Ghana introduced the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the inaugural WBSC Africa U-18 Baseball5 Championship at the Media Centre of the Accra Sports Stadium. The Director General of The National Sports Authority, Hon. Prof. Peter Twumasi attended the presentation.
The LOC, composed of representatives from the Ghana Baseball & Softball Federation and other seasoned professionals in the sports industry, includes Mr Usman Kweku Etuaful (chairman), Mr Jeffrey Kumi Manzan Owusu, Mr Emmanuel Frimpong, Mr Edmund Ackom, Mr Alexander Tieky, Miss Farida A. Iddriss, Mr Berthold Paajoe Gadagbui and Mr Felix Berbiye.
In his address, the President of Ghana Baseball Softball Federation, Mr Ernest Danso, reiterated the importance of this event coming to the country.
WBSC Africa awarded the hosting rights to Ghana in January. The bid surpassed others from Zimbabwe and South Africa.
WBSC Africa president Albert Frimpong said that he was impressed by the work that went into the bid preparation and that he expects a lot from the tournament's outcome.
The qualifier is scheduled from 16 to 21 May on the Cape Coast. The top two finishers will represent Africa at the first-ever WBSC Youth Baseball5 World Cup.
The confirmed participating national teams are Ghana, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The participants will be split into three groups. After the opening round, the first and second place team and the top two third-place finishers will advance to the playoffs, which will include the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals.
Five teams have already qualified for the inaugural WBSC Youth Baseball5 World Cup. France and Türkiye qualified in November 2022 through the inaugural U-17 Baseball5 European Championship. In February, Chinese Taipei, China and Korea clinched their spot in the first-ever Youth Baseball5 Asia Cup.
The WBSC is in the process of awarding the hosting rights of the WBSC Youth Baseball5 World Cup, which is a 12-team tournament.
- Africa (2)
- Americas (3)
- Asia (3) - No. 2 Chinese Taipei, China, No. 12 Korea
- Europe (2) - No. 3 France, No. 20 Türkiye
- Oceania (1)
- Host Nation (1)
Venezuela will host the Americas Qualifier from 7 to 14 July in La Guaira,
