Tokyo Olympics 2020: Follow all the action from the Australian softball team

A dream will come true for Jade Wall when she runs on to the diamond as an Aussie Olympian – something she doubted would happen only a few years ago.

Not all sports were created equal and when host country Japan open their Olympic softball campaign against Australia on Wednesday it may well knock coronavirus from Olympic headlines.

At 9am, the darlings of Japan’s Olympic team - their softballers - take the mound against the Aussie Spirit in a game that if spectators were allowed would have filled the 30,000-seat Fukushima Baseball Stadium.

Instead, the first pitch of Olympic Games action will become a much welcomed blockbuster - a relief from the heat and pandemic pessimism.

Two days ahead of the Opening Ceremony - the softball can’t come soon enough.

For Hervey Bay’s Jade Wall, Wednesday’s game against the defending Olympic champions was 13 years in the making.

After decades of training, investing thousands of dollars of her own money or international competitions and training camps, Wall’s dream is finally here.

Kayo is your ticket to the best local and international sport streaming Live & On-Demand. New to Kayo? Try 14-days free now >

Softball was last played at the Olympics in 2008 – Wall made her international debut in 2009.

“I had been hanging out for the London Olympics and it was a kick in the guts when it got removed and it wasn’t played at the Rio Games either,” Wall said.

“I’ve been sitting on this for 13 years hoping for an opportunity.

“There is not a lot of money behind this sport and when we do go away it is a lot of money out of our pockets to go overseas and to camps but we do it because we love the sport.

“Every little penny is definitely worth it for me anyway – it might be a once in a lifetime opportunity to get to the Games so every penny saved over the years was worth it.”

Wall, an officer with the Australian Federal Police, said she would not be where she was today without the support of her family and friends.

It will be an extra special debut with Australia scheduled to take on Japan in the first game of the Olympics.

“Softball starts two days prior to the Opening Ceremony so it is the first game of the Olympics and we are playing the host nation, you really can’t start any bigger,” Wall said.

The Australian women’s softball team has a great record at the Olympics securing a podium finish at every outing but the Gold medal remains elusive.

Something Wall hopes this year’s team can change.

“We are striving for gold as a team, at training we make sure every day is a gold standard, we don’t strive for anything else,” Wall said.

It won’t be easy though with just six teams qualifying for the Olympics.

Wall said the US and Japan had been strong for a number of years but that Canada, Mexico and Italy could be just as strong on a good day.

“There is not going to be an easy game and the way it is structured we need to win the whole way through to get through to the finals,” Wall said.

The women’s team have been in Japan since May 31 for a pre-games training camp, playing against professional Japanese softball teams for a month.

A move Wall said would give the team an added edge.

“It is the same preparation we had in 2019 in the lead-up to the Olympic qualifiers in China and it was the best lead up we have had – everyone peaked right when they needed to,” she said.

Wall, a Redcliffe softballer, said it was surreal to think that aspiring players would be able to sit at home in their living rooms and watch her play on the television – just like she watched the 2008 women’s team win bronze with teammate Jessica Muller.

FLASHBACK: Jade Wall in 2005, after making the under-19 Queensland softball team. Photo: Kate Czerny

“It was exciting to see, especially in 2008 as we knew a lot of the girls that were there, it made it more real,” Wall said.

“It is nice to think that we will be on the TV not sitting there watching it.”

As family and friends are not allowed to travel to Japan for the games Wall, said the team’s family members were organising viewing parties.

“I’m sure we will be able to hear them through the TVs cheering,” she said.

Australia v Japan: 9am Wednesday July 21, Fukushima Azuma Baseball Stadium

Originally published as Tokyo Olympics 2020: Follow all the action from the Australian softball team