Softball

The competition

One women's tournament

The format

Eight-team round-robin qualifying tournament. Top four teams advance to semi-finals and final.

Milestones

1887: Members of the Farragut Nautical Club in Chicago (Illinois) invent softball, initially an indoor sport.

1900: Birth of the first softball league in Minneapolis (Minnesota), the town in which the local firemen practised softball in between call-outs.

1933: Having been known under various synonyms (mushball, kittenball and pumpkinball), 'softball' is officially recognised as the name for the sport.

1965: First women's world championships (fast pitch) are held in Melbourne. Australia take the title.

1996: Softball makes its Olympic debut at the Games in Atlanta, as a women-only event. The United States storm to victory.

The star

Joan Joyce (United States): During a 21-year career with the Orange Lionettes and then the Raybestos Brackettes, she racked up a host of records in the 1960's and 70's. A pitcher second to none, she was also an excellent hitter. 12 national titles, one world championship (1974) and eight MVP awards (most valuable player in US championship).