Team Palestine at Asian Baseball Championship in Taiwan
The Palestinian baseball team made its debut at the Asian Baseball Championship in Taiwan as war and violence continue to rage back home in the Gaza Strip. They didn't win the tournament but won many hearts in Taiwan.
Transcript
00:00 It's been a long and uncertain journey for these Palestinian baseball players.
00:08 They're here in Taiwan, despite their homes in Gaza being under attack.
00:21 They say participating in the Asian Baseball Championship has been a way to help deal with
00:25 the loss and despair of the Israel-Hamas war back home.
00:44 The Palestinian team entered the international baseball arena earlier this year.
00:49 But the war in Gaza meant many players couldn't make it to this tournament.
00:54 So the team is largely made up of players hailing from Chicago, home to the world's
00:58 largest overseas Palestinian community.
01:03 But the effects of the war have been a lot more severe than some people not being able
01:10 to play.
01:11 It's been very, very difficult.
01:14 So many people I've met, I know personally, have lost family members.
01:20 We lost a baseball player from one of the local clubs.
01:25 He was killed.
01:27 I have so many friends whose family members have died.
01:34 Despite these challenges, the team made a strong entrance at the tournament, winning
01:38 their opening game against Hong Kong.
01:41 And even though they didn't make it to the final round, they ended with a victory over
01:45 Thailand.
01:46 The team's Venezuelan coach says it's a major achievement.
01:50 Some teams here in this tournament have been playing baseball for 100 years.
01:53 In Palestine, the national team just got put together a couple of years ago.
01:56 And the fact that we're here competing already, it's a great honor.
02:00 And they have also used their presence here to show solidarity with the people of Gaza.
02:06 These Palestinian players are here in Taipeh to play in the biggest tournament of their
02:11 life.
02:12 At the same time, the sports is not only a passion, but it's also a platform where they
02:16 can showcase their patriotism.
02:20 The team carried Palestinian flags and wore keffiyeh, a symbol of Palestinian nationalism,
02:26 not only to support those under siege back home, but also to bring the hearts of more
02:31 people in Taiwan.
02:33 As the war in Gaza rages on, these baseball players are showing that hope for the future
02:38 and their homeland lives on.
02:41 Dolphin Chen, Su Yingling and Shubham Pal for Taiwan Plus.
02:44 [BLANK_AUDIO]