The 1998 ISF Women's World Championship for softball was held July 20–30, 1998 in Fujinomiya, Shizuoka, Japan. A fourth straight title was won by the team from the United States, coached by Margie Wright, which avenged its only loss of the tournament to Australia by a 1-0 margin in the final.
Softball is a variant of baseball played with a larger ball on a field that has base lengths of 60 feet and a pitcher's mound that ranges from 35-43 feet away from home plate. It was invented in 1887 in Chicago, Illinois, United States as an indoor game. The game moves at a faster pace than traditional baseball. There is less time for the base runner to get to first while the opponent fields the ball; yet, the fielder has less time to field the ball while the opponent is running down to first base. The name softball was given to the game in 1926, because the ball used to be soft, however in modern day usage, the balls are hard.
Fujinomiya is a city located in central Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.
Marjorie Ann Wright is a former college softball coach. She was the head softball coach at California State University, Fresno—more commonly known as Fresno State—from 1986 to 2012. She led the Fresno State Bulldogs to the NCAA national softball championship in 1998 and is the NCAA's second all-time winningest softball coach. She also ranks second all-time in career victories among NCAA Division I coaches in all sports. She was inducted into the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2000 and the International Women's Sports Hall of Fame in 2001. She retired at the end of the 2012 season.
GP | W | L | |
---|---|---|---|
8 | 8 | 0 | |
8 | 6 | 2 | |
8 | 6 | 2 | |
8 | 5 | 3 | |
8 | 4 | 4 | |
8 | 3 | 5 | |
8 | 3 | 5 | |
8 | 1 | 7 | |
8 | 0 | 8 |
GP | W | L | |
---|---|---|---|
7 | 7 | 0 | |
7 | 6 | 1 | |
7 | 5 | 2 | |
7 | 3 | 4 | |
7 | 3 | 4 | |
7 | 3 | 4 | |
7 | 1 | 6 | |
7 | 0 | 7 |
1-0 | ||
7-0 | ||
1-0 | ||
1-0 |
Venezuela and Chinese Taipei Eliminated.
2-0 | ||
3-0 |
Italy and Canada Eliminated.
1-0 |
Day Two | Bronze Medal | Gold Medal | |||||||||||
A1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
B1 | 2 | B1 | 0 | ||||||||||
A1 | 4 | A1 | 1 | ||||||||||
B2 | 0 | ||||||||||||
B2 | 3 | ||||||||||||
B3 | 0 |
The Netherlands women's national softball team is the national team of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is governed by the Koninklijke Nederlandse Baseball en Softball Bond. It is a member nation of the Confederation of European Baseball and the International Baseball Federation.
The China women's national softball team is the national team of the People's Republic of China. It is governed by the Chinese Softball Association and takes part in international softball competitions. They are ranked number four according to the 2006 ISF World Championship.
The Internal Security Forces Directorate is the national police and security force of Lebanon.
The Philippines Women's National Softball Team, nicknamed the "Blu Girls", is the national team of Philippines. They are governed by the Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines. They won a bronze medal in 1970 ISF Women's World Championship in Osaka, Japan and it was their first medal won in a World Championship.
The Canada men's national softball team participated in the 1988 World Championships held in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. The team played 13 games in the round robin round. Canada beat Australia 7-4 in one game in this round. The team competed at the 1992 ISF Men's World Championship in Manila, Philippines where they finished with 11 wins and 1 loss. The team competed at the 1996 ISF Men's World Championship in Midland, Michigan where they finished with 13 wins and 2 losses. The team competed at the 2000 ISF Men's World Championship in East London, South Africa where they finished fourth. The team competed at the 2004 ISF Men's World Championship in Christchurch, New Zealand where they finished second. The team competed at the 2009 ISF Men's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished third.
Italy women's national softball team is one of the top-ranked softball teams in Europe. The team also competes in the 2004 Summer Olympic Games.
Chinese Taipei women's national softball team is the national team for Chinese Taipei. The team competed at the 1986 ISF Women's World Championship in Auckland, New Zealand where they finished sixth.The team competed at the 1990 ISF Women's World Championship in Normal, Illinois where they finished with 6 wins and 3 losses. The team competed at the 1994 ISF Women's World Championship in St. John's, Newfoundland where they finished fifth. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished seventh. The team competed at the 2002 ISF Women's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished third. The team competed at the 2006 ISF Women's World Championship in Beijing, China where they finished eighth. The team competed at the 2010 ISF Women's World Championship in Caracas, Venezuela where they finished seventh.
