Women's baseball
From BR Bullpen
Women's baseball is currently played in several countries. The strongest and most organized women's baseball leagues are in the United States, Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Cuba and Canada. Those countries have national governing bodies that support girls' and women's baseball programs. Other countries/regions that currently have organized women's baseball are Korea, Hong Kong, Venezuela, Argentina and the Dominican Republic.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Professional baseball
[edit] United States
[edit] Japan
[edit] International competition
International competition in women's baseball began with the 2001 Women's World Series played in Toronto's Skydome. Women's World Series events were held in 2002 (St. Petersburg, FL), in 2003 (Gold Coast, Australia), and in 2004 (Uozu-city, Japan). The Women's World Series events paved the way for official International Baseball Federation sanctioned Women's World Cup competitions.
In 2004 five countries competed in the 2004 Women's Baseball World Cup in Edmonton. They were the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan and Taiwan. In 2006 seven countries competed in the 2006 Women's Baseball World Cup in Taiwan. Those countries were Australia, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Cuba, Hong Kong, Japan and the United States. The United States won the Gold Medal in both events. The Women's World Cup name has been changed to the Women's World Championship. The International Baseball Federation has sanctioned Women's World Championships biannually through to 2012.
[edit] Further Reading
- Jean Ardell: Breaking into Baseball: Women and the National Pastime, Southern Illinois University Press, Carbondale, IL, 2005.
- Marilyn Cohen: No Girls in the Clubhouse: The Exclusion of Women from Baseball, McFarland, Jefferson, NC,
- Leslie A. Heaphy and Mel Anthony May, ed: Encyclopedia of Women and Baseball, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 2006.
- Jennifer Ring: Stolen Bases: Why American Girls Don't Play Baseball, University of Illinois Press, Champaign, IL, 2009.
