Fukushima to Host Six Softball Games for Tokyo 2020 -- Federation Focus

(ATR) The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), the IOC and Tokyo 2020 organizers reach agreement on the number of games to be played in Fukushima.

Six Olympic softball games are being added to the one baseball game that had already been approved for the Fukushima Azuma Baseball Stadium. Fukushima, one of three prefectures heavily affected by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, will also be the starting point for the 2020 Olympic Torch Relay.

"As the biggest sport in Japan, we have a great sense of duty and honour to utilise baseball and softball as a vehicle and symbol of Fukushima's rebirth, and in this regard, there can be no better stage than the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games to spotlight the region's regeneration to the world," WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari said in a statement.

The rest of the games will be played at Yokohama Stadium, some 40km from Tokyo.

The WBSC says it will continue to work with Tokyo 2020 and the IOC to finalize the full Olympic baseball/softball competition schedule.

World Surfing Games This Week in Japan

The 2018 Urban Research ISA World Surfing Games begins later this week in Tahara, Japan.

This year’s event will be used as a qualifier for surfing’s debut in the Lima 2019 Pan American Games.

Four slots, two for each gender, will be awarded to the highest finishing surfers from the Americas. The 2019 Pan Am Games will have one Olympic qualification slot for men and one for women.

The 2019 and 2020 editions of the World Surfing Games will also serve as one of the qualifying paths for the sport’s Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020.

Iran, Hungary and the Philippines will be making their debuts in the event. There are 42 countries competing this year, five fewer than last year’s record in Biarritz, France. The drop in numbers is due to a rules change that allows only countries with National Olympic Committees to compete, a necessary requirement to give the WSG status as a qualifying event for Lima 2019.

The Parade of Nations and Opening Ceremony is Sept. 15, with competition running from Sept. 16-22.

Tahara, the site of the WSG, is about 300km (186 miles) southwest of Chiba Prefecture’s Tsurigasaki Beach, the surfing venue for Tokyo 2020.

ICF Launches New Event

A new race will pit canoe sprint racers in different disciplines against each other for what the International Canoe Federation says is "record prize money and some of the biggest names in the sport".

The Canoe Sprint Pre-Super Cup in Linyi, China, and the Sprint Super Cup in Barnaul, Russia will feature a 350 meter race, the first of its kind. At the Olympics canoe sprinters race in distances of 200, 500, and 1000 meters.

"Not only will these events provide opportunities for our best athletes to attain more valuable race experience and to compete for generous prize money, they will also help the growth of our sport," Thomas Konietzko, ICF Canoe Sprint Chairman, said in a statement.

"Importantly, we are taking our sport to new venues, and closer to the community. That is the key to future growth of any sport – excitement, accessibility and understanding what the public wants."

The Pre-Super Cup is scheduled for September 18, and the Super Cup will be held on September 21-22.

"Starting a new event always has its risks, but we are confident that with the support already being shown by the athletes, the sponsors, the hosts and the media, that this is a format which will capture people’s imagination," Konietzko added.

Volleyball Championships Open Across Europe

Two European presidents watched their home countries win opening matches of the 2018 International Volleyball World Championships.

Italy and Bulgaria are co-hosting the event, which began on September 11 across Europe.

Sergio Mattarella attended the opening match between Italy and Japan in Rome alongside FIVB President Ary Graça. Meanwhile, in Varna, Bulgaria, Rumen Radav watched as Bulgaria defeated Finland to start the tournament.

Each country will co-host the first two rounds of the tournament, which feature two round robins. Italy will then host the third round robin, semifinals and finals. Poland will look to repeat as World Champion, after winning the tournament at home.

"What an incredible night and an amazing start to the Men’s World Championship," Graça said in a statement following the first matches. "Both our hosts gave their fans something to cheer about long into the night, and I have no doubt we are in for another exhilarating event!"

Written by Gerard Farek and Aaron Bauer

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