OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – The International Softball Federation (ISF) announced today the schedule for the XI Women’s World Championship being held August 27-September 5 in Beijing, China. USA Softball, who has won the past five ISF World Championships, opens play on August 27 against Italy, the same opponent it met in its opener at the 2004 Olympic Games. This event marks the debut of the new softball venue built for the 2008 Games in Beijing and will serve as an official Olympic test event.
The upcoming World Championship will not only crown the world’s best but it will also qualify four teams for the 2008 Olympic Softball competition. The first seven days of play at the XI Women’s World Championship will feature eight games each day, as round robin play takes place in the main stadium and an adjacent facility. A total of 16 countries will be vying for the world championship and have been split into two pools of eight. Teams will compete in pool play August 27-September 2 with USA landing in pool A along with Canada, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, DPR Korea, Great Britain and China. Pool B will consist of Australia, Japan, Chinese Taipei, Greece, Venezuela, Netherlands, Botswana and Columbia. Four teams from each of the pools will advance to the playoffs beginning on September 3.
Other highlights of the schedule include DPR Korea and Greece each making their first-ever appearance in an ISF Women’s World Championship. DPR Korea will take on South Africa in its opening game while Greece meets 2004 Olympic Softball silver medalist Australia in the evening.
The full game schedule can be viewed online on the ISF’s official website at www.internationalsoftball.com
Visit the official 2006 ISF Women’s World Championship website at www.2006softball.org
Complete USA Schedule (All times Beijing time)
Aug.27 USA vs. Italy 3:00 p.m.
Aug.28 USA vs. DPR Korea 12:30 p.m.
Aug..29 USA vs. Canada 3:00 p.m.
Aug. 30 USA vs. Great Britain 3:00 p.m.
Aug. 31 USA vs. New Zealand 10:30 a.m.
Sept. 1 USA vs. China 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 2 USA vs. South Africa 3:30 p.m.
Sept. 3 P1 Pool A-3rd place vs. Pool B-4th place 11:00 a.m.
P2 Pool A-1st place vs. Pool B-2nd place 1:30 p.m.
P3 Pool B-3rd place vs. Pool A- 4th place 4:00 p.m.
P4 Pool B-1st place vs. Pool A-2nd place 6:30 p.m.
Sept. 4 Winner of P1 vs. Loser of P2 11:00 a.m.
Winner of P3 vs. Loser of P4 1:30 p.m.
Winner of P5 vs. Winner of P6 4:00 p.m.
Winner of P2 vs. Winner of P4 6:30 p.m.
Sept. 5 Bronze Medal Game
Winner of P7 vs. Loser of P8 11:00 a.m.
Gold Medal Game
Winner of P8 vs. Winner of P9
About ISF
The ISF is the world governing body of the sport as recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF). Softball (women's fast pitch) made its Olympic debut at the 1996 Games in Atlanta. There are 130 affiliated countries in the ISF and millions of participants in the sport worldwide.
About ASA
The Amateur Softball Association, founded in 1933, is the National Governing Body of softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. The ASA has become one of the nation’s largest sports organizations and now sanctions competition in every state through a network of 87 local associations. The ASA has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 230,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than three million. For more information on the ASA, visit www.asasoftball.com.
About USA Softball
USA Softball is the brand created, operated and owned by the ASA that links the USA Men’s, Women’s, Junior Boys’ and Junior Girls’ National Team programs together. USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting these four National Teams to compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of the only two women’s sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won seven World Championship titles including the last five consecutive. For more information about USA Softball, please visit www.usasoftball.com
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