The final competition of 2023 will take place in Lithuania. It’s the European Baseball5 Championship from November 7th to 11th. The second edition of this competition. The top two teams secure their spot in the World Cup. Thirteen nations will compete for the title and a place in the World Cup. France has a strong chance as one of the favorites.
Hosted in the city of Druskininkai, just 60 km north of Poland, the French team will be led by Lahcène Benhamida, assisted by Stephen Lesfargues and Elliot Fleys. Notably, two French officials will be in action during the competition: Ludovic Mellier as the technical commissioner (a first for a French official in a European competition) and Gilles Neyraud as an umpire.
The French team prepared for the tournament during a training camp in Montigny last October, joined by Japanese star Ayako Rokkaku, the Best Player of the last World Cup. The French squad includes two 2020 European champions (Chiara and Marcel), four 2022 World Cup players (Angélique, Chiara, Flavien, and Marcel), two 2023 World Junior vice-champions (Ambre and Amina), and a major debut for Nathan and Omar after the 2023 French Internationals!
France’s Schedule
First Round
• November 7th at 14:15: Latvia vs France
• November 7th at 17:15: France vs Spain
• November 8th at 11:00: France vs Netherlands
• November 8th at 14:15: Bulgaria vs France
• November 9th at 11:45: France vs Romania
• November 9th at 15:30: Finland vs France
Second Round
The top three teams from each group advance to the second round, facing teams from the other group while keeping their previous round results. The top two teams after the second round advance to the final, while the next two play for third place. The remaining teams compete in a classification phase.
France won the 2020 edition against Lithuania, who will now play on home turf. However, during the French Internationals held in Toulouse last July, France again defeated Lithuania in the final. France is in Group A and will play six group matches before advancing to the second round. We can reasonably hope to end the year on a high note with another European Championship title.
