Justine Smethurst

Justine Smethurst (born January 1987 in Melbourne) is an Australian softball player. She is a pitcher and plays club softball in the Glen Waverley Softball Association. She has represented Victoria on a variety of different teams and competed at the national championships several times, winning one in 2001. She played for the University of Hawaii softball team in 2006 and 2007. She has been a member of the senior Australia women's national softball team, winning a bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics. She is trying to gain a spot on the roster to compete at the 2012 ISF XIII Women's World Championships.

Justine Smethurst
Smethurst in March 2012 during a photoshoot
Personal information
BornJanuary 1987
Melbourne, Australia
Sport
CountryAustralia
SportSoftball
Event(s)Women's team
ClubGlen Waverley Softball Association
Achievements and titles
National finals2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
Medal record
Softball
Representing  Australia
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place2008 BeijingTeam

Personal

Smethurst was born in January 1987 in Melbourne, Victoria.[1][2] Her mother and sister both played softball. Both also went on to coach softball.[3] She attended Shelford Anglican Girls' School and graduated in 2004.[3] She learned Japanese in school.[3] One of her hobbies is kayaking.[1] In 2002, she was living in East Brighton, Victoria.[3] She attended the University of Hawaii,[4][5] enrolling in 2005 and majoring in psychology.[6] While attending the university, she acquired an American accent.[6]

Softball
women playing softball
The 19 March 2012 game at Hawker International Softball Centre between the ACT representative side and the Japanese national team. No. 2 is Clare Warick. No. 4 is Justine Smethurst.

Smethurst is a pitcher.[4][7] While she started playing before she was twelve, she did not move into the pitching position until she was that age.[6] She plays club softball in the Glen Waverley Softball Association.[3] In 2001, she was a member of the Victorian School Girls' Team.[3] In 2002, as a fifteen-year-old, she was training for softball around fifteen hours a week.[3] In 2005 and 2006, she had a softball scholarship with the Victorian Institute of Sport.[6] In 2008, she had a scholarship with and played for the Australian Institute of Sport team.[4][5]

State team
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Smethurst has represented Victoria on a variety of different teams. She has represented Victoria as a member of the U13, U14 and U16 teams at the national championships.[3] In 2001 and 2002, as a member of the junior team, she represented Victoria at the national championships.[3] Her team won in 2001.[3] She represented Victoria at the national championships in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008, commuting from Hawaii in order to play with the side.[4][6]

University team

Smethurst played for the University of Hawaii softball team in 2006 and 2007, before taking a break from the university team in order to try to secure a spot on the national team for the 2008 Summer Olympics.[4][5] She had a scholarship at the university to play softball.[6]

Senior national team

Smethurst has been a member of the senior Australia women's national softball team.[4][5][8] In 2005, she toured US, Canada and Japan with the national team.[4][5] She did not have an appearance on that national team from late 2005 to mid-2008. University of Hawaii.[4][5] The 2008 Olympic Games were her first Olympics.[9] She won a bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics.[1] She participated in the Adelaide Olympian parade in 2008.[10] She represented Australia at the 2009 World Cup, where she pitched in the game against Italy that Australia won 8–0. She kept batters hitless until the fifth inning.[11] In 2011, she was a member of the Australian side that competed at the World Cup of Softball. She played in game at the Cup against the United States where Australia lost 5–2. It was her second loss on the day, also having played in a game where Australia lost to Japan.[8][12] She is a member of the 2012 Australia women's national softball team and is, playing in the 2012 ISF XIII Women's World Championships (1 July 2012).[2]

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Justine Smethurst.
  1. "AIS Softball — Justine Smethurst". Bruce, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Institute of Sport. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 8 March 2012.
  2. "Australian Open Women's Squad 2012". Australia: Softball Australia. 24 February 2012. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
  3. "Soft touch runs in family". Leader — Sandringham Brighton Advertiser. Melbourne, Australia. 29 July 2002. p. 10. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
  4. Warren, Adrian (17 January 2008). "Victorian's squad pitch pays off — SOFTBALL". The Age. Melbourne, Australia. p. 13. 20080117000020192571. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  5. Warren, Adrian (16 January 2008). "AAP News: Soft: Smethurst swaps books for bat and ball in chase of Olympic dream". AAP News. Australia: Financial Times Information Limited — Asia Africa Intelligence Wire. WAAP61447173. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  6. Burrow, Vanessa (8 December 2006). "Rising Victorian pitcher picks up a bat and also an accent — SOFTBALL". The Age. Melbourne, Australia. p. 15. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
  7. Harper, Hilary (18 July 2008). "Go softly but carry a big stick". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  8. Latzke, Jeff (23 July 2011). "Arioto's triple lifts US past Australia 5-2". Associated Press Archive. Associated Press. D9OL43D80. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  9. "Smethurst ready to make her mark — ABC Grandstand (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 25 May 2008. Archived from the original on 31 December 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  10. Williamson, Brett (18 September 2008). "Adelaide welcomes Aussie Olympians". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  11. "Aussies face huge task in world softball final — ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 20 July 2009. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  12. "BRIEFS". The Age. Melbourne, Australia. 24 July 2011. p. 18. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
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