KASHIMA, Japan — When the final whistle sounded, Carli Lloyd crouched down and buried her face in her hands. For nearly two minutes she was motionless, oblivious as her teammates trudged past her.
The U.S. women’s hopes for an Olympic gold medal are over. So too, perhaps, this latest golden generation of the USWNT.
Lloyd, Megan Rapinoe, Becky Sauerbrunn – they have been the cornerstones of teams that won the last two World Cups along with the Olympic gold in 2012. But they are all in their late 30s, with Lloyd nearing 40, and at the point where sticking around for another two years for the next World Cup, or three for the next Olympics, are decisions that might not be left up to them.