The decision by the International Softball Federation (ISF) to ensure independence for all 131 national federations around the world is seen as a crucial action in the sport's campaign to be reinstated.

 

The sport was controversially cut from the London 2012 Olympics by a vote of members of the International Olympic Committee at it session in Singapore in 2005.

 

It is widely believed that softball's close historical links with baseball worked against it.

 

Baseball was also removed from the Olympic programme for London amid widespread disillusionment with the extent of the sport's doping problem and also the fact the top Major League players do not participate in the Games.

 

Legislation enacted at the ISF Congress decreed that ISF members [national federations] may not be constitutionally linked to a national federation of any other sport. 

 

Among those that will be affected is BaseballSoftballUK (BSUK), the development agency for baseball and softball in the United Kingdom.

 

The ISF has now set a timeline for complete separation with a financial programme offering assistance to help national softball federations achieve compliance within two years.

 

Currently, 35 of the 131 national federations around the world are aligned to baseball. 

 

It could badly hit baseball's efforts to get readmitted for the 2016 Olympics, for which the bidders are Chicago, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo, as they had hoped to tie their election campaign to softball's.

 

This move is set to confirm the growing reputation of softball as a stand-alone sport of great stature across the globe, the ISF claimed. 

 

They hope the move will also help eradicate any confusion in the Olympic Movement and will clarify that softball is a fully independent international sport federation with independent national federations.

 

ISF president Don Porter said: “This is a vital step in the BackSoftball campaign. 

 

"It is of fundamental importance that softball federations have complete autonomy in their territories in order to best ensure the sport continues to grow and maximise its potential. 

 

"We’re confident that all our national federations are strong enough to stand on their own, and we will, of course, help ease them through the transition period.

 

“This move will also prevent some of the confusion that exists surrounding softball’s links with other sports. 

 

"We will also provide comprehensive support to ensure this process runs smoothly.”

 

The ISF believes these plans are vital to the future development and growth of softball for adult women and men, youth development, and other disciplines of the sport, including wheelchair, beach, and indoor softball, they said.

 

Softball was first featured in the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 and this year’s competition in Beijing, which was won by Japan, was hugely successful with a total attendance close to 180,000 and a continuation of the sport’s excellent record of no positive drug tests in major competitions.

 

Softball and baseball are two of the sports trying to win election onto the programme for the 2016 Olympics.

 

The others are golf, karate, roller sports, rugby sevens and squash.

 

The IOC will make a decision at its Session in Copenhagen in October 2005.