By Kemi Ajayi
Lagos – The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) has signed a new partnership with the Play For Change (PFC) charitable trust, aimed at enabling more children around the world to benefit from its programmes.
An online portal, Insidethegames on Friday said the PFC’s sport programmes centred on improved education, employment and health.
PFC, according to its tweet site, is dedicated to improving the lives of vulnerable children around the world using the power of sport to improve education and build life skills.
It said that over 6,000 children participated in the sports like badminton, football, basketball and volleyball this year.
The portal said that the partnership was expected to expand the reach of the programmes in 2017 with the addition of baseball and softball.
According to the portal, Riccardo Fraccari, WSBC president said PFC and the confederation will work together in an attempt to begin baseball and softball programmes in targeted territories.
It added that it would boost programme resources, baseball and softball educational materials, coaching and training, kit and equipment worldwide.
“The WBSC is tremendously honoured to partner with Play For Change to help expand the important humanitarian efforts that they are leading, and for baseball and softball to have a role in them.
“As a world governing body of a major sport, WBSC and all our stakeholders take this duty very seriously.
“With partners like this, I am very hopeful and confident that a more level playing field can be cultivated with more educational, sporting and life opportunities being brought to underserved children around the world.
“Partnering with PFC aligns with WBSC’s social responsibility efforts to use the power of sport to up-skill communities, while reducing inequalities,’’ it said.
The PFC programmes coordinator, Louisa MacDonald, describes the partnership as a welcome development.
“We are absolutely thrilled to partner with WBSC. With WBSC’s global influence and PFC’s commitment to improving lives through sport, we can reach more children around the world.
“Sport is a powerful tool that can be used to tackle inequalities that exist and it is great to have WBSC on board who share a passion of driving positive social change,” it said.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) unanimously voted in August to take baseball and softball events to the Tokyo 2020 sports programme along with karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing.
