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(August 15, 2002)
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Former Fresno State
Softball Player is Olympic Hopeful
Vanessa Czarnecki one of 33 looking to make Greek National Team for 2004
Olympics
FRESNO CA (August 15, 2002) Former
Fresno State softball standout Vanessa Czarnecki (Riverside, Calif.) is
one of 33 players to be invited to compete for a spot on the Greece
National Softball Team, Aug. 21-25, in Plant City,
Fla.
Current Arizona State softball head
coach Linda Wells was announced as the new Greek Olympic Coach on August
2 and will conduct classroom and on-field sessions in Plant City next
week. The Olympic hopefuls, who are paying for their own expenses, will
gather next Wednesday, Aug. 21, for a dinner with on-field sessions
being held the next three days. The players who make the Greek National
Softball Team will then be announced on Sunday, Aug. 25, with a team
practice to be held that morning.
By virtue of their country hosting the
2004 Summer Olympic Games, Greece receives an "automatic in."
Prior to 1999, Greece did not have a national softball team. The project
to identify players with a Greek heritage was undertaken by
International Softball Federation (ISF) Director of Development Cindy
Bristow, who has been the federation's liaison with the Hellenic Amateur
Softball Federation the past 12 months.
More than 100 potential players
submitted their applications electronically and sent videos in to Wells,
who then trimmed the hopefuls to 33. Those selected to participate in
the Greek National Softball Team tryout will represent the United
States, Canada and Australia. A tryout for Greek players will be held in
Athens in late September as well.
The ISF, which is celebrating its 40th
anniversary in 2002, is the governing body of softball internationally
as recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the
General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF).
[Source: Jan Winslow, Fresno State]
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