SUMMERSIDE | Earlier today, Baseball Canada announced the cancellation of all National Championships for the 2020 season due to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic.
The 11 scheduled national tournaments were set to take place primarily during the month of August which included the 2020 16U National Girls Invitational Championship that was scheduled to take place in Summerside, August 27th-30.
Baseball Canada’s main priority in arriving at this difficult decision was the health and safety of the numerous individuals involved in national championship events, including athletes, coaches, officials, tournament organizers, volunteers, and fans.
“After extensive discussions and careful consideration among our executive committee and board of directors, we arrived at the decision to cancel all of our 2020 national championships,” said Baseball Canada President Jason Dickson. “Although this decision will be disappointing to many across the Canadian baseball community, we felt it was the best decision to make given that the health and welfare of our members is paramount in these uncertain times.”
– Jason Dickson, President of Baseball Canada
As the hosts for this event, Summerside Baseball, in partnership with the City of Summerside, was in full swing of the planning stages and was very much looking forward to bringing yet another prestigious tournament to the City for the baseball community to experience. Unfortunately, due to the complexity of so many unknowns surrounding the health crisis being endured by our nation and the world, we support the decision made by Baseball Canada today and will work closely with the national governing body and the City of Summerside to explore further National Championship hosting opportunities for the future.
When we are awarded these types of events, it creates a lot of joy and excitement within our membership, residents in this city, and across the Island. That’s how I know that today, many are reading this news, disappointed and discouraged. I want to echo that we as organizers are just as much saddened to learn that a piece of our devotion to this season has to be set aside for the time being. While it is tough to swallow today, we have to remember that there will be more championships – and Summerside will certainly be knocking at the doors with open arms to welcome the next of Canada’s best.
Tanner Doiron – 16U Girls Invitational National Championship Chairman
Finally, we want to remind our members that Baseball Canada clearly stated that this decision is not a cancellation of the baseball season in Canada. Individual provincial members will decide the course of their seasons and associated provincial tournaments on their own timelines.
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Summerside Area Baseball Association (SABA) is the governing body of minor baseball in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, and surrounding communities and has been growing the game since 1981. It is Baseball PEI’s largest association with 300 + players registered per season. SABA offers Baseball opportunities to children 4 years of age up to 18 years of age.
For more information on Summerside Baseball, visit www.summersidebaseball.ca or contact: [email protected]
