Sports are a central part of the culture of the Dominican Republic, and have been practiced in the whole country since the native inhabitants were living in the island. Sports play a key role in the culture and makeup of Dominican Republic society.[1]Baseball is the most popular sport on the island country and Major League Baseball has been recruiting players from the Dominican Republic since the 1960s.[2]Basketball, football, volleyball, and boxing are other sports played in the country.
Although the sport was first seen in Latin America in Cuba, baseball began to flourish in the Dominican Republic when the United States Marine Corps occupied the island from 1916 to 1924.[1] The first players of the game in the Dominican Republic were the upper-class Dominican boys who studied in the United States and played the game of baseball when they returned to the Dominican Republic. In the early 1900s, there were two baseball clubs named Nuevo Club and Ozama that were head and shoulders above the competition. However, a group called Licey emerged and it would become one of the finest sporting institutions in the Dominican Republic.[1] With the arrival of Licey in 1907 thousands of people showed up for their games with the other self-organized teams in the country. They became great entertainment for citizens from all economic backgrounds. In 1912, Nuevo Club won the first baseball championship in Santo Domingo. Between the years of 1907–1920, the sport of baseball was played in the Dominican Republic for fun and the players played for "the love of the game."[1] However, in 1921 the teams began to collect money from spectators and the championship game that year brought in over $7,000 and commercial pressures led to the sport becoming a semi-profession in the Dominican Republic.[1]Rafael Trujillo became president of the Dominican Republic in 1930 and he helped baseball soar in popularity as the sport gained a political connection.[1] By the end of the 1930s, many of the finest Negro league players from the United States and Cuban players played baseball in the summer in the Dominican Republic as they were paid a fortune in order to come play.[1]Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball in 1947 and soon after teams from the MLB began sending scouts to watch Dominican Republic players play.[1]
Between 1955 and 1980 there were 49 players from the Dominican Republic who played in the MLB.[2] However, in the 1980s hundreds of players started coming to the United States as there became "working relationships between North American and Dominican teams."[2] The first great pitcher from the Dominican Republic who starred in the United States was Juan Marichal who is nicknamed the "Dominican Dandy". He began his playing career in the MLB in 1960 after he was signed from the Dominican Republic by the San Francisco Giants.[5] The first great hitter from the Dominican Republic was Felipe Alou who hit 206 career home runs.[5]Free agency in the MLB, which began in 1976, and the rise of baseball academies in the Dominican Republic have changed Dominican Baseball.[2] For years, owners of traditional Dominican teams have been underpaying their players, however since the salary of Major League Baseball players has gone up dramatically players who once played in the Dominican Winter Baseball League are no longer playing and instead, trying to sign contracts with teams from the MLB.[2]
People in the baseball stadium of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Historian Alan Klein wrote in his book Sugarball, "Nothing typifies the new direction of Dominican baseball as much as the baseball academy, an institution rooted in the increased presence and benevolent paternalism of North American baseball interests in the country."[2] The first baseball academy in the Dominican Republic was built in 1977 by Ralph Avila. In his description of baseball academies in the Dominican Republic, Klein wrote "What the academy does in working with the Dominican players goes beyond teaching baseball skills. They teach career preparation, socialization and how to cope with the cultural changes they will face in the United States."[2] Campo Las Palmas is the best is the best-run academy on the island and it is owned by the Los Angeles Dodgers.[2]
The Dominican Republic has its own baseball league, the Dominican Winter Baseball League, which runs its season from October to January. It comprises six teams: Águilas Cibaeñas (Cibao Eagles), Estrellas Orientales (Eastern Stars), Gigantes del Cibao (Cibao Giants), Leones del Escogido (Chosen Lions), Tigres del Licey (Licey Tigers), and Toros del Este (Eastern Bulls). The league started in 1956 when the Dominican League switched from playing in the summers to playing in the winters.[1] Many MLB and minor league players play in the Dominican League during their own off-season. However, as of late the league has struggled financially as "more of the established native players sit out and too many of the reinforcements fail to last the season. Attendance is down and the country's economic crisis has intruded the parks."[1]
The Dominican Republic has participated in the Baseball World Cup, winning one Gold (1949), three Silver (1942, 1950, 1952), and two Bronze (1943, 1969), placing it seventh, right after Puerto Rico's one Gold, four Silver, and four Bronze. (Cuba holds a record twenty-five Gold, two Silver and two Bronze.)
Football is also a popular sport in the Dominican Republic. The governing body is the Federación Dominicana de Fútbol. The Liga Dominicana de Fútbol is the top division of the Federación Dominicana de Fútbol. There have been a couple of FIFA Goal Programme projects that have been designed to further improve the infrastructure and facilities in the country in recent years. Notable Dominican Footballers include Mariano Díaz and Junior Firpo, who both play in La Liga, and Jonathan Faña, who is currently the top scorer of the national team of the Dominican Republic national football team. [citation needed] Association Football is most popular among recent immigrants from Haiti and other countries,[8] but most people of Haitian ancestry who have lived most of their life in Dominican Republic− prefer baseball similar to the majority of Dominicans.[9]
The Dominican Republic has had a quite successful national team which e.g. advanced to the second stage at the 2019 Basketball World Cup after they surprisingly eliminated Germany 70–68.
The National Federation of Basketball holds every year a professional league, the National Basketball League, LNB (Spanish: "Liga Nacional de Baloncesto"). The National Basketball Association (NBA) have some players who represent the Dominican Republic, such as:
Though no longer played much, cricket was played to some extent by immigrants from the West Indies. The game of "la plaquita" or "la placa", a popular informal Dominican bat-and-ball game, descends from cricket.[17]
Approximately 5 million of the 17 million people in the Netherlands are registered to one of the 35,000 sports clubs in the country. About two thirds of the population older than 15 years participates in sports weekly.
