More than 60 Softball Australia athletes, coaches, and support staff will depart Sydney Airport in the next 24 hours, bound for Vancouver and the 2022 Canada Cup.

The travelling party is the largest ever assembled by Softball Australia for an international tour, and features three Australian teams: the Travelodge Aussie Spirit, an Aussie Spirit Development team, and the Under 18 Aussie Diamonds.

The Canada Cup is the first international tournament for any Australian team since the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and the Travelodge Aussie Spirit team includes no fewer than seven Olympians: Michelle Cox, Stacey McManus, Ellen Roberts, Taylah Tsitsikronis, Jade Wall, Clare Warwick, and Belinda White.

Softball Australia CEO Rosie Williams OBE said, “An incredible amount of work has gone into preparing for this tour, but I can’t explain how proud everyone at Softball Australia is to see this group of athletes, coaches, and support staff representing Australia at the Canada Cup.”

“It’s also our first step towards the 2024 World Cup, and many of our next generation of Olympians and World Cup athletes may well come from the players on this tour, so it’s a very exciting time for the sport.”

Click here to see the Travelodge Aussie Spirit and Spirit Development tournament schedule.

The Travelodge Aussie Spirit play two exhibition games before taking on world #11 Czech Republic in their opening game of the tournament on Monday, June 20 at 3:30pm local time (8:30am AEST, Tuesday June 21).

The Spirit Development team take on world #3 and home team Canada in their opening game at 6:00pm local time on Monday, June 20 (11am AEST, Tuesday June 21). The Aussie Diamonds open their tournament with a game against local team Surrey Storm at 1pm on Monday, June 20 (6am AEST, Tuesday June 21).

Click here to see the Travelodge Aussie Spirit team.

Click here to see the Aussie Spirit Development team.

Click here to see the Under 18 Aussie Diamonds team.

Live streaming coverage of the Canada Cup is available here, and features a 5x camera production for games on the Championship Diamond at 1:00pm, 3:30pm, 6:00pm, and 8:30pm local time.

At the conclusion of the Canada Cup, the Travelodge Aussie Spirit head to Birmingham, USA for the 2022 World Games from 9-13 July, to take on many of the world’s best teams including Japan, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.

Follow Softball Australia on Facebook and Instagram. #softballoz #believeinthespirit #aussiespirit

Follow the Canada Cup on Facebook and Instagram. #canadacup2022