II 12U Baseball World Cup getting underway on Thursday
Tournament with 14 Teams will be played from July 18 to 28
Taipei City. The II 12U Baseball World Cup is getting underway on Thursday with six games and the opening ceremony. The tournament will run through Sunday, July 28 and will be played at Tien-Mou Stadium, Youth Park and Shing-Sheng Stadium. 26 of the 54 games will be broadcasted live in Chinese Taipei. Highlights of the game will be shown in Japan.
IBAF Executive Director Michael Schmidt said during the pre-tournament press conference: “The 12U Baseball World Cup is the most elite baseball competition for this age group in the world, but it also brings young athletes together from all around the world to celebrate in goodwill, fail play and cultural diversity. The 12U Baseball World Cup forms a part of a long-term plan to focus on youth and keep our sport relevant, modern and aligned with the values of the Olympic Games and international spirit.”
On the first day of the competition six games are on the schedule, three in the morning (USA-Panama, Mexico-Italy, Korea-Pakistan), two in the afternoon (Japan-Czech Republic, Hong Kong – Venezuela) and the official opening game between Chinese Taipei and Brazil in the evening following the opening ceremony.
Chinese Taipei won the inaugural edition in 2011 also in Taipei City, defeating Cuba in Gold Medal Game. Venezuela finished in third place ahead of Mexico. Chinese Taipei, Mexico, Venezuela, Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Philippines, Brazil and Italy are returning participants two years later. For the first time the United States, Panama, Russia, Czech Republic and Pakistan will play in the 12U Baseball World Cup.
Also new at the 12U Baseball World Cup will be that throwing breaking balls and especially the curveball is no longer prohibited. After evaluating the inaugural edition two years ago, where this was the case, the Tournament Commission of the International Baseball Federation decided to change the rule.
Several studies of recognized sport medicine institutes were taken into consideration. They cite that curveballs at any age, if thrown with proper mechanics, don’t harm arms of players more than any other pitch. However certain pitch counts and other regulations are still in place to protect the health of the players.
All teams arrived safely in Taipei City and went through the first few practices on site. Pre-tournament meetings are in the books and an entertainment filled press conference on Thursday initiated the 12U Baseball World Cup with all 14 participating countries.
Format
The preliminary round robin will be played from Thursday, July 18 to Thursday, July 25 with Tuesday, July 23 being the rest day. Afterwards a single-elimination round will be played among the top eight teams. The best four teams from each pool advance to the quarterfinals on Friday, July 26. The semi-finals are played on Saturday, July 27 and the Gold Medal and classification games on Sunday, July 28.
Schedule
Thursday, July 18, 2013
10:00 Mexico – Italy (Youth Park)
10:00 USA – Panama (Tien-Mou)
10:00 Korea – Pakistan (Shing-Sheng)
14:00 Japan – Czech Republic (Tien-Mou)
14:00 Hong Kong – Venezuela (Youth Park)
18:30 Opening Ceremony at Tien-Mou
19:00 Chinese Taipei – Brazil (Tien-Mou)
For all information about the II 12U Baseball World Cup visit www.12ubaseballworldcup.org. Do you want to see Baseball-Softball at the Olympic Games? Like PlayBall2020 on Facebook or follow on Twitter.
(From IBAF Website)
