​(Photo Courtesy World Lacrosse)We witnessed pure greatness from many of the game’s top performers this summer following the World Lacrosse Women’s Championship action in Tokyo, Japan. From highlight-reel goals to shocking international matchup upsets, there wasn’t a part of the tournament that was worth missing.How can we take the excitement from this summer’s event and build on it as we prepare for women’s lacrosse to be in the Olympics for the first time in 2028? Let’s dive into it!The StarsSome of our favorite players who crushed it at the World Lacrosse Women’s Championship this summer will likely be members of their national teams in two years at the Olympics. Who can we keep an eye out for?Shea Dolce’s performance between the pipes against Canada was special ✨8 saves on 12 shots for the star keeper in the final, along with a Player of the Match citation and a gold medal for her efforts 🥇🇺🇸#WLWC x #Tokyo2026 | #Lacrossepic.twitter.com/JWwyzzkuBc
— World Lacrosse (@WorldLacrosse) August 6, 2026Shea Dolce was a force to reckon with in Japan, totaling 24 saves across the tournament and ending with a ridiculous 63.2% save percentage. She proved her mark as one of the best goalies in the world on the international stage, and she’ll be fighting for a spot on the final Olympics Team USA roster for a chance to perform like that once again. Young collegiate talent like Chloe Humphrey and Eliza Osburn still have at least two years to develop and dominate at North Carolina, perfectly timing up their run at the Olympic team. Both players shined in the World Championship this summer, with Humphrey finishing second in the tournament in both points and assists. Though she was sidelined with an Achilles injury, Charlotte North was a positive light for Team USA in Japan. The lacrosse world as a whole is rooting for her comeback in hopes of an Olympic run in 2028 for one of the sport’s greatest stars.The Change to SixesThe main difference between what we watched at this summer’s World Lacrosse Women’s Championship and what we will see at the 2028 Olympics is the format. Field lacrosse was played this summer and Sixes will be played at the Olympics. What this ultimately means is that there will be less players on each roster, and also less nations that will be represented at the Olympics. This summer prepared us for that, though. This 2026 World Lacrosse Women’s Championship was the first time the gap across international play was closed in terms of hosting a tournament with only 16 teams. Each team was able to fill rosters of 22 players. That final amount of teams and roster numbers will be even less at the Olympics. Roster sizes will be 12 players, with six teams still yet to qualify on both the men’s and women’s sides.Qualifcation ProcessThe pathway to qualify for the 2028 Olympics require three stages, as World Lacrosse announced in February in coordination with the IOC.Continental Championships (September-Decemb