LAUSANNE, Switzerland — The World Baseball Softball Confederation today announced the 28 players named to compete on behalf of Europe in the WBSC-sanctioned Asia Winter Baseball (AWB) professional international league, which is set to open on 25 November in Taiwan. The European roster selection features players from eight nations, including the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Spain — and seven different European leagues, as well as six Major League Baseball (MLB) minor league affiliates and Independent Leagues in the United States.

The Belgian Vlaamse Baseball and Softball League (VBSL) has established the nation’s first-ever Wheelchair Softball teams.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has approved an Olympic Solidarity 2017-2020 budget of $US 509,285,000.

ANTWERP (Belgium) — The European Softball Federation (ESF) announced today the appointment of Carolien Stadhouders and Pavel Prachar as Director of Umpires Co-Chairs, each with designated responsibilities. One co-chair will take on the assignment of umpires and UICs at ESF tournaments / events, while the other will be responsible for the development and education of umpires at all levels across Europe.

The Havlíčkův Brod Hippos have win won their first Men’s National Championship over the two-time defenders Spectrum. Joudrs – who finished undefeated — met Tempo in the finals and seized the Czech title for the second time in a row. The Sparks proved they are one of the top slow pitch clubs in the Czech Republic winning their eighth National Championship overall title.

The Austrian Baseball Federation announced the selection of players who will compete on behalf of the nation at the WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup® 2016 in Monterrey, Mexico.

The Haarlem Sparks have repeated as National Champions of the Dutch Golden Softball League. In a thrilling 1-0 finale victory over Terrasvogels, Chantal Versluis scored the winning run in the 8th inning — a game in which she was honored for her 100th international game.

GB Slow Pitch National Team Head Coach Stephen Patterson has announced the players that will compete in the 2016 WBSC Slow Pitch World Cup in Plant City, Florida (USA) from 17-20 November, plus the staff members that will accompany them.

Facing tough competition, the Vikings claimed the 2016 Denmark Women’s Softball National Championship over the Barracudas. In a best-of-three game series, the Vikings won both games 7-3 and 7-4.