Canada names women's national team roster for 2011 Pan American Games

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The Canadian Soccer Association announced on Monday its women's national team roster to for the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico next month. Newly-hired head coach John Herdman will have 17 players in red and white for the tournament which runs from October 18 to 27.

Among the 17 players selected by Herdman are 8 former members of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC women's team. They include Melanie Booth, Candace Chapman, Robyn Gayle, Kaylyn Kyle Sophie Schmidt, Desiree Scott, Christine Sinclair and Brittany Timko. Kyle is the more recent member of Whitecaps FC, having played for the 2011 squad which finished third overall in the United Soccer Leagues W-League.

Coach Herdman's 17-player lineup also features eight players with previous experience at the Pan American Games. That group includes Sinclair, who in 2007 led the team with eight goals in six matches.

Canada will look to improve on their bronze medal performance from the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. They will play in Group B along with Costa Rica, Argentina and Brazil. Canada begin the tournament against Costa Rica on Tuesday, October 18, followed by Argentina on Thursday, October 20 before wrapping up group play against Brazil on Saturday, October 22. The top two teams from each group advance to the semi-final stage on October 25, with the semi-final winners advancing to the championship final on October 27.

In 2007, Canada took home the bronze medal at the Pan American Games following a 2-1 victory over Mexico. Canada previously won a silver medal in 2003, while finishing fourth in 1999.

This tournament will serve as Herdman's second camp since taking over the Canadian team. Of the 17 players selected for this camp, 11 participated in the recent camp in which the squad played a two-match series against the United States. Canada finished with a 1-1 draw in the first match at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kansas, before falling 3-0 at JELD-WEN Field in Portland, Oregon.

The 2011 Pan American Games will help serve as preparation for Canada ahead of January’s Olympic qualification tournament at the newly-renovated BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, BC.

2012 CONCACAF WOMEN‚S OLYMPIC QUALIFYING

The 2012 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying tournament will be held at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, BC, from January 19 to 29, 2012. Tournament packages will go on sale September 9, 2011, with affordable prices featuring an average ticket price of just under $6.50 per match across 15 matches in eight days of world class soccer (whitecapsfc.com). Tickets to all matches are available via Ticketmaster at ticketmaster.ca or by calling 1-855-985-5000.

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Canada names women's national team roster for 2011 Pan American Games

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