福島第一原発事故以来、いやなニュースばかりだったけど、久しぶりに嬉しいニュース。サッカーの女子ワールドカップドイツ大会で、初めて決勝に進出した日本は、世界ランキング１位のアメリカと対戦した。レッドカードをもらったときは、ああ、これで一巻の終わりかと思ったけれども、アメリカがシュートをはずして難を逃れた。日本チームは2-2の同点のまま最後まで粘り粘って延長戦のペナルティーキックに持ち込んだ。熊谷紗希選手が3本目のシュートを決め、アメリカに勝って初優勝を果たした。日本の底力を見せてくれた最高の試合だった。


Japan vs USA FIFA World Cup Final 2011 Full Highlights, Goals, Japan beats United States, Women

■ＦＩＦＡの公式ウェブサイトではもう少しはっきりとハイライトの動画が見られるよ。

女子Ｗ杯 日本ＰＫ戦で初優勝
NHK 7月18日 6時49分

前半を０対０で折り返した日本は、後半２４分にアメリカにカウンター攻撃から先制を許しましたが、後半３６分に、右サイドから崩して宮間あや選手がゴールを決め、１対１の同点に追いつき、試合は延長戦に入りました。

延長に入って、前半１４分に日本は、アメリカのエース、ワンバク選手にヘディングシュートを決められ、２対１とリードを許しましたが、後半１２分にコーナーキックから澤穂希選手がゴールを決めて、２対２の同点に追いつき、試合はそのまま決着がつかず、ペナルティーキック戦に入りました。

ペナルティーキック戦で、日本はゴールキーパーの海堀あゆみ選手が、アメリカのキックを２本止める活躍を見せて日本が勝ち、初優勝を果たしました。日本のキャプテン、澤穂希選手は、「信じられないです。最後まであきらめずに戦った結果だと思います。自分自身も最後まで走って、全力を出し切りました。世界一を目標に戦ってきたので本当にうれしいです。５回目のワールドカップで結果を残せました」と笑顔で話していました。

佐々木則夫監督は、「本当に選手たちは粘り強くやってくれた。日本の皆さんの応援が通じました。ペナルティーキック戦はどっちに転ぶか分からないがここまでくれば十分だと思っていました。優勝には僕もびっくりです。小さな選手たちが粘り強くよくやってくれました」と選手をたたえていました。

アメリカ人選手と日本人選手とでは体の大きさや足の長さが違うのにもかかわらず、なでしこジャパンはそれを敏速な動き、運動量、足元の技術、判断の速さと連動性で補った。本当によくがんばってくれた。なでしこジャパンの厳しい練習の成果が１００％発揮できた試合だったと思う。特にアメリカのペナルティ・キックを2本も止めたゴール・キーパーの海堀あゆみ選手を初め、1人1人の日本人選手がすばらしい個人プレーとよくコミュニケーションのとれたチームプレーを見せてくれた。この日本の勝利のニュースは、海外のメディアが、大震災や原発事故との関係を交えて世界中に伝えている。日本に活気を与えてくれた「なでしこジャパン」、ありがとう！


Photo: The New York Times
ペナルティ・キックでシュートを決めた後、4人のチーム・メイトと喜びを分かち合う熊谷紗希選手

今年のカナダ・チームは期待はずれだった。次のサッカーの女子ワールドカップは、2015年にカナダで開催される予定。

【More・・・】

Japan Beats U.S. to Win First Women’s World Cup
Bloomberg By Dex McLuskey - Jul 17, 2011 7:47 PM ET

Japan twice overcame one-goal deficits before beating the U.S. in a penalty shootout to win its first Women’s World Cup soccer championship and deny the Americans a record third title.

Japan won 3-1 on penalty kicks after the teams tied 2-2 in yesterday’s final at Commerzbank Arena in Frankfurt, where Japan also eliminated two-time defending champion and host Germany in its run to the championship.

It’s the second international sports title in a week for Japan, which is still recovering from an earthquake and nuclear disaster in March. The Japanese team, ranked No. 4 in the world by FIFA, soccer’s governing body, held up pregame banners during the tournament thanking “our friends around the world.”

“The players were patient, they wanted to win this game and I think it’s because of that the Americans scored only two goals,” Japanese coach Norio Sasaki said at a news conference. “Considering the current situation in Japan, I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their support, and in particular for the support we received from Germany.”

