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Gray will be accompanying Team USA to Chicago Bandits Stadium

June 11, 2008 - National Pro Fastpitch (NPF)
Chicago Bandits News Release


The Olympic Games are the highest level of competition for any sport, but for women's sports it provides a stage to promote equality and the opportunity to compete in front of the world - helping to build sports for young women across the globe. Currently, there are 8.4 million girls playing softball across the globe (the size of New York City in 2004) and their softball world was damaged when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) chose to keep softball out of the 2012 Olympic Games, by a single vote.

With the future looking bleak for the 8.4 million, one girl decided to change the future. Meet Jamie Gray, a 14 year old from Delray Beach, Fla., with the talent and determination to play softball at its highest level. But, like many girls around the world her dreams were crushed when the IOC voted out softball in 2012 - the first year she'd be eligible to play.

Determined to keep up her dreams, Gray said "Some way, some day, I will represent my country and play fast-pitch softball for Team USA in the Olympics."

Instead of walking the boulevard of broken dreams, Gray took action by petitioning the IOC to prove how popular softball is across the globe. Her website, savesoftball.com, has an online petition with over 6,600 signatures to date and has garnered national attention. With help from the International Softball Federation (ISF), who has also made global efforts to increase the popularity of softball, she looks to get softball back into the Olympics by 2016.

After the U.S. Softball team's 14-0 victory over Florida International University at an exhibition game in Hollywood's Osceola Park, Jamie Gray approached the Olympians. She did not rush them with pens, t-shirts and balls for an autograph, but instead she told them they "were playing for girls like me," said Gray. "They need to win and need to help save it [Olympic Softball] because girls like me have a dream of playing in the Olympics."

The greatness of Team USA was partially a cause for the shocking vote by the IOC. The earning of three gold medals in three Olympic competitions (1996, 2000, and 2004) by Team USA was seen as too dominating. The IOC felt this created an unlevel playing field for international competition. The cutting of softball is the first elimination of a sport since 1936 when polo was removed from the Games. Softball as an Olympic sport was born in 1996 and the popularity has grown since.

As it was before the cut, women were significantly underrepresented in the Olympic Games, making up just 4,306 of the 10,568 participants (just 41%) in the 2004 Olympics. With softball, double-trap shooting and the 500m time trial in cycling being removed, there will be126 less opportunities for women in the Olympics. Decreasing opportunities for women in the Olympic Games is inconsistent with the IOC's efforts to increase gender equity in the Olympic Movement.

But, contrary to the IOC votes, the popularity of softball is on the rise. Official reports from Beijing are showing that the Gold Medal rounds have sold out completely for the 2008 Games, and the 28 round robin games are nearly sold out - 90 percent as of April 9, a pace that will sell out the round robin games as well.

The turnout was so great at the 2000 Games in Sydney, Australia that "softball was in the top ten (out of 28 sports) in spectator turnout," reported Bruce Wawrzyniak, ISF Director of Communications, making softball one of the most popular sports at the Games.

"This is particularly rewarding for the world-class athletes that will compete in the softball competition," said ISF President Don Porter. "They've worked hard to get to where they are, and while they go to China knowing the eyes of the world will be upon them, it will be rewarding for them to be able to play in front of a packed stadium. The eight teams that qualified are extremely talented and this can only make for a more competitive and entertaining atmosphere."

The ISF has created a 10-step blueprint plan for getting Softball back into the Olympics. Jamie Gray has been touring the country in hopes of making the goal a reality by helping spread the words of the ISF. The base of the plan includes increasing the world popularity of softball from 8.4 million to 10.5 million by Oct 2009(a 25 percent increase). There is also emphasis on increasing the number of participants in countries throughout the Middle East by giving women and girls an accessible and acceptable route to participating in sports.

The Back Softball campaign is running "in the spirit of fair play and will uphold all the values of Olympism. However, the ISF is mounting this campaign to succeed and not just to take part. The ISF aims to prove that Softball is an asset for the Olympic Movement by meeting and exceeding all criteria used by the IOC to evaluate sports for the Olympic Program of the 2016 Games," reads step 10 of the blueprint.

Re-instating softball as an Olympic Sport is a daunting task for any one, no doubt a challenge for a 14 year old that has fearlessly taken the world of softball on her shoulders. But, Gray's goal of playing in the 2016 Olympics, at the prime age of 22, are to worldly to forget. The IOC will be meeting in 2009, after the Beijing Olympics, to decide on the games that will be included in the 2016 Olympics. With the possibility of Chicago hosting the 2016 Games, Gray is more determined than ever to make Softball an Olympic sport once again.

"We were just one vote short for 2012, let's not be short in 2016! I know that I am just one 14 year old girl with a dream, but I believe with your help, we can make a difference. That difference can make my dream come true," said Gray.

For more information about Jamie Gray and her petition to "Save Olympic Softball" head to www.savesoftball.com.

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