Christine Sinclair has another opportunity at history in China soccer tournament
19-year veteran needs 3 goals to sit atop the record books
Christine Sinclair's pursuit of becoming the all-time leading scorer in international soccer begins again Thursday with a friendly tournament in China.
Sinclair sits at 182, three away from passing American Abby Wambach for the most international goals by a man or woman.
Canada, which is ranked seventh in the world, will face No. 11 Brazil on Thursday in the first game of the China Four Nations tournament. They will then face either host China or New Zealand on Sunday.
The 36-year-old's quest this year to become the greatest goal scorer in the sport's history coincided with Canada's expectation to compete for the FIFA Women's World Cup championship in France this past June.
Sinclair was four away from eclipsing Wambach heading into the tournament, but both the Burnaby, B.C., native and Canada came away disappointed.
The Canadians were eliminated in the round of 16 after a 1-0 loss to Sweden. In four matches in France, Sinclair scored just one goal, that coming in a 2-1 loss to Netherlands in the preliminary round.
WATCH | Christine Sinclair scores in Canada's loss to Netherlands:
The Canadian captain was also shut out in a 4-0 defeat to Japan in a friendly on Oct. 6.
If Sinclair is unable to surpass 184 goals in China, her next opportunity will come in early 2020 as the Canadian women seek to earn a spot in the Tokyo Olympics.
Road to Tokyo
The CONCACAF tournament will run Jan. 28 to Feb. 9 in the U.S, with the two finalists qualifying for Tokyo.
Canada will be joined by No. 1-ranked U.S., Mexico, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Panama, Haiti, and St. Kitts and Nevis.
The U.S. has won the previous four CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournaments with the Canadian women finishing runner-up in the last three. Canada won bronze medals at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympics.