MEN'S SOFTBALL WORLD CHAMPION IN LIMA 2019

Foto: WSBC

Villa María del Triunfo Sports Center will witness the performance of the best softball players of the Americas. In fact, Argentina arrival as the new World champion after winning in the Czech Republic, will be the most important event of this discipline in the Lima 2019 Pan American Games.

The Argentinian team surprised the world by defeating Japan 3-2 in overtime, in a sport usually dominated by English speaking countries. On their road to the title, they defeated former world champions New Zealand, United Sates and Canada. The team´s top scorer was Alan Peker with 12 runs. Other MVPs were Ladislao Malarczuk, Mariano Montero and Manuel Godoy.

Argentina will arrive to Lima 2019 to steal the title won by Canada in Toronto 2015, where the Latin American team was left with the third place. Their path to the glory includes a fourth place in the 2013 World Cup held in Auckland, as well as the bronze medal in the 2003 Santo Domingo Pan American Games.

The sport is governed by the World Baseball and Softball Confederation (WBSC) regulations. The game consists of seven innings where each team alternates batting and fielding. Finally, the team that scores the most runs wins. To watch these matches, you can buy your tickets atwww.lima2019.pe/tickets.

SOFTBALL AT LIMA 2019

Six teams will compete both in men's and women's categories at the Pan American Games. Men’s competitions will take place from July 25 to August 1. Women’s events will be held from August 3 to 10. The women´s Peruvian team will debut against Venezuela on August 4 (16:00). Then, they will go against Mexico, Puerto Rico, Canada and the United States in the first stage.

Meanwhile, the men´s national team will debut against the current Pan American runner-up, Venezuela. Then they will face Mexico, Cuba, current world champion Argentina and the United States. The first match will take place on July 25 against Cuba (16:00).

Softball competitions will be held in three rounds for seven days. The first stage will have a round-robin format and the top four teams will advance to the semifinals. In these matches, the first place will face the second and the third against the fourth. The winner of the first group will advance to the Grand Final.

Meanwhile, the loser of the first semifinal will face the winner of the second group, in a stage called "final". The winner of this match will advance to the Grand Final and compete for the gold medal.