Georgians have already tasted both baseball and softball. There is even a federation of these sports which is trying its very best to give people a sensation of being into this outstanding American pastime. Thanks to the efforts and enthusiasm of Gela Chikhradze and Ramaz Goglidze – the two Georgian gentlemen who managed to bring the wonderful baseball seed to Georgia. The seed was sowed and it bore fruit although it still needs a lot of nurturing yet for it flourishes into a real healthy and full-grown baseball tree.

Recently, the Congress of the Georgian Baseball and Softball Federation was held, with a very impressive turnout, to elect a new president and to introduce certain necessary changes in rules and regulations. The event was a real success, especially because, for the first time in history, a genuine baseball player was elected President of the Federation – unanimously! Davit Khrikadze, a famous baseball player of recent times, one of the best in the USSR, used to play for the national team of the Soviet Union. He is currently a well-known businessman and public figure who promised Congress participants he would breathe new life into baseball and softball in Georgia.

The annual report which was presented to the Congress by the Secretary General of the Federation, Giorgi Datunashvili, reflected all the highlights of Georgian baseball and softball that deserved attention.

The Georgian baseball and softball teams have successfully played in Europe and America, all thanks to talent and enthusiasm because of the paucity of funding. Well-known coaches Gia Kemoklidze and Nugzar Kapanadze are always poised and ready to give more impetus to the new-born sports in Georgia, doing this with love and with their weathered professionalism.

It is so fortunate that American ambassadors in Georgia are great fans of Georgian baseball and softball: they never miss the opportunity to attend a match, especially the already traditional spring and autumn friendlies between the American Marines and the Georgian national team.

Somebody might ask– why baseball and softball? These sports are elegant and enticing; one needs to possess all the following features taken together to perform well – physical strength, talent and smarts. On top of all that, the baseball-softball combination is unisex meaning the whole country can play it. To cut it short, Georgians fit perfectly in both these sports and vice versa, both fit well in sporting life. As the new Federation President Khrikadze noted, baseball and softball are actual Georgian sports.

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