The U.S. missed its first three chances in the penalty shootout, with Japanese goaltender Ayumi Kaihori making two diving saves and Carli Lloyd sending a shot over the goal.
With Japan leading 2-1 in the fourth round of penalties, Saki Kumagai converted her try to give Japan the title and send her teammates rushing onto the field in celebration.
“As much as I wanted this, if there’s any team I could have given this to it’s Japan,” U.S. goaltender Hope Solo said in a television interview as she held back tears. “So I’m happy for them.”

Early U.S. Barrage
Japan withstood an early U.S. barrage and twice rallied against the two-time World Cup champions. The U.S. failed to convert at least five scoring chances in a scoreless opening half, including three in a four-minute span and a shot by Abby Wambach that hit the bottom of the crossbar and bounced away.

Substitute Alex Morgan, at 22 the youngest member of the U.S. team, snapped the scoreless tie with her goal in the 69th minute. Aya Miyama tied it for Japan in the 80th minute after a defensive breakdown by the U.S.

The Americans went back in front in the first of two 15- minute extra time periods as Wambach scored on a header in the 104th minute. It was Wambach’s fourth goal of the tournament, all on headers.

Japan answered again when Homare Sawa put a deflected shot past Solo off a corner kick with three minutes left in extra time. The goal set up the second penalty kick shootout in six Women’s World Cup finals and the first since 1999, when the U.S. beat China. The U.S., which converted all five penalty kicks in a quarterfinal shootout win against Brazil, had its title chances end with three straight misses against Japan.

Blown Chances
“It’s heartbreaking,” Wambach said in a televised interview. “Japan played well, they never gave up. We had chances throughout the game and we didn’t put them away.”
Japan won in its first visit to the championship game, while the U.S. lost its first final after winning the inaugural tournament in 1991 and again as the host in 1999.

The U.S., which finished third at the previous two Women’s World Cups, was the top team in the women’s rankings and a 21-20 favorite to win yesterday. Japan was rated a 2-1 chance by U.K. bookmaker William Hill Plc (WMH), meaning a winning $1 bet would return $2 plus the original stake.

“A couple of mistakes and we let them in the game,” said U.S. coach Pia Sundhage, whose team outshot Japan 27-14. “It’s hard to lose with PKs. We couldn’t put away our chances. It’s a small difference between winning and losing.”

Rugby Triumph
The victory came four days after Japan’s rugby team won its first Pacific Nations Cup championship, boosting a country that 18 weeks ago was struck by a magnitude-9 earthquake, the biggest in Japanese history.

The temblor triggered a 7-meter high (23-foot) tsunami that inundated coastal towns around Sendai, north of Tokyo, leaving more than 24,000 people dead or missing.

The disaster caused an overall economic loss of $210 billion, making it the costliest natural catastrophe on record, according to insurer Munich Re. More than 530,000 homes were destroyed or damaged and Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima Dai-Ichi power plant was crippled, causing three reactors to melt down in the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986.

Japan is the second Asian nation to reach the final, after China in 1999.
Japan is the first country to win the World Cup after losing its final group-stage game. England defeated Japan 2-0 and Sweden beat the U.S. in the last round of pool games.

Second in Group
The Japanese team finished second in its group behind England and reached the semifinals with a 1-0 win against Germany, which is ranked second in the world. It then beat fifth-ranked Sweden 3-1 to reach the final.

The U.S. for the first time lost twice in the World Cup, having also been beaten by Sweden 2-1 in group play. The U.S. has now finished third on three occasions and runner-up once since Mia Hamm led the Americans to their two titles.

Even with the loss, the run to the final may be a boost for Women’s Professional Soccer, the U.S. league that’s in its third year. Average attendance at regular-season games last season was 3,601, a 23 percent drop from the inaugural year. In the first 34 games of this year’s 54-game campaign, the average was 2,722, another 24 percent decline, according to figures posted on the league’s website.

Three of the original nine WPS teams have folded and the Chicago Red Stars didn’t have enough money to compete in 2011, leaving the league with six teams, including the expansion Western New York Flash.
The next Women’s World Cup is set for Canada in 2015.

関連記事

• ISUグランプリ・ファイナル・シングルの結果 (2011/12/13)
• ISUスケート・カナダ結果 (2011/10/30)
• なでしこジャパンがアメリカに初優勝！試合ハイライト動画あり (2011/07/18)
• なでしこがスウェーデンを３対１で破り決勝戦へ (2011/07/14)
• 日本女子サッカーチーム「なでしこ」丸山のゴール・ハイライト（YouTube) (2011/07/11)

Tags ： なでしこジャパン | サッカー | 女子ワールドカップドイツ大会 | アメリカ | 海堀あゆみ | 澤穂希 | 福島第一原発事故 | 佐々木則夫監督 | ハイライト | 動画 |