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U.S. soccer team has internal motivation
Taking a break before defense of their Olympic soccer gold medal commences September 14, American national team co-captain Julie Foudy is helping to create awareness about a program designed to enrich the lives of children with disabilities. "The idea behind it is, you know, you have 4.5 million kids with disabilities in the United States -- how we can get them off the sideline and actually playing and participating," Foudy says. "And it is not about who wins, it is not about who scores, but to get them out there and make them feel like they are part of a team." As for Team USA , they are beginning to feel the pressure of great expectations following their World Cup win last year. Can they repeat as Olympic champions? "External pressure to us is nothing compared to the internal pressure we put on ourselves to perform and do well," Foudy says. "So I think that the main thing is not so much who you are playing, but how you compare within the team. And it doesn't matter what is happening, what Norway is doing, what China is doing. You have to take care of yourself and make sure you are ready." Team USA will open its defense of its gold medal against Norway.
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