Philippines women's national softball team

Philippines
Information
Country	Philippines
Federation	Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines
Confederation	Softball Confederation of Asia
Manager	Venerando Dizer
WBSC World Rank	15th
Women's Softball World Championship
Appearances	?
Best result	3rd (1 time, in 1970)
World Cup of Softball
Appearances	3 (First in 2014)
Best result	6th (1 time, in 2014)
Asian Championship
Appearances	10 (First in 1967)
Best result	1st (1 time, in 1972)
Asian Games
Appearances	5 (First in 1998)
Best result	4th (2 times, in 2014 and 2018)

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 Philippines is among the best teams in Southeast Asia having won the gold medal in every edition of the Southeast Asian Games which had women's softball event.

History

The Philippine women's team were a powerhouse in Asia never placing outside the top 10 in the global rankings during the 1970s although the Philippines always ranked behind Japan. Their greatest achievement at that time was the third place finish at the Women's Softball World Championship in 1970. They placed fourth in the 1974 edition.^[1]

They are also a dominant force in Southeast Asia, having won all the gold medals in all editions of the Southeast Asian Games where women's softball was contested.^[1]

However by the 1990s, the Philippine national team experienced a decline.^[1] The team competed at the 1990 ISF Women's World Championship in Normal, Illinois where they finished with 4 wins and 5 losses.^[2] At the 1998 ISF Women's World Championship in Fujinomiya City, Japan where they finished sixteenth^[3] and only managed to secure a single win. The policy of the Philippine Sports Commission of dismantling the national training pool whenever a particular sport was scrapped from the calendar of events of the Southeast Asian Games, Asian Games, and the Olympics contributed to the women's softball team's decline.^[1]

In the 2000s, Raul Saberon, a businessman and a former men's national softball and baseball player, secured financial support for the women's softball team from Jean Henri Lhuillier, who later became head of the Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines.The team made a failed attempt to qualify for the 2006 Asian Games in Doha and the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing though made some progress.^[1]

At the 2017 Asian Women’s Softball Championship, the Philippines finished second to Japan, the best finish of the country in 45 years. In doing so, they qualified for the Women's Softball World Championship and Asian Games in 2018.^[1]

Roster

National squad for the 2014 World Cup of Softball, July 7-13, 2014.^[4][5]

Head Coach:Randy Dizer

Competition Results

World Cup World Cup Record Year Position 2005–2013 Did not participate 2014 6th place 2015 Did not participate 2016 6th place 2017 7th place Total 3/12 Asian Games Asian Games Record Year Position 1990 Did not participate 1994 1998 6th place 2002 6th place 2006 Did not participate 2010 5th place 2014 4th place 2018 4th place Total 4/5

SEA Games SEA Games Records Year Position 1979 1st place 1981 1st place 1983 Not Held 1985 1987 1st place 1989 Not Held 1991 1st place 1993 Not Held 1995 1997 1st place 1999 Not Held 2001 2003 2005 1st place 2007 1st place 2009 Not Held 2011 1st place 2013 Not Held 2015 1st Place 2017 Not Held Total 9 gold

References

External links

• International Softball Federation