Following the cancellation of the 2021 Gilley’s Shield (Open Women’s National Championship), Softball Australia announced a National Selection Camp to provide the opportunity for athletes to impress selectors and secure a spot in the 2021 Aussie Spirit squad vying for Olympic selection. The training camp will take place at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) from 18 February – 3 March 2021.
In total, 34 athletes, including the complete 2020 Australian squad, have been invited to attend, providing the best opportunity for high-level competition, crucial in ensuring the Australian team is suitably prepared for the Tokyo 2021 Olympics.
You can see the invited athletes at Softball Australia’s website.
Further to facilitating suitable competition, the camp will also provide an invaluable experience for emerging players to play and train alongside established Travelodge Aussie Spirit stars as well as day-to-day High Performance experience provided by the AIS.
Pitcher Kaia Parnaby said: “A lot of us debuted for Australia in 2009 so for us to hold out another 12 months, it’s a small mis-step in our whole 12 year progression,” said Parnaby, a veteran of over 140 games for Australia.
“As much as it hurt us a lot finding out it was getting postponed, we can be another 12 months prepared, we can find out some things we may not have found out about ourselves and I think it’s going to help us grow as a team.
“We never actually thought we’d get to play an Olympic Games when we started our careers, so for us to be less than 12 months out, we’re just excited to get there.”
Immediately following the National Selection Camp, athletes will prepare for the Women’s Summer Slam – Fully Loaded Softball from 5-7 March and the Australia Pacific Cup from 8-11 March which will also form part of the selection process.
