Canadian Women off to Olympics

     On a sports weekend consumed by hockey's annual All-Star classic game, Canada's women's soccer team qualified for a trip to the Olympics in London England this summer.

     To qualify, Canada had to finish either 1st or 2nd in the qualifying tournament held in Vancouver this past week.  Their big test was a semi-final match against Mexico on Friday night which would put them into the final against the top ranked American squad on Sunday.

     While the Canadians were decisive against Mexico on Friday which earned them a ticket to the Olympics, they were hardly a match for the strong and very talent-deep American side in the final game played in front of a sold-out crowd Sunday evening at B.C. Place in Vancouver.

     Despite having one of the best female players in the games history, Christine Sinclair, part of the problem the Canadian side has to deal with is a lack of major funding (corporate sponsorship) for their program, and an infrastructure problem within the various soccer organizations across the country.  While there are close to 1,000,000 registered players who might like to aspire to play for their country one day, the opportunities are very limited for the players who rise to the top, and once there you're playing for the love of the game and country, basically investing your time and talent for little or no return. 

     The problem is fixable, but in a country with hockey roots that run to the very core of the country, it's not likely we'll see a rise in the prominence of funding in the sport despite the fact we have a world class team of classy players who represent this great country with pride and who should be recognized for the stars that they are.