Visit Johnson City will host the USA Softball Girls’ 18-Under Class A Fast Pitch National Championship in 2023.
USA Softball Council members awarded Johnson City the event at their recent Annual Meeting in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The event is expected to bring up to 60 teams to the region from July 17-23, 2023. The seven-day tournament could generate an estimated $1.6 million in economic impact. Johnson City was one of three cities bidding on the tournament and secured the event by more than 55 percent of the votes.
“We’re thrilled to host the 18-U National Championships. The older age group usually means fewer spectators but it still leaves a big impact in our community,” said Brenda Whitson, Executive Director of Visit Johnson City. She added that one key selling point for Johnson City is the addition of four new turf fields at Winged Deer Park and the addition of an umpire locker room.
Visit Johnson City will also partner with local Junior Olympic Commissioner, Tina Gale, to host the USA Softball 16-Under Gold Qualifier June 3-5, 2022. That event will also be held at Winged Deer Park. The two top teams from the qualifier will compete in the 16-U Gold Nationals.
USA Softball has many important responsibilities as the National Governing Body of softball in the United States, including regulating competition to ensure fairness and equal opportunity to the millions of players who play the sport. The organization has been around since 1933 and currently has 120,000 teams that represent a membership of more than 2 million athletes.
Visit Johnson City strives to showcase the uniqueness of the community by promoting its distinctive resources, events and attractions to both visitors and citizens. To learn more about Visit Johnson City, go to visitjohnsoncitytn.com.