Today, baseball is a popular sport around the world with numerous countries practicing it at amateur and professional levels.
Santiago de los Caballeros, often shortened to Santiago, is the second-largest city in the Dominican Republic and the fourth-largest city in the Caribbean by population. It is the capital of Santiago Province and the largest major metropolis in the Cibao region of the country. Santiago is the largest Caribbean city that is not a capital city, and it is also the largest non-coastal metropolis in the Caribbean islands. The city has a total population of 771,748 inhabitants (2022). Santiago is located approximately 155 km (96 mi) northwest of the capital Santo Domingo with an average altitude of 178 m (584 ft).
Sports in the United States are an important part of the nation's culture. Historically, the national sport has been baseball. However, in more recent decades, American football has been the most popular sport in terms of broadcast viewership audience. Basketball has grown into the mainstream American sports scene since the 1980s, with ice hockey and soccer doing the same around the turn of the 21st century.
Sports in China consists of a variety of competitive sports. Traditional Chinese culture regards physical fitness as an important characteristic. China has its own national quadrennial multi-sport event similar to the Olympic Games called the National Games.
The Dominican Republic Professional Baseball League is a professional baseball winter league consisting of six teams spread across the Dominican Republic; it is the highest level of professional baseball played in the Dominican Republic. The league's players include many prospects that go on to play Major League Baseball in the United States while also signing many current MLB veterans. The champion of LIDOM advances to play in the yearly Caribbean Series.
Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal is a baseball stadium in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. It is the only stadium in the Caribbean region to host two different baseball teams, Tigres del Licey and Leones del Escogido. Its field dimensions are 335 feet (102 m) at the foul poles, 383 feet (117 m) at the power alleys, and 411 feet (125 m) at center field. The seating capacity is 14,469. The Dominican League of Baseball Authority is in charge of its management.
Leones del Escogido is a professional baseball team in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Established in 1921, Leones are the third most successful team in the Dominican Winter League, behind Tigres del Licey and Aguilas Cibaeñas, having won 17 national championships and 4 Caribbean Series. Of the 17 won championships, 16 are of the Liga Dominicana de Béisbol (LIDOM) Winter League.
The Águilas Cibaeñas is a professional baseball team in the Dominican Republic's Professional Baseball League (LIDOM), based in Santiago in the northern region of Cibao. Founded in 1933, the team has won six Caribbean Series and 22 national titles.
The Gigantes del Cibao (English: Cibao giants) are a baseball team that plays in the Dominican Winter League. The team was founded in 1996 as Gigantes del Noroeste then with a change of ownership the name was changed several times, being called Pollos del Cibao, and Pollos Baseball Club.
Annerys Victoria Vargas Valdez is a retired female volleyball player from the Dominican Republic who won four consecutive gold medals at the Central American and Caribbean Games.
Milagros Cabral De La Cruz is a retired female volleyball player from the Dominican Republic who won the 1998 silver and three consecutive gold medals in 2002, 2006 and 2010 at the Central American and Caribbean Games.
Prisilla Altagracia Rivera Brens is a volleyball player from the Dominican Republic.
Karla Miguelina Echenique is a volleyball player from the Dominican Republic, who played as a setter for the Women's National Team at the 2008 Olympic Qualification Tournament in Japan, but did not qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics. She, and the Dominican Republic team did, however, qualify for the 2012 Summer Olympics, where they finished 5th.
Brenda Castillo is a volleyball player from the Dominican Republic and plays as a libero. She was a member of the Dominican Republic national team that won fifth place in the 2012 Summer Olympics, while she was named the tournament's Best Libero. She played in the 2014 World Championship reaching also the fifth place and ranking 17th in the 2010 World Championship and the 2011 FIVB World Cup where her national team ranked eight and the 2015 FIVB World Cup, winning the Best Libero individual award and ranking in seventh place.
Lisvel Elisa Eve-Castillo is a female volleyball player from the Dominican Republic, who played for the Women's National Team at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Niverka Dharlenis Marte Frica is a volleyball player from the Dominican Republic who currently plays for Indonesian side Jakarta Popsivo Polwan. She played the 2012 Summer Olympics with the Dominican Republic national team ranking in fifth place. She also played the 2010 and the 2014 World Championship earning the 17th place and the fifth place and the 2011 and the 2015 FIVB World Cup with her national team ranking in the eight and seventh place. She won the bronze medal in the 2015 Pan American Games.
Gina Altagracia Mambrú Casilla is a volleyball player from the Dominican Republic, who played the 2012 Olympic Games and the 2014 World Championship ranking fifth in both competitions. She won the gold medal at the 2010 and 2014 Central American and Caribbean Games and bronze at the 2015 Pan American Games.
Winifer María Fernández Pérez is a Dominican female volleyball player. With her club Mirador she competed at the 2015 FIVB Club World Championship. She became well known after a video and later some photos of her playing and training, and personal photos of her--some of them fake--went viral in July 2016.
Alcibíades Colón Inoa was a Dominican Republic baseball player. Colón was born in the city of Mao, the head municipality of the Valverde Province in the northwest of the country.
References
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Ruck, Rob (1991). The Tropic of Baseball: Baseball in the Dominican Republic. Westport, Connecticut: Meckler Publishing. p.5. ISBN0-88736-566-3.
1 2 C., Bjarkman, Peter (1994-01-01). Baseball with a Latin beat: a history of the Latin American game. McFarland. ISBN0899509738. OCLC254182879.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ "Though no accurate accounts exist of cricket's history in the DR some speculate that West Indian immigrants brought cricket to the Dominican Republic in the late 19th century.""A very simple form of cricket was continued to be played and would morph into a street game played by children called "la plaquita." "
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