Sixty teams will be in Prince Albert this weekend as they vie for the 2019 Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Youth Softball Championships crowns.
The event, which is being put on by the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, has been in the works for almost a year and the number of diamonds in Prince Albert has played a big role in helping to put the tournament together.
“The city has been able to accommodate us with the facilities that we’ve needed, especially with the number of teams that are coming,” LLRIB director of sports and recreation Kevin Roberts said. “We’re using all four fields at Max Power Ball Park, three diamonds at Crescent Acres, two diamonds at Kinsmen Park and one at Normandy Park.
“Our umpires are set to go, the volunteers are ready and our sponsors have really stepped up in a big way over the last couple of months. We’re expecting a pretty good turnout and all we need is to have this good weather to stick around.”
Having hosted the FSIN Youth Hockey and Youth Volleyball championships in the past, the opportunity to be the host for the softball championship and have the games in Prince Albert was one that the LLRIB couldn’t pass up.
“I had a chance to go down to Prince Albert and watch the World Junior Men’s championship last summer and I was really impressed with the work they put into the Max Power diamonds for that event,” Roberts said. “Softball is such a big sport of the sports scene in Prince Albert.
“On our end, we want to help promote the game on a grassroots level and a championship like this certainly helps with that. There’s a lot of kids that might not get a chance to take part in it and it really allows them to build friendships that will last for years to come.”
The tournament, which features an Under-10 coed division plus male and female divisions in the Under 12, Under 14, Under 16 and Under 18 age groups, will get underway at 8 a.m. Friday and run through Sunday afternoon.
The opening ceremonies will take place at Max Power Ball Park at 6 p.m. Friday night.
Admission for the weekend is $8 for adults, while youth that are 18 and under and elders that are 60 and over can get in for free.
A complete list of the schedules in all of the divisions can be found on Facebook by searching for 2019 FSIN Youth Softball Championships.
