South Africa stays in world sports spotlight
23 June 2011
ISF Media Release
World Championship in Cape Town less than 5 months away
22 June 2011
PLANT CITY, FLORIDA (USA) – The 16 countries that will compete have all officially entered. Media credential applications are being accepted. Tickets go on sale at the end of next week. And engagement on the Web continues to increase.
It’s all a part of preparations for the International Softball Federation IX Jr. Women’s World Championship in South Africa later this year.
Participants in the (age) 19-and-under fast pitch event will be: Argentina, Australia, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, Czech Republic, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Russia, South Africa, USA, and Zimbabwe. The tournament will take place from December 6-17 in Cape Town at the Turfhall Softball Stadium. The venue was originally planned as part of the city’s 2004 Olympic bid and is undergoing upgrades in preparation for the world championship.
ISF President Don Porter said, “The organizing committee is giving a world-class effort in making this our marquee event of 2011. They are showing great pride in putting South Africa in the spotlight for well over a week while the junior world championship is going on and I’m confident that the athletes, officials, spectators, and the media will all come away impressed.” In terms of the latter two audiences that the ISF president mentioned, the accreditation process has already opened for media members to apply for covering the tournament. And, for fans, tickets will go on sale next Friday, July 1st.
In both cases – applying for media credentials or purchasing tickets – the destination is the official world championship website, www.jwwc2011.co.za, which also has a link (at the top) to a Facebook page that had been launched for the tournament. Mr. Porter added that representatives from the ISF will conduct their next site visit from August 6-9, with the last of those serving as a launch day and coinciding with the celebration of Women’s Day in South Africa.
The previous edition of the Jr. Women’s World Championship was held in the Netherlands (2007), with USA dethroning the defending gold medalist Japan via a 3-1 victory in the grand final.
About the International Softball Federation
The ISF is the world governing body of the sport as recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and SportAccord (formerly the General Association of International Sports Federations). Softball (women's fast pitch) made its Olympic debut at the 1996 Games in Atlanta. There are 127 affiliated countries in the ISF and millions of participants in the sport worldwide. The sport is contested in more than a dozen multi-sport Games. Learn additional details about the Federation at www.ISFsoftball.org.
MEDIA: For more information, please contact ISF Director of Communications Bruce Wawrzyniak at brucew@ISFsoftball.org, +1-813-864-0100, or +1-813-453-8762.
International Softfall Federation (ISF)
1900 So. Park Road, Plant City, FL 33563, USA
P: (+1-813) 864-0100 F: (+1-813) 864 0105 info@ISFsoftball.org www.ISFsoftball.org
