Melanie Jane Roche (born 9 November 1970 in

Bankstown, New South Wales Bankstown is a suburb south west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 16 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is located in the local government area of the City of Canterbury-Bankstown, ha ...

) is a

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

player from

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. She has won a bronze medal at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

and

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

, a silver medal at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

along with a bronze medal in the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

. Participating in 4 Olympic Games and winning 4 Olympic Medals is an Australian Olympic Record. Roche was a two-time First Team All-American at

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

, where she played from 1990 to 1993. While in college, Roche tallied 774 strikeouts in 658-2/3 innings, a ratio that is tied for 28th all-time. She was inducted into the OSU Hall of Honor on 2 September 2011. Roche has played and coached professionally in Japan for 16 years in Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo. In her down time she studies audio engineering, has a keen interest in science (physics) and music. Roche is a softball pitcher best known for her angular velocity and her competitive nature. Mel Roche released her first CD "In Full Flight" on 5 June 2010. Many of the songs have been inspired through her 16-year Olympic Journey.

External links

Australian Institute of Sport profile
1970 births Living people Australian softball players Olympic softball players of Australia Oklahoma State Cowgirls softball players Softball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Softball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Softball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics People from New South Wales Olympic medalists in softball Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Softball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for Australia Olympic bronze medalists for Australia {{Australia-softball-bio-stub