Singapore women’s softball team chase World Cup dream and SEA Games glory

The Singapore women’s softball team are deep in training having identified 2024 and 2025 as the defining years for their programme.

Training up to six times a week, the players, in their signature red jerseys, move with focus and intensity, balancing rigorous physical with mental preparation – going through agility drills, batting, fielding and strategy sessions.

Currently ranked No. 39 in the WBSC Women's Softball World Ranking, and sixth in the Asian continent, the Singapore squad is comprised of 32 athletes actively training, supported by three coaches. Seven players are working adults, while the rest are university students.

Their two biggest goals are advancing to the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup through the Women’s Softball Asia Cup (which takes place in Xian, China from 11-20 July) and winning gold at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games (which will take place in Thailand from December 9-20, 2025).

The Women’s Softball Asia Cup in July will determine the three Asia teams who will qualify for the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Group Stage 2026 and while Singapore has only previously qualified once to the premier tournament in international women’s softball (finishing 18th in 1982 with a 1-5 overall record), there have been signs of recent improvement. In 2022, Singapore finished sixth at the Hangzhou Asian Games, outperforming Hong Kong, China and closing in on South Korea in the Asian rankings. In 2024, they secured a fifth-place finish at the Asian University Women’s Softball Cup.

Meanwhile, softball has not been included in every SEA Games, making this a rare and valuable opportunity. In Bangkok this year there will be Men’s and Women’s Softball as well as Baseball5. The SEA Games are a biennial multi-sport event with 11 participating National Olympic Committees: Cambodia, Brunei Darussalam, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. With softball confirmed in the LA28 Olympic Games programme, and potentially included in Brisbane 2032, the 33rd SEA Games in Thailand will serve as the starting shot for the Olympic race for those countries.

Singapore last played at the SEA Games 2019 in the Philippines, when the Singapore men's team beat the home team in the final, but the best ever finish for the women's team was a silver medal in 2007. Now, the team is determined to rewrite history, aiming for the top podium spot.

“That game [the SEA Games 2007 final] was telecast, and our families watched it, which validated the effort we put in,” said team captain Cacia Tan in her interview with Channel News Asia.

Their preparations include intensive gym sessions at Singapore Sports Hub and tactical analysis of opponents. Players and coaches break down game footage to identify areas for improvement, fine-tuning everything from swing mechanics to defensive positioning.

“Each softball game is unpredictable. There is a lot of strategy at play, and also subtle hand signals that only our team knows when we want to steal bases. You always need to be mentally alert as anything can happen,” said Bowie Tan.

Balancing full-time work or university studies with an intense training schedule means sacrifices are inevitable. Some, like final-year university students Charmaine Chua and Bowie Tan, both age 23, even deferred their A Levels for the 2019 SEA Games to compete at the highest level.

“I convinced my parents to allow me to do so, as it would be another six years before softball is included again, and I could participate in another SEA Games,” said Chua.

“To play semi-professionally like us, there are sacrifices we need to make on our part, and also have support from the organisation, community and from our family and friends,” Guo Rundongni, 26, added.

Despite the odds, the team remains confident and focused on their two biggest goals.

With months of intense preparation behind them, the team knows there’s no room for hesitation. They’ve put in the work, faced setbacks, and adjusted their game - now, it’s time to deliver on the field. And when they step up to the plate, they’ll be swinging for the fences.

Photo source: Singapore Baseball & Softball Association (SBSA)