(Story & Photo by Marco Stoovelaar)
 Mart Smeets Ambassador of Baseball Week Haarlem
Nederlands
 HAARLEM (Neth.) -
Wellknown Dutch sports journalist Mart Smeets has become an Ambassador of the Baseball Week Haarlem.
The Organization of the bi-annual international, invitational baseball tournament announced on Sunday (February 21) that Smeets has joined the event as Ambassador.
Smeets, who lives in Haarlem, is a veteran sports journalist, commentator, writer, was the anchor of TV-show NOS Studio Sport and has a lot of knowledge of American sports.
Smeets also presented music programs on radio for many years and has written many sports books.
Also for many years, he covered the annual cycling Tour de France, as well as skating championships.
Since 1972, he as covered all Olympic Games.
...In 2012, Mart Smeets hosted the Jubilee Congress...
...to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the Royal...
...Netherlands Baseball & Softball Association...
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
Smeets was born in Arnhem, but moved to Amsterdam at a young age.
He played professional basketball for Haarlem-based Flamingo's and started his journalistic career writing for the Haarlems Dagblad-newspaper.
Specially for the Baseball Week Haarlem, Mart Smeets has written a column.
The column (in Dutch) can be read here
A few days ago, the Organization of the Baseball Week Haarlem announced that Australia, Curaçao and Taiwan will join earlier announced Japan and the Netherlands as participants in this years 28th Baseball Week, which will be held July 15 to 24 at the Pim Mulier Stadium in Haarlem.
A sixth team will be announced later.
In October last year, the tournament changed its name from Haarlem Baseball Week to Baseball Week Haarlem to create more exposure outside the Haarlem-region.
Also, a new logo was presented then.
The history of the Haarlem Baseball Week began in 1961.
In following years, five more tournaments followed.
Since 1972, the event is being held every even year, except for 1986 when the World Championship was organized in the Netherlands.
(February 21)
Related Articles:
 Participants announced for Baseball Week Haarlem 2016. (February 16, 2016)
New name Haarlem Baseball Week. (October 29, 2015)
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