Canada's women's soccer team is set for a big Olympic tuneup

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The Canadian women's soccer team is currently in Atlanta preparing for the SheBelieves Cup, where they'll face a pair of global top-10 teams as they get ready to defend their Olympic gold medal this summer in Paris.

The SheBelieves Cup is a four-team mini-tournament held annually in the United States. The format is changing this year from a straight round robin to a small bracket that gives each team just two matches apiece.

On Saturday in Atlanta, the United States faces Japan at 12:30 p.m. ET before Canada meets Brazil at 3:30 p.m. ET. The winners square off for the Cup on Tuesday in Columbus, Ohio while the losers play for third place. The OneSoccer streaming service is the only place for viewers in Canada to watch the games.

It's a tiny tournament, but there's no filler. All four teams are ranked in the top 10 in the world. Canada is ninth — one spot ahead of Brazil. Japan is seventh, and the mighty U.S. is a surprisingly low fourth after failing to reach the quarterfinals at last summer's Women's World Cup.

The Canadian women would probably like to forget last February's SheBelieves Cup, which set the tone for a tough year for the squad. Amid a bitter (and, to this day, unresolved) labour dispute with Canada Soccer, the players walked out of their training camp in Florida, only to return the next day after the federation threatened legal action. The Olympic champs finished last in the tournament, then bowed out meekly at the World Cup in Australia, where they were shut out in two of their three matches and failed to advance following a 4-0 loss to the host team in a do-or-die group-stage finale.

Canada's hollow World Cup performance raised concerns that they'd lose the chance to defend their Olympic title. But the team rebounded to defeat a tough Jamaica team in a two-game playoff in September for a spot in the 2024 Summer Games.

Not long after that, though, Canada learned it would be saying goodbye to its captain and greatest player. Christine Sinclair, the leading goal scorer in the history of international soccer, played her final game for the national team in December.

The post-Sinclair era got off to a pretty good start in late February/early March at the CONCACAF W Gold Cup, the championship tournament for North and Central America and the Caribbean. Canada breezed through its soft group in Houston, outscoring the three opponents by a combined 13-0, before getting past Costa Rica 1-0 in the quarterfinals on an extra-time goal by Evelyne Viens. Canada nearly upset the United States in the semis, losing a penalty shootout on a waterlogged field in San Diego to fall to 4-54-7 all-time against the Americans.

The Canadian women's trademark resilience and determination kept them in the game against the United States. Jordyn Huitema's header in the 82nd minute forced extra time, and Adriana Leon's clutch penalty kick in the 127th sent it to the shootout. Leon won the Golden Boot as the tournament's top goal scorer with six, and 19-year-old midfielder Olivia Smith was voted the top young player. Leon, new captain Jessie Fleming and fullback Ashley Lawrence were named to the tournament all-star team.

Huitema, Leon, Fleming and Lawrence are all playing in the SheBelieves Cup, but Smith is out with an injury along with veteran midfielder Quinn.

The good news is that key forward Janine Beckie and midfielder Desiree Scott are finally back from severe knee injuries that sidelined them for their entire 2023 club season and the World Cup. Beckie, 29, was Canada's co-leader in goals at the 2021 Olympics. The 36-year-old Scott, also part of the gold-medal team, has played 185 matches for Canada.

Following the SheBelieves Cup, two more international windows remain before the Olympics — in late May/early June and mid-July. Canadian coach Bev Priestman said she hopes to play twice in each window, but no games have been scheduled yet.

The Olympic women's tournament kicks off July 25. Canada avoided the U.S. and reigning World Cup champion Spain in last month's draw, landing in a group with third-ranked host France, No. 23 Colombia and No. 28 New Zealand.