Castions di Strada Softball Field: Renovation complete for WBSC Women's Softball World Cup Finals 2024
Castions di Strada, the host city of the WBSC Women's Softball World Cup Finals 2024, is a 3,700-person town in the province of Udine, in the north-eastern Friuli Venezia region.
Castions is about 30 kilometres (18.6 miles ) from the main centre of Udine, which has a population of approximately 100,000, and about 50 kilometres (31 miles) from Trieste and the border with Slovenia. Tarvisio and the Austrian border is about 110 kilometres (68.4 miles away).
Venice, the capital of the Veneto Region and one of the world's most famous tourist sites is about 112 kilometres (70 miles) east of Castions di Strada.
The Campo Comunale (Municipal Field) in Castions di Strada underwent a complete renovation. With a grant, the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region supported the restyling, worth €300,000 (US$325,000).
The new stands, including a temporary part, will seat 2,772 fans. The lighting system has been totally renovated with light-emitting diodes (LED). The renovation included a new scoreboard, a new fence, and the padding of the foul poles.
The field has a new grass turf and an up to date irrigation system. The locker rooms also underwent a massive renovation, including a new air conditioning system.
The Stadio Comunale is home to Castionese, a team competing in the Serie A2 league, the second tier of women's softball in Italy. The Italian National Team won on that turf at the 2021 European Championship.
Castions di Strada has been inhabited since the Bronze Age (3400-1100 BC). It later became a Roman Empire outpost and a stop on pilgrim's paths. After being part of the French Empire in the 18th century and the Austro-Hungaric Empire for most of the 19th century, it became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1866.
The main tourist attraction is Palmanova, two kilometres north of Castions di Strada. Built by the Venetian Republic in 1593, it is an example of a star fort of the late Renaissance and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
