Chiba, Japan – The Canadian Women’s National Team is ready to compete at the WBSC Softball World Championship that is being held August 2-12 in Chiba, Japan. The top finisher at the event – excluding Japan who is already guaranteed a spot as the host country – will earn a direct berth to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Team Canada is coming into the World Championship on a high note after winning the Gold medal at the Canada Cup last week and going a perfect 5-0 in the Toyota Cup exhibition tournament against four Japanese professional softball teams and the Netherlands this past weekend.
The WBSC Women’s Softball World Championship will feature a total of 16 teams divided in two groups. The top four teams from each division will advance to the Championship round, with the top two from each division earning double life. Canada – No. 3 in the WBSC World Rankings – will compete in Group B along with No. 2 Japan, No. 4 Australia, No. 9 Italy, No. 12 China, No. 14 Great Britain, No. 17 Venezuela and No. 33 Botswana.
At the previous WBSC Women’s Softball World Championship held in Surrey, B.C. in 2016, Team Canada thrilled the hometown crowd and earned a Bronze medal finish.
Team Canada opens the tournament on Friday, August 3 with a doubleheader against Great Britain at 12:30pm JST (11:30pm EDT on Thursday August 2) and Venezuela at 6:00pm JST (5:00am EDT on Friday August 3).
The athletes who will represent Canada at the WBSC Women’s Softball World Championship from August 2-12 in Chiba, Japan are:
Team Canada is coming into the World Championship on a high note after winning the Gold medal at the Canada Cup last week and going a perfect 5-0 in the Toyota Cup exhibition tournament against four Japanese professional softball teams and the Netherlands this past weekend.
The WBSC Women’s Softball World Championship will feature a total of 16 teams divided in two groups. The top four teams from each division will advance to the Championship round, with the top two from each division earning double life. Canada – No. 3 in the WBSC World Rankings – will compete in Group B along with No. 2 Japan, No. 4 Australia, No. 9 Italy, No. 12 China, No. 14 Great Britain, No. 17 Venezuela and No. 33 Botswana.
At the previous WBSC Women’s Softball World Championship held in Surrey, B.C. in 2016, Team Canada thrilled the hometown crowd and earned a Bronze medal finish.
Team Canada opens the tournament on Friday, August 3 with a doubleheader against Great Britain at 12:30pm JST (11:30pm EDT on Thursday August 2) and Venezuela at 6:00pm JST (5:00am EDT on Friday August 3).
The athletes who will represent Canada at the WBSC Women’s Softball World Championship from August 2-12 in Chiba, Japan are:
ATHLETES
| FIRST NAME | LAST NAME | HOMETOWN |
| Jenna | Caira | Toronto, Ont. |
| Emma | Entzminger | Victoria, B.C. |
| Larissa | Franklin | Maple Ridge, B.C. |
| Jennifer | Gilbert | Saskatoon, Sask. |
| Victoria | Hayward | Toronto, Ont. |
| Karissa | Hovinga | Edmonton, Alta. |
| Kelsey | Jenkins | Delta, B.C. |
| Danielle | Lawrie | Langley, B.C. |
| Janet | Leung | Mississauga, Ont. |
| Joey | Lye | Toronto, Ont. |
| Sara | Plourde | Baker Lake, N.B. |
| Erika | Polidori | Brantford, Ont. |
| Kaleigh | Rafter | Guelph, Ont. |
| Jenn | Salling | Port Coquitlam, B.C. |
| Nicole | Schroeder | Yorba Linda, Calif. |
| Holly | Speers | Surrey, B.C. |
| Natalie | Wideman | Mississauga, Ont. |
COACHING STAFF
| POSITION | NAME | HOMETOWN |
| Head Coach | Mark Smith | Falmouth, N.S. |
| Assistant Coach | Melissa Basilio | Oshawa, Ont. |
| Assistant Coach | Russell Cooper | Tahiti Bay, NZL |
| Assistant Coach | Dave Paetkau | Abbotsford, B.C. |
| Performance Analyst | Hubie Basilio | Oshawa, Ont. |
| Performance Analyst | Glenn Boles | St. Catharines, Ont. |
| Strength & Conditioning | Scott Willgress | Halifax, N.S. |
| Mental Performance | Lauren Tashman | Pennington, N.J. |
| Athletic Therapist | Natalie Ghobrial | North York, Ont. |
| Team Leader | Melissa Finley | London, Ont. |
UMPIRE
| FIRST NAME | LAST NAME | HOMETOWN |
| Frankie | Billingsley | Edmonton, Alta. |
TEAM CANADA SCHEDULE
| DATE | GAME | TIME |
| August 3 | Canada vs. Great Britain | 12:30pm JST |
| Canada vs. Venezuela | 6:00pm JST | |
| August 4 | Canada vs. Italy | 3:30pm JST |
| August 5 | Canada vs. Australia | 2:30pm JST |
| August 6 | Canada vs. China | 12:30pm JST |
| August 7 | Canada vs. Japan | 7:00pm JST |
| August 8 | Canada vs. Botswana | 3:30pm JST |
| August 10 | Playoff Round | TBD |
| August 11 | Playoff Round | TBD |
| August 12 | Medal Round | TBD |
Live scoring will be available through the WBSC Women’s Softball World Championship website, with live streaming available at FloSoftball.com (paid subscription required).
