TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Beitou Junior High School's (北投國中) U16 girls' softball team will embark on their first journey to the United States to participate in the Babe Ruth League (貝比魯斯聯盟) softball event, aiming to promote gender equality in sports. The Deputy Director-General Hung Chih-chang (洪志昌) from the Sports Administration (體育署) expressed his expectation to the students that they can help promote Taiwan on the global stage at the kickoff press conference on Monday (June 9).
During the conference, Hung encouraged the young athletes to serve as ambassadors for Taiwan. He emphasized the event as an opportunity for both technical exchange and cultural learning. Legislators Wu, Szu-yao (吳思瑤) and Chen Pei-yu (陳培瑜) from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP, 民主進步黨) highlighted sports as a showcase of a nation's soft power. They expressed their hope for Taiwan's young athletes to make friends worldwide through baseball.
The new Ministry of Sports" (運動部) will be officially inaugurated on Sept. 9, promising more resources to further promote gender equality in sports, ensuring that girls have opportunities to participate in baseball and softball events. The Babe Ruth League baseball and softball world series will take place on July 19. Taiwan's Babe Ruth League has selected four Taiwanese teams and one Asia-Pacific team to join the competition.