Texas senior Julia Grosso wins Gold Medal with Team Canada
Photo credit: Scott W. Coleman
Julia Grosso’s momentary panic very quickly turned to relief.
When the Texas Soccer senior shot what turned out to be the goal-medal winning penalty kick for Canada at the Tokyo Olympics, she first thought the Swedish goalkeeper saved it, but her shot had enough power to squeak through and make history for Canada.
“I knew that as the final kick, but it took me a second to realize we won gold,” Grosso said. “It was a sign of relief because of all the hard work we’d put in. It was the craziest moment ever.”
Grosso made five appearances for Canada at the Tokyo Olympics, facing Great Britain, Chile, Brazil, Sweden and the United States. She now has 29 caps for Canada.
She is also the first soccer Olympian in Texas history and now owns the first medal of any type for the Longhorns’ soccer program.
“It was pretty cool to be at the Olympic village with all the other athletes because they all knew we won and were very supportive,” Grosso said. “But it really set in for me when we landed in Canada. There were people waiting at the airport.”
Canada made the first PK but missed the following three. Sweden made two of its first three attempts but missed three straight to allow the Canadians to get right back in it and set up Grosso’s historic moment.
The 20-year-old midfielder didn’t feel any pressure when she stepped up to the spot.
“I tried not to think it was the Olympic gold medal match, I just tried thinking I was at practice,” Grosso said. “If I thought about it, I would be nervous.”
The Olympic Tournament was a breakthrough for Canada, which beat the defending champions and top-ranked U.S. Women’s National on the way to its first major tournament win.
Captain Christine Sinclair has played in five World Cups and four Olympics for Canada. The 38-year-old is by far the most decorated Canadian soccer player, leading the country in caps (304), goals (187).
Sinclair was one of the first people Grosso celebrated with after scoring the winning PK.
“I’ve been looking up to her ever since I’ve been playing soccer,” Grosso said. “She’s paved the way for so many females around the world. It’s a crazy feeling to know I had the honor to be with her when we got that gold medal.”
Grosso is a key part of the Texas Soccer program and has 15 goals and 12 assists in 42 career matches with the Longhorns. She was a USC preseason All-American and an All-Big 12 selection this season.
Freshman forward Holly Ward, senior midfielder Carlee Allen and junior forward Sydney Nobles all scored Texas rolled to a 3-0 win over Abilene Christian in an exhibition match on Friday night.
The regular season gets underway with back-to-back road games in Florida against UCF on Aug. 19 and at Florida on Aug. 22. The first home game for Texas is Aug. 29 against Georgetown.
“I just think I want to switch my mindset that I want to win with my college team now,” Grosso said. “We want to win the Big 12 and an NCAA Championship. Right now, I’m celebrating that we won, but as soon as I get to Texas, I’ll be focused.”