with your sentiment towards the poster in question, but you're misusing sour grapes. "Sour grapes" would be if Nadeshiko Japan, or a fan of theirs, came on and said, "It's okay -- we really didn't want to win gold anyway. The Olympics aren't important". Someone complaining about the result when it really wasn't all that unfair is just bitter (or sour).
I haven't read about any outrageous calls, like in the Canada/US game."
@smithinjapan:
I stand corrected, and totally agree with you, hence the thumbs up that I gave your post.
I'm no soccer fan, and would only watch soccer at times like these, like during the Olympics, and the World Cup, so I'm giving a very uneducated opinion as far as the calls went. It seemed to me that the refs were letting them play in the beginning, and then later on in the game, started getting real tight with some calls. As I've stated before, there were a lot of calls that were missed, that could've went for/against both teams. Again, team Japan has nothing at all to be ashamed of, and in fact they've even won me over as a fan.
techall
@Freakshow:
You are not the only one calling this decision into question and I agree. I quote an article by sports writer Chris Chase:
"I was just a bit appalled that the U.S. women would don white shirts (which were obviously pre-planned and printed beforehand) emblazoned with the words "GREATNESS" right after winning the game. It looked like "World Champion" shirts professional athletes don after winning the Superbowl or NBA championship. I could understand running around the stadium each with an American flag waving, but wearing T-shirts that proclaim you're the greatest is a bit classless. Never seen anything like that in any Olympics."
"No one is blaming the women on the team. They were handed shirts and put them on, as expected. And I don't blame Nike either: Every 13-year-old girl who's ever picked up a soccer ball is begging for one right now. The people at fault are the go-betweens for Nike and Team USA. They should have realized the way those shirts could have been perceived."
That said, you have to remember that the USOC dos not use taxpayer money. All of their funding comes from private donors and corporate donations. Aside from donations being tax deductible, they get to put "Proud Sponsor of the U.S. Olympic team" on their products and, in this case, have the players wear tacky T-shirts with the a company slogan. I hope Kine realizes how classless this made the team look
techall
OOOPs, dyslexic keyboard here . I meant I hope Nike realizes how classless this made the team look
smithinjapan
freakashow: "In the end, the winners of both matches were deserved winners."
They are all winners, whether they won or lost, and while both the Canadian and American teams deserved to win through their efforts, the latter team won the semi-final due DIRECTLY to bad calls. The ref handed it to them (and no, I don't think it was any conspiracy). The Canadian ladies could have been better sports about it at the end of the game, and especially their coach, but at the time I can see the anger, and I've no doubt they were composed on the podium (which of course came later) at the end.
Both the Japanese and American teams deserved to win in this match as well, methinks, but alas, only one can. Agree with your agreement that bad calls were made on both sides (in both games).
It'll be nice to see how this boosts soccer (for both women and men) here and abroad. I hope women's soccer in particular continues to grow in popularity.
Yubaru
It should boost women's soccer, but men's soccer has been the No 1 sport in the world for decades so I guess the boost would have to be more in America I'd say.
HansNFranz
It's great to see the true hierarchie in women's soccer reinstated. The World Cup win in Germany two years ago was just a fluke after all, like the Greece men winning EURO 2004.
Mark Mays
To casual fans, it may seem like "just a missed call." I don't know if many of you know the severity of the act that led to the "missed call." The players who committed the infractions would be ejected and Japan would have had a penalty kick, a sure bet to score a point. USA would have had to play the match with 9 players.
Yes, referees miss calls. But Heath and the other defender cheated and got on with it, that's what bothers me, an American.
