Olympic softball medalist by day, Mississauga nurse by night

From the chalk lines on the softball diamond in Tokyo at the Summer Olympics back to the front lines of healthcare at Mississauga Hospital, Erika Polidori has had quite the journey the past few months. 

In late July, Polidori scored one of three runs for Team Canada as it won its first-ever Olympic softball medal with a 3-2 win over Mexico to capture bronze.  

Earlier this week, the 29-year-old Brantford native returned to work as a nurse at Mississauga Hospital for her first shift since her Olympic experience in Japan. 

Erika Polidori, left, celebrates after scoring a run in Canada’s 3-2 win over Mexico in the Olympic bronze medal game in Tokyo. (Photo: Mark Blinch/Canadian Olympic Committee)

On a Nov. 1 post to Twitter, CBC Olympics called Polidori “a hero on and off the field.” 

Trillium Health Partners (THP), which runs Mississauga Hospital, retweeted the post, adding its own welcome-back message. 

“Today, THP’s own Erika Polidori had her first shift back at Mississauga Hospital since winning a bronze medal at the…” Tokyo 2020 Olympics with the Team Canada women’s softball team.  

“Welcome home, Erika,” the tweet concluded.  

Always always always so grateful for the support @THP_hospital has given me throughout this journey 💚💙 Proud to be back with this team! https://t.co/BgtRQ6blEp

— Erika Polidori (@erikapolidori) November 2, 2021

Polidori responded with a social media post of her own. 

“Always, always, always so grateful for the support (THP) has given me throughout this journey. Proud to be back with this team.” 

In the bronze-medal game in Tokyo, Polidori reached base on a throwing error in the second inning and came in to score on a two-run single from Emma Entzminger that put Canada up 2-0. 

Earlier in the Olympic tournament, Canada went 3-2, outscoring opponents 19-4 in the five games. Canada defeated Mexico 4-0, Australia 7-1 and Italy 8-1 while dropping a pair of 1-0 decisions to Japan and the U.S., the tournament’s top two squads. 

Prior to this year’s bronze medal, Canada’s best finish in Olympics softball was fourth place at the Beijing Games in 2008, the last time the sport was contested at the Summer Games.