SheIS Ambassador Taking on Tokyo
Jenna Caira is a Canadian softball pitcher that will be making her Olympic debut in Tokyo. More importantly, however, Caira will be living out a childhood dream.
In an interview with CTV leading up to the Olympics, Caira recalled her fourth birthday. At her Birthday party, Caira’s uncle asked what she wanted to be when she grew up. Her response? Wanting to play softball for Team Canada at the Olympic Games. Now 32-years old, Caira will have that opportunity at the Summer Games.
Caira’s Olympic dream coming true was never a certainty though. In fact, there are many factors that led to this Summer’s appearance being a long shot. The most obvious of course being the COVID-19 pandemic which put off plans for the Olympic Games in their entirety. After a tumultuous year, that has finally been resolved enough to hold the competition.
Apart from the Pandemic putting a halt to the Olympic Games, it wasn’t long ago that Caira was done playing the sport herself. The Richmond Hill, Ontario-born pitcher retired from playing softball in 2016 after pitching Canada to the Pan American Games Gold Medal in 2015. In an interview with The Daily Orange (the newspaper for Caira’s alma mater; Syracuse) Caira stated that winning that Gold Medal was the highest achievement she could attain in softball; since the sport was not an Olympic sport at the time.
“I felt like I truly had done everything I could as a player, as a teammate, as a leader for this program and for my country in terms of softball,” Caira said. “I just felt like I needed to determine who I was outside of softball.”
When the International Olympic Committee announced that softball would be making its return in 2020, however, Caira knew she had to be a part of it. Despite all of the obstacles in her way, Jenna Caira now stands at the precipice of achieving her life-long goal of competing in the Olympic Games.
Though representing your country at the Olympics is a great honor and the latest achievement in Caira’s career, it is just the latest in a line of accomplishments the pitcher has racked up over her career. Caira played her collegiate softball at Syracuse University where she became the only pitcher in Big East history to accrue 1000 strikeouts. Caira also holds the records for wins, starts, innings, strikeouts and earned run average for a Syracuse pitcher.
To go with her University accomplishments, Caira also has a strong international record, leading Canada to several impressive finishes in major competitions. The Syracuse product won silver medals at the Pan American Games in 2011 and 2019 to go along with her gold in 2015, as well as won bronze medals at the World Championships in 2010 and 2018. Caira’s signature weapon this whole time has been her change up, which her coach, Todd Martin, calls “the best in the world.” With all her past success, Caira and Team Canada are set up for success at this year’s Olympic Games with a #3 world ranking in softball and medal-ing on their minds.
Caira never really spends much time away from the game as even in her retirement and time away, the pitcher operates Softball camps for children in her native country of Canada. From her passion for the game as well as her continued excellence, Jenna Caira will be achieving a childhood dream when she takes the field for Team Canada at the 2020 Olympic Games. More than that, however, she will serve as an inspiration to aspiring softball players around the world.