And those who are saying "missed calls on both sides," can you tell me when a Japanese player committed a foul that would have led to a player being ejected and the US getting a penalty kick?
spahnmatthew
Congratulations to both Team USA and Nadeshiko Japan! You all have represented your respective countries well. Gold and Silver in a well-played game. You are all winners in my book!
sonnoujoui
There was none. USA was not the better team, but they had big luck with the decisions of the referee. It is high time they use video proof in football matches, like they do in hockey.
sandiegoluv
Missed calls happen all the time, Mark. And yes, on both sides. Now, I am not going to debate the particulars with you but a word to the wise, if the reverse were true, and you made the same comments, people would have told you to "Shut up" and to stop being a sore loser. I know, I did it the other day. And people came down on me for it. But you are an American as I am, and I commend you for being able to criticize the USA for questionable plays. I don't know if it was intentional, but it should have DEFINITELY been called, but from the looks of it, it might not have been a goal anyway. Yes, the USA would have lost one player, but that still doesn't equate to another goal. It is sad for both sides. The Japanese side because they lost and the American side because people will always say that they wouldn't have won it if it were not for those bad calls, but we well never, truly know. But still I really respect you for speaking up about it. I wish a lot more people could do that when their countries win something that is questionable, but wishing and reality are different.
sandiegoluv
@tideoferon -Great post. So very, very true. Sad, but true.
Perhaps you're right. I can only speak to my own situation. I think many countries go overboard and flirt (or go full bore) with nationalism when it comes to the Olympics. A shame really, since most people will be hard pressed to name more than a few medal winners from this Olympics in a few years' time and it will all be forgotten. Sic transit gloria.
arrestpaul
Japan vs U.S.A. was a terrific match. Both teams played hard right up to the final whistle. That was a demonstration of how football/soccer should be played. Congratulations to both teams.
Should football have more officials at this level? I think it should. And video coverage of the goal line but those are my personal opinions. The professional "actors" who play on many of the mens teams could learn something about playing the game by watching these women. Play the game and stop "play-acting". There are no Academy Awards Oscars for "best performance for pretending you were fouled".
toguro
"And those who are saying "missed calls on both sides," can you tell me when a Japanese player committed a foul that would have led to a player being ejected and the US getting a penalty kick?"
@Mark Mays:
I saw quite a few trips from behind and otherwise that the Japanese team commited that weren't called, but like I said earlier, both sides were doing it, and getting away with it earlier in the game, only for the refs to call a tighter game later on. Bad/missed calls are a part of sports. It happens in every of the major sports, with soccer being no exception. Say they would've made the calls against the U.S. that you claimed weren't made? There is still no guarantee of a Japanese victory. What then? Who's to say that Japan would've won the game in overtime had they tied the game?
The same people that are now crying foul because Japan lost, were you also crying foul when they won the World Cup? I sure didn't. The U.S. lost to the better team then, just as I feel Japan lost to the better team this time around.
Mark Mays
@toguro, I'm not speaking hypothetically. I'm talking about what actually happened. I never said that Japan would have won, but it is highly likely playing with a 2-1 lead and your opponent is a man down (or two).
As far as the ref goes, you haven't read anything from me blaming her. She didn't knock the ball down with her hands. She didn't tackle Kinga. She made a couple of howlers, sure, though on the bear hug her vision was probably blocked. But other than the huge errors, she called an okay game.
This is my point. The "bad calls happen" cliche is meaningless to me. Any scrub who has ever sat on the bench during a match knows that. The problem is less the bad call than the actions themselves.
Why are you talking about the WWC? Why would I cry foul. I don't remember that anyone was hard done on either side. If I did any crying it was tears of laughter at all the shots Wambach sprayed wide.
sandiegoluv
Well, that is a sad. I see my compliment was misplaced. Now, I know where you are coming from. Fact is that bad calls are a part of life in sports weather one wants to accept it or not. And players on both sides are going to do things if they think they can get away with it. But I now see if the shoe was on the other foot you would be telling us to shut up and be good losers. So, in your mind they are cheaters who didn't deserve to win? If they won everything fair and square would you be happy?
Moderator: Please stop being confrontational. You are doing it on too many threads. Focus your comments on what is in the story and not at other posters.
adjutant
Too bad japantoday comments lack the same level of class. Can't be happy at team USA for winning, always gotta tack something on those yankees.