Venezuela stuns Argentina with late home run in Chengdu World Games softball opener
The action took place under intense heat on the first competition day of the Games in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province. The challenging conditions took a toll, with one technical official collapsing from heat exhaustion during the afternoon game.
Venezuela struggled to find their rhythm for most of the contest, but a towering shot to center field by Flores in the final inning turned the tide. Franklin Benitez scored on the play, sealing the narrow victory.
"I think the pitcher was just trying to find the strike zone, then missed, and I took the chance. The home run came," Flores said. "We know every game here is going to be tough, but we take it one game at a time and try to go as far as we can."
Venezuela entered Chengdu riding high after their title run at the WBSC Men's Softball World Cup in July in Canada, where they defeated New Zealand 3-0 in the final.
"We were also in Canada just a month ago, and I hit a home run there too," Flores added. "Our goal here is to win the gold medal. We know the level is high because every team here has World Cup experience, but we feel no pressure."
In other action, Singapore edged Australia 10-9. Earlier Wednesday, the scheduled opening games between the United States and Canada, and the Czech Republic and Japan were postponed due to flight-related issues.
Men's softball is making a return to the World Games stage after first appearing at the inaugural edition in Santa Clara, California, in 1981. Now, 44 years later, the sport is back as one of the key competitions at this global multi-sport event.
A total of eight men's and eight women's teams, featuring 240 athletes, are competing in Chengdu.
The softball tournament is also the longest event on the World Games schedule, running for 10 days with 40 matches. The men's gold medal game is set for August 10, while the women's competition will take place from August 13 to 17.
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