South Africa, Botswana Advance to 2019 WBSC Softball World Championships

The top two nations from the African Softball Championships -- South Africa and Botswana -- have qualified for this year's World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Men's World Softball Championship in Prague and Havlickuv Brod, and the Junior Women's Softball World Cup in Irvine, California.

South African national teams won the African Softball Championships in the respective men's and junior women's categories this past weekend at the Mbolekwa Sports Complex in Atteridgeville, South Africa.

"Congratulations to South Africa and Botswana for qualifying into the top international softball events in 2019," said Tommy Velazquez, WBSC Softball Division Chairman. "Softball continues to evolve and bring opportunities in Africa, from grassroots levels to the highest honour, the National Team. WBSC, as well as others in our sport, are focusing efforts on the African continent, connecting with more and more young people and next generations of players. I see a bright future for softball in the African continent, which will boost the Softball World Cup properties into the foreseeable future."

South Africa defeated Botswana, 4-2, the final of the African Men's Softball Championship, with Lesotho finishing in third place.

The South African Junior Women's National Team swept Botswana in a five-game continental championship series to become crowned the champions of Africa in the youth women's category.

WBSC Men's Softball World Championship 2019

The 16-team field for the WBSC Men's Softball World Championship 2019 is now complete, with South Africa and Botswana earning the right to represent the African continent in the global battle. The top men's softball event this year will be held in Prague and Havlickuv Brod, Czech Republic, from 13-23 June, and will feature 12 of the top 13 teams in the world.

The National Teams qualified for the Men's Softball World Championship are:

Africa (2): No. 12 South Africa, No. 13 Botswana.

Americas (6): No. 2 Canada, No. 5 Argentina, No. 6 United States, No. 8 Venezuela, No. 9 Mexico, No. 24 Cuba (wild card).

Asia (3): No. 3 Japan, No. 17 Philippines, No. 22 Singapore.

Europe (3): No. 7 Czech Republic, No. 11 Denmark, No. 19 Netherlands.

Oceania (2): No. 1 New Zealand, No. 4 Australia

WBSC Junior Women's Softball World Cup 2019

African champion South African and runner-up Botswana are the final nations to qualify for the WBSC Junior Women's Softball World Cup, which will be staged in Irvine, California, USA, from 11-17 August. Sixteen nations, including the world's Nos. 1-11, will be competing the for the youth women's world title:

Africa (2): No. 28 South Africa, No. 43 Botswana

Americas (5): No. 1 United States, No. 3 Canada, No. 4 Puerto Rico, No. 5 Mexico, No. 14 Brazil

Asia (3): No. 2 Japan, No. 6 Chinese Taipei, No. 8 China

Europe (4): No. 9 Italy, No. 10 Netherlands (wild card), No. 15 Czech Republic, No. 22 Ireland

Oceania (2): No. 7 Australia, No. 11 New Zealand

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Contact: media@wbsc.org.

About the World Baseball Softball Confederation

Headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland -- the Olympic Capital -- the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) is the world governing body for baseball and softball. WBSC has 208 National Federation and Associate Members in 135 countries and territories across Asia, Africa, Americas, Europe and Oceania, which represent a united baseball/softball sports movement that encompasses over 65 million athletes and attracts approximately 150 million fans to stadiums worldwide annually.

The WBSC governs all international competitions involving official National Teams. The WBSC oversees the Premier12, World Baseball Classic, Baseball World Cups, Softball World Cups and Softball World Championships, as well as baseball and softball events at the Olympic Games.

For more information, visit www.wbsc.org, which is available six languages: English, French, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and Traditional Chinese.

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