2015 WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup nations, dates announced

LAUSANNE, Switzerland – The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), baseball’s world governing body, announced the nations and dates of the 2015 U-12 Baseball World Cup III.

Baseball’s 2015 U-12 world championship, which will showcase the most elite 12-year-old players in the world, will take place from 24 July to 2 August in Tainan City.

The United States, “Team USA”, will be entering as the defending U-12 World Champions.

The twelve nations qualified for 2015 U12 Baseball World Cup represent a global footprint that includes a first-ever representative from Oceania.

It will be the first time in history that the top four nations in the world — Japan, USA, Cuba and Chinese Taipei — will be represented together at the U12 World Cup.

The elite competition will also feature ten of the top sixteen ranked nations in the world.

While USA are world champions, Chinese Taipei, Nicaragua and Russia all won their respective U12 continental championships in 2014.

Chinese Taipei won the inaugural U12 World Cup in 2011, defeating Cuba in front of a sold-out Tien-Mu stadium in Taipei.

Added excitement will surround this year’s U18 and U12 World Cups, which kick-off the 4-year world rankings cycle – as points earned from these events will be the first to go toward the world rankings that will eventually determine the qualified nations for the 2019 Premier 12™ Pro Baseball World Championship.

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