Tag: WNT

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Ireland WNT Entry to Euro 2021 Confirmed

The Irish WNT has confirmed its entry to the 2021 Women’s European Championship (XXII) which will be held in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy from 27 June 2021 to 3 July 2021. Ireland’s participation is subject to COVID-19 conditions and government guidance.

The WNT are the number 8 seeds in the tournament following on from the 2019 tournament. A new tournament format will be introduced for the 2021 Championship. The top 8 teams from the last edition (2019) will enter the tournament Super Round directly. The remaining teams have been drawn into pools with the winners of each pool then joining the top 8 seeds in the Super Round. The Super Round pools A and B are based on standings of the previous championship.

The Irish WNT management team will continue to monitor the COVID-19 crisis and will liaise with the Softball Ireland Medical Committee and Irish health authorities before any final decision on Ireland’s participation is made in late February 2021.

Further details on the tournament may be found here: https://www.europeansoftball.org/competitions/detail/318

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European Championships Postponed

APRIL 2, 2020 – IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WBSC Europe Softball Division have announced their decision to amend it’s 2020 tournament schedule. The WBSC Europe Softball Division has confirmend the following:

  • European softball international events for 2020 under Softball Europe have been cancelled except for;
  • European Championships which act as qualifiers for World Cups 2021- the events have now been postponed to September.

What does this mean for Fastpitch Ireland?? The amended schedule will see the originally planned European Championships for which Ireland are the #8 seed postponed to September 2020 as follows:

  • Women’s European Championship postponed to September 20 – 26, 2020

The Fastpitch Ireland Board welcome and support the decision of Softball Europe to postpone the European Championships from June 2020 at this time.  The Fastpitch Ireland Board, Coaches and Medical Committee together with WNT players will review Ireland’s participation in the Women’s European Championship as the response to the global pandemic continues.

Any decision on Ireland’s participation in the event will be athelete driven with consideration been given to the health & safety of the atheletes & coaches and whether it is felt the athletes will have adequate time and opportunity to prepare and condition for the tournament. 
Our thoughts continue to be with the Fastptich Ireland family during this difficult time and in particular with the Softball community of Italy who should be hosting this tournament in June.
 
The full statement from the WBSC Europe Softball Division is available HERE

Eithne Walsh

Eithne Walsh Appointed As Operations Manager

Eithne Walsh appointed as WNT Operations Manager

Fastpitch Ireland are delighted to announce the appointment of Irish international player Eithne Walsh as Operations Manager for the Natioanl Teams. Eithne will report to the Director of Fastpitch and will be responsible for supporting the delivery of National Team operations including, but not limited to programme operations and team logistics (scheduling, programme needs). Eithne will travel tournaments and other programme activities and will assist in the coordination of overall team operations.

Speaking on the appointment the Director of Fastpitch Softball, Melanie Cunningham, said “Eithne is the perfect person for this position. She has the respect and support of the team management, coaches and most importantly players. Eithne has been one of the most popular players and support staff within the programme since first joining in 2016 and will be an asset. We look forward to Eithne continuing the great work she has started and more of her magnificent videos too!”

About Eithne Walsh

Eithne is a second year student in the National Univeristy of Ireland Galway and joined the programme in 2016. Eithne was a member of the 2018 European Winning medal winnning under 19 and under 22 teams and made her senior international debut versus the USA in Dublin in June 2019. Off the diamond, Eithne has managed the Fastpitch Ireland social media and produced a number of video and graphic for the programme.

Eithne Walsh – Outifeld

  • Under 19 World Championships 2017
  • Under 19 European Championships 2018 (Silver medal)
  • Under 22 European Championships 2018 (Bronze medal)
  • Ireland v USA (Dublin – June 24, 2019)
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2020 WNT Schedule Confirmed

2020 National Team Schedule Confirmed

March 21/22, 2020 – MNC Hilversum Tournament, Netherlands*
May 30/31, 2020 – Achille Challenge, Paris, France
June 7 – 13, 2020 – European Championships, Italy
July 6 – 12, 2020 – Canada Cup International Softball Tournament, Vancouver
*European based players only

MNC Hilversum Tournament, Netherlands

The 2020 edition of the tournament will be the third year the programme has traveled to this pre-season tournament which provides us with a with a wonderful opportunity to prepare for the summer ahead.

Achille Challenge
Ireland has been invited to participate in the Achille Challenge in Paris as a warm-up to the European Championships in 2020. The tournament will be held on the outskirts of Paris and will be contested by France, Great Britain and Peru and will be a valuable opportunity to get game time prior to the European Championships. Following the Achille Challenge there will be a training camp in Europe.

European Championships
The Women’s European Championships will he held on June 7 – 13, 2020 in Friuli, Italy. Full details on the Championships may be found by clicking here.

Canada Cup International Softball Tournament
Following a number of invitations, the calendar has finally fallen into place for Ireland to accept an invitation to one of the premier international softball tournaments. The unofficial World Cup will be contested by a number of the top 20 teams in the world and at least two (Canada and Australia) of the countries participating in the Tokyo Olympics. The tournament presents a wonderful opportunity for us to compete in a world class venue versus world class teams.

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European Championships Entries Confirmed

2020 Women’s European Championships entries confirmed

Women’s European Championships (June 7 – 13, 2020 – Friuli, Italy)
Following on from Ireland’s 8th place finish at the 2019 European Championships, Ireland are a seeded team in the 2020 tournament and automatic qualifiers for the “A” European Championships. The top 8 teams from 2019 will be joined by 4 qualifiers from the 2020 preliminary tournament. In total 22 nations have entered the tournament and a full list of entered countries may be found by clicking here.

The 2020 tournament in an exceptionaly important for a number of reasons including targeting:

  • Maintaining Ireland’s “A” European Championships Ranking
  • Qualification for 2021 Women’s World Cup
  • Qualification for 2021 World Games (Birmingham, Alabama)
  • Qualification for European Super 6 Tournament
  • Maintaining Ireland’s World Ranking point

The draw for Euro 2020 will be made at the WBSC Europe Congress on February 8, 2020.