MLS D.C. United

Ben Olsen Invited to National Team Training Camp

Published on December 2, 2003 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
D.C. United News Release


CHANTILLY, VA (December 2, 2003) – D.C. United midfielder Ben Olsen has been invited by U.S. National Team Head Coach Bruce Arena to participate in the squad's upcoming training camp, which will be held from December 12-19 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. Olsen is one of 18 players that Arena has called in to train alongside the U.S. Under-23 Men's National Team as that side prepares for the final round of CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying to be held February 2-12 in Mexico. This will be the first training camp for the full National Team at the Home Depot Center since the facility opened on June 7th.

"Benny has worked very hard over the past two years to re-establish his game," said United Technical Director Dave Kasper. "He was a big part of our team this past year and is very deserving of this invitation."

Olsen, 26, has been working for the past several weeks to overcome a sprained MCL in his left knee, suffered in United's 1-1 tie with the MetroStars on September 28th at RFK Stadium. That injury cut his season short, though Olsen still put together a very solid campaign that helped the Pennsylvania native finish tied for second in scoring for the Black-and-Red with 15 points. He scored four goals for United (all game-winners) and tacked on seven assists. United also continued its trend of winning games that Olsen scores in, with that figure now standing at 14-0-0 when Olsen finds the net.

Ben Olsen was active off of the field as well, as his volunteer involvement was recognized by both D.C. United and Major League Soccer. He was named the U.S. Soccer Foundation Humanitarian of the Year at United's annual awards banquet on October 26th and he took home the same award at MLS's awards banquet on November 22nd in Los Angeles, California.

This is the first National Team call-up for Olsen since participating in a camp prior to a May 26th match against Wales in San Jose, California. The U.S. won that meeting by a 2-0 score, though Olsen did not see any action. However, he has had National Team success in the past as he has accumulated 22 Caps and four goals.

Check out the D.C. United Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Major League Soccer Stories from December 2, 2003


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central