TAMPA, Fla. — Deliah Autry defended the United States Women’s National Team during the Flag Football World Championship in Finland.

“Defensively, we averaged the ten points we were allowed and scored a lot of points,” Autry said. “I can say that we had a good tournament.”

23 women’s teams from around the world participated in the tournament.

The USA team went 8-0 en route to the gold medal. Autry believes the competition is increasing as the world prepares to play flag football at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“I feel like a lot of teams are taking this more seriously now, a lot of teams are holding training camps to prepare for these competitions,” Autry said. “Get your teams together in advance and prepare for this championship.”

He became one of the most decorated athletes in the sport, winning three gold and one silver medal. But this one means the most to her because this is the first year she’s taken her mental health seriously.

“I sought resources from US Soccer and personally to make sure I was mentally prepared to compete,” Autry said. “I found that as the sport became more competitive and grew, I started to really value how mentally prepared I was. I think everyone on the field is at the level of an elite athlete. Then it comes down to how to outmaneuver people and maintain that composure throughout the entire process.

Autry was born and raised in Tampa and starred on the field at Robinson High School. He was even honored at a recent Tampa Bay Buccaneers game.

“Representing my city is very important to me,” he said. “Also knowing how much the Bucs know how passionate I am about this city and showing what we can offer to the sport.”

He will continue to work on his game as much as possible until the next competition.

“This keeps me going every day. We won this gold medal and the very next day we were like, ‘When will we start training again?’ We know that as the sport progresses, so do we. I feel responsible for flag football being included in the Olympics. That’s what I love about it. “This pushes me forward and fuels my mindset that there is room for improvement.”