The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games, they have been organized by the Olympic Council of Asia, after the breakup of the Asian Games Federation. The Games are recognized by the International Olympic Committee and are the second largest multi-sport event after the Olympic Games.
Today, baseball is a popular sport around the world with numerous countries practicing it at amateur and professional levels.
The International Baseball Federation (IBAF) is the former worldwide governing body of baseball. It has since been superseded by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), and continues to exist as the WBSC's baseball division. Between 1944 and 1975, it was known by its Spanish-language name, as the Federación Internacional de Béisbol Amateur, or FIBA.
The Asia Series was an international club baseball competition, contested by the champions of all four professional leagues associated with the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC)—Australian Baseball League (ABL), Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), Korea Baseball Organization League, and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB)—along with the CEB European Champion Cup holder and host city, to bring the number of teams to six.
Soft tennis is a racket game played on a court of two halves, separated by a net. Soft tennis originated in Japan in 1884. Like regular tennis, it is played by individuals (singles) or pairs (doubles), whose objective is to hit the ball over the net, landing within the confines of the court, with the aim of preventing one's opponent from being able to hit it back. Matches are generally best-of-seven or best-of-nine. Soft tennis differs from regular tennis in that it uses soft rubber balls instead of hard yellow balls.
The South Korean national baseball team, also known as the Blue Wave, is the national baseball team of South Korea. It has participated in every edition of the World Baseball Classic (WBC), reaching the finals in 2009, and won the WBSC Premier12 in 2015. South Korea also hosted and won the Baseball World Cup in 1982, and has participated in several Summer Olympic Games.
The Australian national baseball team represents Australia in international baseball tournaments and competitions. It is ranked as the top team in Oceania, and is the Oceanian Champion, having been awarded the title in 2007 when New Zealand withdrew from the Oceania Baseball Championship. After achieving a last (16th) place in the 2013 World Baseball Classic, its rank dropped to 13, which is the lowest rank Australia ever received. The highest rank it has achieved is 6th, and its current rank is 10th.
The Japan national cricket team is the men's team that represents the country of Japan in international cricket. The team is organised by the Japan Cricket Association (JCA), which has been a member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1989. Japan made its international cricketing debut at the 1996 ACC Trophy in Malaysia. Most of the team's matches are played in regional competitions, generally against other teams in the ICC East Asia-Pacific development region. Between 2008 and 2012, Japan participated in the World Cricket League (WCL), reaching WCL Division Five at one point.
The Philippines national baseball team represents the Philippines in international matches and tournaments. It is organized by the Philippine Amateur Baseball Association.
The Chinese Taipei national baseball team is the national men's baseball team of Taiwan. It is governed by the Chinese Taipei Baseball Association. The team is ranked fourth in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation. The team is usually made up of professionals from Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League, Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, and Major League Baseball and Minor League Baseball from the United States.
Association football and basketball are the most popular sports in Asia. Cricket is the third most popular sport in Asia, and is most popular in South Asia. Other popular sports in Asia include baseball, badminton and table tennis among others. There are also some traditional sports that are popular in certain regions of Asia, such as the South Asian sports kabaddi and kho-kho, and sepak takraw in Southeast Asia. Top sporting nations/regions in Asia include China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, India, Iran, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Rugby union in China is a growing sport; however, it is still not overly popular. China became affiliated to the International Rugby Board in 1997 and as of 1 July 2019, its women's XV side was ranked 24th and its men's XV side 80th in the world. Neither the women's team nor the men's team has yet qualified for a Women's Rugby World Cup or a men's Rugby World Cup. However, China has hopes of one day hosting the men's event, and World Rugby has indicated it supports taking the event there.
The Pakistan national baseball team is the national team representing Pakistan in international baseball tournaments and competitions. The team is controlled and governed by the Pakistan Federation Baseball, which is represented in the Baseball Federation of Asia (BFA), having been ranked #5 in Asia, just behind China. They are ranked as the top and one of the most successful baseball teams in South Asia, winning the first SAARC Baseball Championship 8–2 against Sri Lanka in 2011. As of 2023, Pakistan is currently ranked 38th in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation.
The 2012 Asian Baseball Championship was an international baseball competition held in Taichung, Taiwan from November 28 to December 2, 2012. It was the 26th edition of the tournament. Qualification did not begin until after the completion of the 2012 London Olympics.
The 2015 Asian Baseball Championship was an international baseball competition that was held in Taichung, Taiwan from September 16–20, 2015. It was the 27th edition of the tournament.
The Far East East Region was one of four international regions that competed in the Little League World Series from 1962 to 2000. Far East qualifiers won a record 23 titles — 17 from Taiwan, four from Japan, and two from the Republic of Korea.
The Asia Baseball Cup, formerly the Asian Baseball Cup is a baseball tournament organized by WBSC Asia. It is a second-level tournament to the Asian Baseball Championship. In 2012, the Asian Baseball Cup was divided into two separate divisions, East and West, alternatively called the East Asian Baseball Cup and West Asian Baseball Cup. From 2016, the Asian Baseball Cup tournaments are held biannually.
The 28th 2017 Asian Baseball Championship was the international baseball competition for Asian men's national teams. It was held in Taipei and New Taipei, Taiwan on October 2–8, 2017. It was the 28th edition of the tournament.
The 29th Asian Baseball Championship was the international baseball competition for Asian men's national teams. It was held in Taichung and Yunlin, Taiwan, on October 14 to 20, 2019. Chinese Taipei and China, the top two finishers, excluding Japan, qualified to compete in the Olympic Final Qualifying Tournament which will take place in March or April 2020.
The 30th Asian Baseball Championship was an international professional baseball competition for Asian men's national teams. It was held in Taiwan. It began on 3 December 2023 and ended on 10 December 2023. Japan won the championship, its 20th title.
2023 Asian Baseball Championship 
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