Morgan, who turns 35 in July, helped lead the U.S. to a gold medal in 2012 and World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019. But the team has since struggled, and the Olympic roster will feature younger players.
Wednesday by U.S. Soccer marks the first time since 2008 that Morgan has missed an Olympic Games. It is likely to be the end of her Olympic career.. She also helped lead the U.S. in four World Cups, twice winning that tournament. In more than 220 appearances for the U.S. women's national team, Morgan scored 123 goals, the fifth most in team history, along with 53 assists.on the social media site X.
Today, I’m disappointed about not having the opportunity to represent our country on the Olympic stage. This will always be a tournament that is close to my heart and I take immense pride any time I put on the crest.In a press conference Wednesday, national team coach Emma Hayes praised Morgan as"an amazing player and human" and said that winnowing the roster to 18 players was"not easy.
"It was a tough decision, of course, especially considering Alex's history and record with this team. But I felt that I wanted to go in another direction and selected other players," Hayes said.The new 18-player roster has an average age of 26.8, the fourth-youngest roster the U.S. has ever sent to the Olympics, according to U.S. Soccer.
The roster includes forwards Crystal Dunn, Trinity Rodman, Jaedyn Shaw, Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson; midfielders Korbin Albert, Sam Coffey, Lindsey Horan, Rose Lavelle and Catarina Macario; defenders Tierna Davidson, Emily Fox, Naomi Girma, Casey Krueger, Jenna Nighswonger and Emily Sonnett; and goaltenders Casey Murphy and Alyssa Naeher. The alternates are Lynn Williams, Croix Bethune, Hal Hershfelt and Jane Campbell.
Before the Olympics, the team will play two international friendlies next month against Mexico and Costa Rica. Its Olympic campaign is scheduled to begin July 25 with a match against Zambia.Becky Sullivan has reported and produced for NPR since 2011 with a focus on hard news and breaking stories. She has been on the ground to cover natural disasters, disease outbreaks, elections and protests, delivering stories to both broadcast and digital platforms.
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