FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 15, 2004

MEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP EXACTLY TWO WEEKS AWAY
TV Broadcasts, Attending Dignitaries Mark Event’s High Profile

It won’t be long now before the International Softball Federation (ISF) kicks off the New Year in grand fashion, with one of its four world championships. Set for Christchurch, New Zealand, this edition is the XI Men’s World Championship, the highest level event in men’s play.

A total of 15 teams will compete from January 29 to February 8 at Smokefree Ballpark. The participants will include: Argentina, Australia, Botswana, Canada, Czech Republic, Great Britain, Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Samoa, South Africa, USA, and Venezuela. Coincidentally, the host team is the defending men’s world champion, having defeated Japan, 2-1, in the gold medal game of the 2000 event in East London, South Africa. The United States won the bronze. Worth noting in this year’s event is the presence of Samoa, who will be fielding a team for the first time ever in any ISF world championship. They’ll also draw some attention as – like Australia, Great Britain, and USA – they have former New Zealanders (coaches or players).

Attention is also being given in the media sense. Kiwi fans who don’t get out to the ballpark can tune in to TVNZ (TV New Zealand), who will broadcast four games from the event. And, SKY TV will be showing a minimum of four games.

Those watching in person and at home should expect to see teams who’ll come prepared. For example, the Czech Republic team is already in New Zealand, and will play in the Braves Tournament in Wanganui this weekend. Beginning next Thursday (Jan. 22), Australia, Canada, and the Netherlands will compete in a triple-round robin tri-series in Canberra. Hong Kong, Japan, and the Philippines will both be fresh off the Asian Men’s Championship, which concluded last month. New Zealand will play five games over three consecutive days next week against domestic teams. Great Britain is also a team not to be taken lightly. In 2003, the GB Men posted a 19-4-1 record across all tournaments, including the European Championships, and outscored their opponents by a margin of 191 runs to 45.

Notable attendees at this marquee event will be the mayor of Christchurch, the President of New Zealand’s National Olympic Committee, International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Tay Wilson, and potentially, prime ministers from three different countries.

An official event website can be found online at http://www.2004worldsoftball.com, providing ticket information, press releases, and more.

For more information, please contact ISF Director of Communications Bruce Wawrzyniak at brucew@internationalsoftball.com or (813) 864-0100, ext. 229.