Sport Pregnant U.S. women's soccer star Alex Morgan still plans to play in 2020 Summer Olympics

GARDENA, Calif. — Alex Morgan, co-captain of the U.S. women’s national soccer team, said she plans to play in the 2020 Summer Olympics even though she’s pregnant and expecting a baby girl in April — less than four months before the Games begin.

© Harrison Hill, USA TODAY Alex Morgan talks with Glendale High School girls soccer players inside of her newly built soccer field in Gardena, California. Morgan is working to build 1,000 soccer fields across America by 2026.

The Opening Ceremonies for the Tokyo Games are scheduled for July 24.

“I hope to get back on the field as soon as possible,’’ Morgan, 30, told USA TODAY Sports on Tuesday. “After having a healthy baby, I want to get back with the national team and look forward to playing in Tokyo.’’

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US soccer striker Alex Morgan says she plans to return to the national team in time for the 2020 Olympics despite being due to give birth to her first child just three months before. JUST WATCHED. Women ' s World Cup: Alex Morgan 1-On-1.

Soccer star Alex Morgan showed off her baby bump at a community sports event on Tuesday, just weeks after announcing she is expecting her first Plans : The 30-year-old, who led the US Women ' s Soccer Team to victory in the World Cup this year, revealed at the event that she plans to be back

This will be Morgan’s first child, and she said motherhood will not derail her soccer career. She has developed into a star as a member of the U.S. women’s teams that won 2019 World Cup, the 2015 World Cup and the 2012 Olympic gold.

“There are so many women that have been able to come back to their respective sport after pregnancy and continue to have a successful family while playing their sport that they love at the highest level,’’ she said. “I plan to follow in those footsteps and be one of those women who have a family and carry my daughter around as I’m going to the next city to play. And I still want to continue to enjoy the sport that I’ve been playing for all my life.’’

On Tuesday afternoon, Morgan was at Vincent Bell Park in Southern California to unveil a mini soccer pitch. She joined members of the girls soccer team at nearby Glendale High School during light drills on the new pitch — 84 feet long and 40 feet wide on an acrylic surface similar to a tennis court.

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Fans cheer on US women ' s soccer team in World Cup final. Alex Morgan attends The Best FIFA Football Awards in Milan last month. (Photo by Claudio Villa/Getty Images). NBC Sports reported that she is due in April, three months before the Tokyo Games; Morgan ’ s goal is to play at the Olympics .

The 30-year-old said she plans to play in the 2020 Olympics in July and is still training to some degree. She revealed the news in October, and in November said she intends to play in the 2020 Twitter account for U . S . Soccer Women ' s National Team shared video of the team getting off a bus

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“More access to the sport, especially in an underserved area of Los Angeles, is important to me,’’ Morgan said.

She expressed just as much passion when asked about the U.S. women team’s lawsuit against U.S. Soccer seeking to be paid as much as members of the U.S. men’s national team. A trial date has been set for May 5, but Morgan said she thinks the case will be settled out of court.

“A lot is going on behind the scenes,’’ she said. “There’s been a lot of progress made ...

“But we’ll continue to fight for what is right and what we deserve and we continue to say the same thing. It’s not just about equal pay. It’s about equal investment in the sport. It’s about equal marketing, advertising and along those lines it’s about equal opportunity for us to make similar or the same income as the men’s team.’’

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The soccer star — who exclusively announced her pregnancy to PEOPLE in October — is in California with the U . S . Women ’ s National Soccer Team, footage posted to social media by the organization reveals. In the video, Morgan is seen rubbing her baby bump and smiling at the camera

The soccer star — who exclusively announced her pregnancy to PEOPLE in October — is in California with the U . S . Women ’ s National Soccer Team, footage posted to social media by the organization reveals. In the video, Morgan is seen rubbing her baby bump and smiling at the camera

Since the U.S. women won the World Cup with a 2-0 victory over the Netherlands on July 7 in France, Morgan said, life has been a whirlwind.

“Starting with the ticker tape parade in New York City, which is one of the best moments ever,’’ said Morgan, who won the Silver Boot during the 2019 World Cup as the tournament’s top scorer behind only teammate Megan Rapinoe. “Just seeing hundreds of thousands of people come out and support us. Chanting our names, chanting ‘Equal Pay,’ we’ve heard a lot of that. And just supporting us was incredible.

“Then from there, I’ve had the opportunity to do a lot of speaking engagements where I”ve been able to speak on behalf of the team and what it was like to go through a World Cup on leadership and teammwork. So that’s been exciting and a little new for me as well.’’

In addition to cutting back on her training, Morgan said, she has made another concession to pregnancy: she’s more flexible with the vegan diet she said she started 2 1/2 years ago.

“I’ve dipped into the more vegetarian lately,’’ Morgan said. “With the pregnancy, it’s whatever kind of cravings I have that day. But I try to stick to primarily plant based.’’

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United States women ' s national soccer team star Alex Morgan said she plans to play in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo despite expecting her "And I still want to continue to enjoy the sport that I've been playing for all my life." Morgan tied teammate Megan Rapinoe and England' s Ellen

Alex Morgan is on board with the decision to postpone the 2020 Tokyo Olympics . “Overall it’ s just the right decision,” the pregnant athlete — who is due in April, three months before the With regard to everything going on, Morgan voted for a postponement in a U . S . Olympic Committee survey

With motherhood and the Olympics ahead, Morgan said she’s refraining from making too many plans. She and her husband, professional soccer player Servando Carrasco, announced the pregnancy on Oct. 23.

“I have another big year ahead of me and I think whatever I’m planning to do, the plans will probably dissolve,’’ she said. “It always happens where nothing happens according to plan. So I just am taking it week by week, enjoying my time with my husband and my family in the city of L.A. and just eagerly awaiting the arrival of our baby girl.’’

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Josh Peter on Twitter @joshlpeter11.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pregnant U.S. women's soccer star Alex Morgan still plans to play in 2020 Summer Olympics