New Zealand women's national softball team, nicknamed the White Sox, is the women's national softball team for New Zealand. The "White Sox" name is one of many national team nicknames (indirectly) related to the All Blacks as well as to the famous Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox baseball teams.
Netherlands Antilles women's national softball team is the national team for the Netherlands Antilles. The team competed at the 1990 ISF Women's World Championship in Normal, Illinois where they finished with 4 wins and 5 losses. The team competed at the 1994 ISF Women's World Championship in St. John's, Newfoundland where they finished twelfth. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished tenth. The team competed at the 2002 ISF Women's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished twelfth.
South Korea women's national softball team is the national team for South Korea. The team competed at the 1994 ISF Women's World Championship in St. John's, Newfoundland where they finished fifteenth. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished fourteenth.
Colombia women's national softball team is the national team for Colombia. The team competed at the 1994 ISF Women's World Championship in St. John's, Newfoundland where they finished seventeenth. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished thirteenth. The team competed at the 2006 ISF Women's World Championship in Beijing, China where they finished sixteenth.
The Czech Republic women's national softball team is the national softball team for Czech Republic. The team competed at the 1994 ISF Women's World Championship in St. John's, Newfoundland where they finished nineteenth. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished twelfth. The team competed at the 2002 ISF Women's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished fifteenth. The team competed at the 2010 ISF Women's World Championship in Caracas, Venezuela where they finished tenth.
Venezuela women's national softball team is the national team for Venezuela. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished eighth. The team competed at the 2002 ISF Women's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished tenth. The team competed at the 2006 ISF Women's World Championship in Beijing, China where they finished seventh. The team competed at the 2010 ISF Women's World Championship in Caracas, Venezuela where they finished fifth.
South Africa women's national softball team is the national team for South Africa administered by Softball South Africa. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished fifteenth. The team competed at the 2002 ISF Women's World Championship in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan where they finished fourteenth. The team competed at the 2006 ISF Women's World Championship in Beijing, China where they finished fifteenth. The team competed at the 2010 ISF Women's World Championship in Caracas, Venezuela where they finished fifteenth.
Denmark women's national softball team is the national team for Denmark. The team competed at the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished seventeenth.
United States women's junior national softball team is the junior national under-17 team for United States. The team competed at the 1985 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Fargo, North Dakota where they finished third. The team competed at the 1987 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma where they finished first. The team competed at the 1991 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Adelaide, Australia where they had 11 wins and 2 losses. The team competed at the 1995 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Normal, Illinois where they finished first. The team competed at the 1999 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Taipei, Taiwan where they finished second. The team competed at the 2003 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Nanjing, China where they finished second. The team competed at the 2007 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Enschede, the Netherlands where they finished first. The team competed at the 2011 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Cape Town, South Africa where they finished first. The team competed at the 2013 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Brampton, Ontario where they finished second.
Canada women's junior national softball team is the junior national under-17 team for Canada. The team competed at the 1985 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Fargo, North Dakota where they finished seventh. The team competed at the 1987 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma where they finished seventh. The team competed at the 1991 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Adelaide, Australia where they had 5 wins and 6 losses. The team competed at the 1995 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Normal, Illinois where they finished fifth. The team competed at the 1999 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Taipei, Taiwan where they finished seventh. The team competed at the 2003 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Nanjing, China where they finished sixth. The team competed at the 2007 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Enschede, Netherlands where they finished fifth. The team competed at the 2011 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Cape Town, South Africa where they finished fifth. The team competed at the 2013 ISF Junior Women's World Championship in Brampton, Ontario where they finished fifth.
Australia men's junior national softball team is the junior national under-17 team for Australia. The team competed at the 1993 ISF Junior Men's World Championship in Auckland, New Zealand where they finished fourth. The team competed at the 1997 ISF Junior Men's World Championship in St. John's, Newfoundland where they finished first. The team competed at the 2001 ISF Junior Men's World Championship in Sydney, Australia where they finished first. The team competed at the 2005 ISF Junior Men's World Championship in Summerside, Prince Edward Island where they finished first. The team competed at the 2008 ISF Junior Men's World Championship in Whitehorse, Yukon where they finished first. The team competed at the 2012 ISF Junior Men's World Championship in Parana, Argentina where they finished third.
The International School Sport Federation (ISF) is an international sports governing body for school sport. Founded in 1972 with 21 signatory nations, the federation has been organising international competitions to encourage education through sport and student athletes. It has 113 members from five continents.
The 1992 ISF Men's World Championship was an international softball tournament. The tournament was held in Manila and Pasig, Philippines from 20–28 March 1992. It was the 8th time the World Championship took place. Eighteen nations competed, including defending champions United States.