A two-time Olympic gold medalist (1996 and 2000) for the United States National Softball Team, Michele Smith is a true ambassador for the sport of fast-pitch softball.  She also played 16 years in the Japan Pro Softball League, where she was a potent pitching and offensive threat, having won 8 MVP awards (most recently in 2007) and 8 league championships.

Michele was recently selected as the Chair of the Athletes Ambassadors Committee by the International Softball Federation, charged with lobbying the International Olympic Committee to reinstate Olympic softball.  In addition to being a softball commentator for ESPN, Michele tirelessly travels the globe to promote the sport that she loves, organizing and running softball teaching clinics, including a long-running coaching clinic in cooperation with Little League. 

Michele is an experienced businessperson, and has long-running endorsement contracts with sports industry leaders such as Rip It Sporting Goods (manufacturer of softball bats and safety gear), Musco Lighting (manufacturer of stadium and field lighting), 3n2 footwear and apparel for softball and baseball and JUGS (manufacturer of pitching machines), as well as a line of softball instructional DVDs.  Her official website is located at www.michelesmith.com.

• U.S. Olympic Softball Team, 1996 and 2000 – starting pitcher for gold medal winning U.S. team at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta and the 2000 Olympics Games in Sydney, Australia.
• U.S. National Softball Team [1992-2002]– in addition to two Olympic gold medals, Michele’s teams have won gold medals in [3 ] World Championships and [2 ] Pan American Games.
• Japan Pro Softball League [1993- 2008] – 8 time MVP, led Toyota Shokki to [8] Japan League championships.
• ASA Softball Hall of Fame ( inducted 2006)
• Named U.S. player representative to ISF delegation regarding reinstatement of Olympic softball – Chair of the Athletes Ambassadors Committee for the Back Softball Campaign.
• ESPN Color Analyst for Women’s College Softball
• NBC Olympic Analyst for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Game

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