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OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Seven 2010 KFC World Cup of Softball presented by Six Flags games including the women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s fastpitch championship game and the men\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s slow pitch Border Battle will air live across the United States on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN3.com, the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America announced today. The World Cup is July 22-26 at the ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, which recently hosted the 2010 NCAA Women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s College World Series. <\/p>\n
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\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Since its inception in 2005, the World Cup of Softball has become one of the premier international softball events,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d ASA Executive Director Ron Radigonda said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153This year, the fans have the unique opportunity to not only watch the National Teams of Canada and Japan but also two women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s teams from the United States and the men\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s slow pitch teams from Canada and the USA. We are pleased to have the ESPN networks bringing the highest level of our sport into America\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s living rooms and into homes across the world. Their continued relationship with the ASA has been vital to continuing the growth of our sport during this critical time.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
The World Cup, the only international event hosted by ASA\/USA Softball, is the only international softball event aired in the United States. In addition every game will be offered in high definition on ESPN HD and ESPN2 HD. For the first time, all seven of ESPN and ESPN2\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s USA Softball Women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s National Team ESPN and ESPN2 telecasts will be simulcast on ESPN3.com. In addition, each of the seven games will be offered in high definition on ESPN HD and ESPN2 HD. Selected games from ESPN’s coverage will also be televised globally to more than 150 countries across ESPN’s international networks including ESPN America, ESPN Pacific Rim, ESPN Australia HD, ESPN Brazil HD, ESPN Israel, ESPN Middle East, ESPN Africa, ESPN Caribbean and ESPN2 Caribbean. <\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Our coverage of the World Cup of Softball and the NCAA Women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s College World Series in recent years demonstrates ESPN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s commitment to women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s sports and the importance of softball in our lineup,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Carol Stiff, vice president, ESPN programming and acquisitions. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We are proud to work with ASA\/USA Softball again this year to put Team USA and the best athletes in international softball back in front of our viewers.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
ESPN is the exclusive home of the KFC World Cup of Softball presented by Six Flags and features over 14 hours of live coverage on ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN3.com highlighted by multiple prime time windows including the championship game on July 26 at 8 p.m. CST. Games may be re-aired throughout the year. <\/p>\n
The complete domestic ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN3.com live air schedule is below. <\/p>\n
July 22 at 7 p.m. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c USA vs. Canada \u00e2\u20ac\u201c ESPN and ESPN3.com <\/p>\n
July 23 at 7 p.m. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c USA vs. Japan \u00e2\u20ac\u201c ESPN and ESPN3.com <\/p>\n
July 24 at 1 p.m. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c USA vs. USA Futures – ESPN (tape delay from 11 a.m.) and ESPN3.com <\/p>\n
July 24 at 3 p.m. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c USA vs. Canada (men\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s slow pitch Border Battle) \u00e2\u20ac\u201c ESPN and ESPN3.com <\/p>\n
July 24 at 7 p.m. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c USA vs. Japan – ESPN2 and ESPN3.com <\/p>\n
July 25 at 4 p.m. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c USA vs. Canada – ESPN2 and ESPN3.com <\/p>\n
July 26 at 8 p.m. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c No. 1 vs. No. 2 – ESPN2 and ESPN3.com <\/p>\n
All times are local (CST) and subject to change. <\/p>\n
The women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s action will be called by two-time Olympic Champion Michele Smith and Los Angeles Dodgers play-by-play announcer Eric Collins. For the Border Battle, Collins will be joined by former ASA Super and Major Slow Pitch player and Major League Baseball infielder Doug Flynn, who played for the Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets and Montreal Expos among other teams. He also participated in the 1988 Summer Olympic Festival slow pitch exhibition games were his \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcWest\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 team took home the Gold. Flynn, a two-time World Series Champion with the 1975-76 Reds and the National League Gold Glove Second Baseman in 1980, provides color commentary for the University of Kentucky baseball team. <\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153To put on the USA uniform and play in front of our home fans in Oklahoma City is really special,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Olympic Gold and Silver Medalist Cat Osterman (Houston, Texas) said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153But knowing our family and friends across the country are watching us at home adds another element of excitement to the World Cup of Softball. Thank you to ESPN for allowing us to share our sport with an even larger audience. Their support of the World Cup throughout the years has really helped softball thrive.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
The World Cup of Softball and the Border Battle are sanctioned by the International Softball Federation, the governing body of softball internationally as recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF). This marks the second year of The Border Battle and is the only international event of its kind. <\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Every kid\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s dream is to wind up in a SportsCenter highlight,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said two-time USA Softball Men\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Slow Pitch National Team member Brian Wegman (Hamilton, Ohio). \u00e2\u20ac\u0153ESPN gave us that chance last year and we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re thankful to have the opportunity again this summer. Playing for your country in a game aired on ESPN is awesome. Having the Border Battle is a great opportunity for everyone who plays slow pitch and wants to bring the game to a higher level.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
Team USA won the inaugural Border Battle last year with a comeback 30-23 victory. In 2009, backed by the pitching of Monica Abbott and Osterman in the World Cup Championship Game, the United States women claimed a third title, and achieved a 6-0 record, by defeating Australia 3-1. Team USA also won the first two World Cups while Japan claimed the third in 2007. (The event was not held in 2008 due to the Olympic Games in Beijing, China.) <\/p>\n
Individual general admission session tickets range from just $10 to $15, while all-session passes from $40 to $325. All tickets can be purchased by clicking, here. <\/p>\n
For more information on the World Cup, log on to www.usasoftball.com <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Seven 2010 KFC World Cup of Softball presented by Six Flags games including the women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s fastpitch championship game and the men\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s slow pitch Border Battle will air live across the United States on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN3.com, the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America announced today. The World Cup is July […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9,24],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4394"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4394\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.fastpitchwest.com\/morningbrief\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}