Softball’s Push For Inclusion At Olympics Continues
In a move to be reinstated onto the Olympic Program in 2016 after a highly successful Beijing Olympic Games, the International Softball Federation (ISF) Thursday launched sweeping plans to ensure complete independence for all 131 national softball federations around the world.
According to a press release, legislation enacted at the ISF Congress decreed that ISF members (national federations) may not be constitutionally linked to a national federation of any other sport. The ISF has now set a timeline for complete separation with a program offering assistance to help national softball federations achieve compliance within two years.
The move is set to confirm the growing reputation of softball as a stand-alone sport of great stature across the globe and will also help eradicate any confusion in the Olympic Movement, clarifying once and for all that softball is a fully independent international sport federation with independent national federations, said the press release.
ISF President Don Porter, in Lausanne Switzerland for the Beijing Olympic Games Debriefing for international federations, said, “this is a vital step in the BackSoftball campaign. It is of fundamental importance that softball federations have complete autonomy in their territories in order to best ensure the sport continues to grow and maximize its potential. We’re confident that all our national federations are strong enough to stand on their own, and we will, of course, help ease them through the transition period.
“This move will also prevent some of the confusion that exists surrounding softball’s links with other sports. We will also provide comprehensive support to ensure this process runs smoothly”.
Softball’s competition at the Beijing Games was extremely successful with a total attendance near 180,000 and a continuation of the sport’s excellent record of no positive drug tests in major competitions.
