Canadian women's soccer cracks FIFA top 5 for 1st time
Christine Sinclair named top player in Olympics by National Women's Soccer League
Canada has risen to fourth in the FIFA women's soccer ranking on the strength of its bronze-medal performance at the Rio Olympics.
This is the first time that Canada have ever been in the top five, surpassing their previous high of seventh.
The Canadian team gained 93 ranking points and moved up six spots after beating host Brazil 2-1 in the third-place match to claim Olympic bronze for a second straight Games.
The United States retained top spot despite its quarter-final exit in Rio, followed by Olympic champion Germany and France. England rounds out the top five.
Canada won five of its six matches at the Games, including a preliminary-round victory over Germany and a quarter-final win over France.
The 93-point gain set a record in the 13-year history of the ranking, surpassing the 87-point gain by Cameroon in July 2015 and the 80-point gain by Equatorial Guinea in December 2008.
Also yesterday, Canada's Christine Sinclair has been named the National Women's Soccer League Player of the Olympics.
Sinclair, who plays for the Portland Thorns, scored the game-winning goal in a 2-1 victory over host Brazil to earn Canada its second straight Olympic bronze medal. It was the Canadian captain's third goal of the tournament.
It was her 165th career goal in her 250th appearance for the national team. She is second only to retired U.S. forward Abby Wambach (184) for international goals.
The league's Player of the Olympics was determined by vote of media members who cover the league.