(Story by Marco Stoovelaar)
 World Baseball Classic 2017 again serves as World Championship
Nederlands
 LAUSANNE (Switzerland) -
In 2017, the fourth edition of the World Baseball Classic again will serve as the official World Baseball Championship, the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) announced on Tuesday (September 15).
...WBSC-President Riccardo Fraccari...
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
The World Baseball Softball Confederation announced that the world governing body has awarded a sanction to World Baseball Classic, Inc. (WBCI) for the 2017 World Baseball Classic and the tournament's qualifying rounds to be held in 2016.
The announcement continues with ,,Under the renewed partnership, WBCI, an entity jointly governed by Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association, will stage the fourth edition of the World Baseball Classic, which will feature the top nations in the WBSC Baseball World Rankings from all continents – comprising a global representation of 28 National Teams.
The 2017 World Baseball Classic will also be recognised by WBSC as its Official men's Baseball World Championship, with the winning nation crowned the world champion.''
In 2013, the World Baseball Classic was won by the Dominican Republic, which shutout Puerto Rico 3-0 in the final in San Francisco (USA).
The Dominicans has reached the final after winning 4-1 in the semi-final against the Netherlands, which had reached the Championship Play-Offs for the first time in the WBC-history.
By winning the World Baseball Classic, the Dominican Republic also were crowned as new World Champion.
Two years earlier, in 2011, the Netherlands had captured the World Championship-title in Panama when the event was last played under the former World Cup-format.
In the announcement, WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari said: ,,This is a very exciting time for baseball's continued globalisation and positioning.
WBSC is absolutely delighted that Major League Baseball – one of the most iconic brands in all of sport – shares this vision and is committed to showcasing our sport to global audiences and to developing the National Team brands through the World Baseball Classic.
Through this successful partnership, the World Baseball Classic has helped to elevate the popularity, value and attractiveness of National Team properties and gives the fans another great opportunity to see some of their favourite players playing for their countries.''
,,Since its inception in 2006 the World Baseball Classic has been the premier international baseball tournament which features the best players from around the world facing off against each other for their countries'', Major League Baseball COO Tony Petitti said in the press release.
,,Major League Baseball thanks the WBSC for their continued support and recognition of the World Baseball Classic in sanctioning this event.''
(September 16)
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