At 19 years old, San Diego Wave FC forward Jaedyn Shaw is the youngest player on the U.S. Women’s National Team 2024 Paris Olympics roster but is no stranger to achieving a high level of success at such a young age.
USWNT forward Jaedyn Shaw scores during the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup quarterfinal match at BMO … [+]
In 2022, Shaw made her professional debut for the Wave at 17 years old, just 13 days after signing with the club and went on to be named the 2022 U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year. Since then, Shaw has scored 13 NWSL goals, becoming the leader in goals scored by a teenager in the NWSL.
Shaw Steps Onto the Olympic Stage
At the national level, Shaw made her debut for the USA on Oct. 26, 2023 and has scored seven goals and recorded one assist in her 14 appearances. Shaw is also the all-time leader in scoring five goals in each of her first five starts as a teenager.
“I’m really excited for the Olympics,” said Shaw. “It means a lot to me, I’m honored to be able to represent this country at such a high stage and I’m really happy and can’t wait to get there.”
Forward Jaedyn Shaw is the youngest player on the U.S. Women’s National Team and has scored 13 NWSL … [+]
Although Shaw was not part of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup roster, the forward also shares the field with veteran Wave players such as Alex Morgan, Canada goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan, and Sweden forward Sofia Jakobsson.
“I’ve learned about just living in your bubble and not paying attention too much to outside noise,” said Shaw. “Whether things are going well or bad, just staying in your bubble, staying connected to your teammates and building off each game is important.”
“She can pretty much do anything…”
In the 2024 NWSL regular season, Shaw has made 15 appearances for the Wave and has recorded 936 minutes. Out of the 15 goals scored by the team, Shaw has recorded three goals so far and once she returns from Paris, the NWSL regular season will resume with another 10 weeks of the regular season.
“When I look back to our game against Chicago where Jaedyn got that ball into her feet and spun the defender for a fantastic save from the keeper, it would’ve been a goal to remember for a long time,” Wave Interim Head Coach Paul Buckle told Forbes. “It had a lot of elements of her game in that one action where she can pretty much do anything on the ball. She’s good at receiving it and can run with the ball and I’ve really enjoyed working with her. I think she’s going to be a force not only for us but for our country.”
Along with her player achievements on the field, Shaw is also the very first Vietnamese American player to participate on the USWNT. As a force for young fans, Shaw’s impact on the game continues to grow as the young forward will participate in her first-ever major international tournament at the senior level.
“Being the first Vietnamese American on the U.S. Women’s national team is a complete honor,” said Shaw. “I think being able to represent this jersey at all is an honor, but being able to represent more than that is a really cool opportunity for me to inspire little girls that may have similar heritage as me. It’s very motivating for me to work as hard as I can to be successful.”
The U.S. Women’s National Team will face Zambia in the opening game of the 2024 Paris Olympics on Thursday, July 25 at 12pm PT/3pm ET.
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