Australian National Team pitcher Brooke Wilkins views her third Olympics the same way she did the first two, with each offering a distinct flavor.
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| Brooke Wilkins
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"Atlanta was a first for softball so it was really exciting for our team and we had no huge expectation, just went out there and played our game," said the former University of Hawai'i star via e-mail. "Sydney was different again as we were at home with a home crowd.
"This year in Greece will be different as well as we are heading back to where the Olympics originated."
Wilkins, a first-team All-American in 1995 and second-team selection in 1994 at Hawai'i, is one of three softball players with Hawai'i ties playing in the Athens Olympics.
Wilkins is joined by fellow Hawai'i player Stacey Porter on Australia's Olympic squad. Canada captain Kristy Odamura is from Hawai'i-Hilo.
| Softball
At Olympic Softball Stadium
Hawai'i times (might differ from TV times); USA, Australia games only
Friday — Japan vs. Australia, 8:30 p.m.; USA vs. Italy, 11 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 15 — USA vs. Australia, 4 a.m.; USA vs. Japan, 11 p.m.
Monday, Aug. 16 — Australia vs. Taiwan, 6:30 a.m.; China vs. USA, 8:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Aug. 17 — Italy vs. Australia, 6:30 a.m.; China vs. Australia, 11 p.m.
Wednesday, Aug. 18 — Canada vs. USA, 4 a.m.; USA vs. Greece, 11 p.m.
Thursday, Aug. 19 — Canada vs. Australia, 6:30 a.m.; USA vs. Taiwan, 11 p.m.
Friday, Aug. 20 — Greece vs. Australia, 4 a.m.
Saturday, Aug. 21 — Semis, 8:30 p.m., 11 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 22 — Bronze Medal, 4 a.m.
Monday, Aug. 23 — Gold Medal, 3 a.m.
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Wilkins is one of three Australia pitchers. She also plays first base, but said she probably will be strictly be pitching this Olympics.
She is coming off her second wrist operation in 1 1/2 years, and also had corrective hip surgery after Sydney. But she said she has been pitching well, calling this year "a minor challenge."
Porter, 22, is the youngest player on Australia's Olympic roster. She is part Aborigine and will be the first indigenous Australian to represent Australia in softball at an Olympics.
Wilkins said they share a few laughs about Hawai'i softball because "things just haven't changed since I left."
Porter was the 2003 Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year and was named to the Easton Sports 2003 Fast Pitch Softball All-America first team.
She took off this year to play with the Australian National Team, but is expected to return to Manoa for her senior season.
"Stacey knows a lot of the girls I played with, people that were great friends and still are, so we talk about them a lot," Wilkins said. "We have found over the past eight months through conversation that what we both miss the most is the friendships of people and families we had great times with and know it's not the same keeping in contact via phone or e-mail."
Wilkins said that although this is her third Olympics, she is still excited about participating.
"The Olympics is the pinnacle of all sport and the excitement is still there but it is there every year when we play and travel because it something I love to do, enjoy and find challenging," she said.
While the United States captured the 1996 and 2000 gold, Wilkins is hopeful for the upcoming tournament.
"As a team we have been playing well and the top five countries attending Athens are tough," she said. "We have all been winning and losing against each other over the past few years."
