The second edition of the WBSC U-12 Softball World Cup will have five teams, featuring returnees Chinese Taipei and the Czech Republic and new squads Hong Kong, India and Singapore all vying for the world title from 7-11 December in Jin-Long Field in Taichung, Chinese Taipei.
The hosts are looking to defend their title, following their sweep of all seven games in the 2019 edition, including their 3-2 triumph against Peru in an exciting final.
See WBSC U-12 Softball World Cup history here
See Team Rosters inside the II WBSC U-12 Softball World Cup Daily Report Day 0
Taichung City Government representative Li Yurui and Softball Asia chairman Pan Yu Chuan were the event's guests of honour, who welcomed all the delegates at the press conference on Tuesday.
Li Yurui, Taichung City Government Sports Bureau Director
“Baseball and softball are very popular sports in Taiwan. I would like to thank the WBSC for making Taichung the city of world baseball and softball, as the city that hosted important events like the Premier 12 and the 2022 U-23 Baseball World Cup. The government and the citizens will continue to support the U-12 Softball World Cup. As for the teams and players, I wish you great success in the tournament and I hope you enjoy your stay in Taichung City.”
Pan Yu Chuan, Chairman of Softball Asia
“We want to thank the WBSC for this opportunity to host another great event in Taiwan and we also want to thank the Chinese Taipei Softball Association for putting all this together. I wish all the teams to have fun in the tournament and wish you all good luck.”
The head coaches of each team were also presented to the media and shared their team’s main objectives in the competition.
Team Profile – Chinese Taipei
Defending champions
Previous Edition Played: 1
Best Finish: 1st (2019)
Total Medals 1 (gold in 2019)
Head Coach – Wu Chi-Tsu (TPE)
On his first time coaching the team and his objectives:
“This is my first time coaching a team in a WBSC event. I am not a sports professional, but an elementary school teacher and sport is my hobby.
“The main goal is to keep our record and win another gold
medal in this event for the country. And because this event is being held in
Taichung, as hosts, we want to keep winning and we want the trophy to stay here
in Taiwan.”
On building and preparing his team for the competition:
“This tournament was first planned to be held in August and then it was moved to December. Some of our athletes have already moved from elementary to junior high, which made it difficult to gather them for training. So, we prepared a programme that would allow them to prepare and train individually. We were able to gather them all together seven days ago to train and work on their teamwork.
On defending the title:
“From what we have been doing so far, we focused on our
pitching and defence because we know that will help us improve our performance.
After the youth baseball games in Tainan, we were able to recruit two good
players from baseball. When they started training, they strengthened our
pitching and batting, so they are key to this competition and their good
performance will help us a lot.”
On softball in Chinese Taipei:
“There isn’t much softball games or competitions for the
youth in our country. There are two or three for the league and the Association
Cup. This tournament is such a great platform for our athletes to look forward
because it encourages them to perform better and aim for bigger things like
representing the national team. And playing here will help them work harder in
softball.
“In our country, most softball players are girls, so this is
a unique opportunity for boys and girls to work together. Now many boys have
the chance to see that girls in softball are playing well, and that would actually
push them to work hard too. It is a great platform to work together and improve
both their skills.”
Team Profile – Czech Republic
2019 Result: 3rd
Previous Edition Played: 1
Best Finish: 3rd (2019)
Total Medals: 1 (bronze in 2019)
Head Coach - Jana Klempirova (CZE)
On their chances in the competition after finishing third in
the first edition:
“We know that the teams here are strong, so we must play
hard in each game, especially against Chinese Taipei because they have a huge
advantage as hosts of this tournament. We do not know yet about the other
teams, but we know that we will play an even game with them. We do not want to
underestimate any team here, so we will play hard and enjoy every game as well.”
On their strengths in the competition:
“We are prepared for every game in this tournament. Our key
players are our pitchers, I can also say that we have strong offence.
On having a good softball programme in their country:
“We have a well-developed programme for softball in all
categories for both boys and girls. We have a competition for every division
year-round, as well as premier tournaments. We provide a way for young players
as early as age seven to compete, up to the adult level. This is the result of
the success of our national teams.
“The last U-12 Softball World Cup was a great reason for us
to also focus on the youth programme in the country, where we try to find young
and talented players and we participate in a lot of leagues for youth baseball
and softball.”
Team Profile – Hong Kong, China
2019 Result: -
Previous Edition Played: 0
Best Finish: -
Total Medals: -
Head Coach – Franky Tso (HKG)
On his expectations in the tournament:
“This is the first time for Hong Kong to participate at the
U-12 Softball World Cup. We want to enjoy this tournament, but also expect to
gain more experience in each game, which could help us improve in future
tournaments.
On the youth softball programme in his country:
“In Hong Kong, we have the U-12, U-15, U-19 and U-23 started
three years ago. And we are combining both the youth baseball and softball
teams to train.
“This is a good opportunity for Hong Kong to be
participating in this tournament because we could see the level of the other
U-12 teams. This will help us gain that experience that we could bring home to
our country to create specific programmes that would develop our teams. When we
are able to develop well, we aim to get good results to make it to the world
stage.”
Team Profile - India
2019 Result: -
Previous Edition Played: 0
Best Finish: -
Total Medals: -
Team Leader – Pradeep Narulkar (IND)
On the youth programme in India:
“We started a U-10 and U-12 programme for kids five years
ago, including the national championships where 800 players participated It
took a halt because of the government guidelines imposed caused by the
pandemic, so it was difficult to organise these national championships.
“Because we started with the youth national championships,
our junior and senior programmes are reaping the benefits now because of the
increase in the interest of kids through that grassroots programme.”
On the formation of the team:
“We tried our best to form a competitive team, but now is an
examination period for students in India. Nonetheless we will utilize well
whoever is available for this team in this tournament.”
Team Profile - Singapore
2019 Result: -
Previous Edition Played: 0
Best Finish: -
Total Medals: -
Head Coach – Elaine Chua (SGP)
On Singapore’s objectives and expectations in the
tournament:
“The objectives for this competition are to expose these
young players to competitive softball at the international level and to provide
an opportunity for the players to learn from one another. My expectations are
for the team to play hard, give their very best, have fun and enjoy the
process.”
On the team’s key players:
“The team is quite dynamic, with players with different
playing experience and skills. We have an equal number of 11- and 12-year-olds.
Therefore, we don’t have key players but more of a team that will look to the
boys for guidance on the field because most of them are infielders.”
On Singapore’s youth softball programme:
“In Singapore, we only have one major National Schools
Competition in a year. Therefore, there isn’t much opportunity to compete and
play competitive softball. However, we conduct age group trials yearly and this
allows them to train and play with the better players, which helps improve
their experience, knowledge and performance.”
On the U-12 Softball World Cup’s influence in future
participation in more WBSC events:
“It was a learning experience for the coaches and the
Singapore Baseball and Softball Association, in terms of managing athletes at
this age since they are still maturing physically, mentally and emotionally.
“This tournament contributes to the progression of athletes
from the U-12 to the U-15 and all the way to open national team. So we can try
to ensure some continuity through the age groups so we can participate more
competitively in even more WBSC events.”