International Sports Ambassadors (ISA), working in cooperation with several American military bases in Japan, will take a team of high school age baseball players on a baseball tour of Japan in July of 2012.  You could be a part of that team!  The team will be composed of high school athletes ages 15 to 17, who are incoming sophomores, juniors, and seniors.  The trip will be an exciting opportunity to combine many aspects of baseball into an ideal trip.  There are 3 major elements of the trip:

• Serving our military: We will spend several days on 3 US military bases in Japan, serving the military personnel there through baseball!  Each of these 3 days will have 2 elements.  The first will be a baseball clinic conducted by our team for the children living on the base.  The second part of the military base day will be a game against either the DOD high school team, or the junior enlisted military personnel serving our country in Japan.  This will be a great experience for our players and a welcome opportunity for the military personnel to prepare for a unique event that brings a little piece of America to them!  The military base days will be a great service opportunity for our players.  We will be staying on or near the military bases in these 3 areas for several days as we tour Japan.

• Japanese high school games: We will play games against Japanese high school teams at their home fields in Japan!  We will play 3 - 4 games in Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka, and near Hiroshima against Japanese high school teams.  These will not be all star teams, but the teams fielded by those schools of the same age group as our team.  Some of these games will involve a social time after the game with the Japanese players.

• Touring the country of Japan: We will visit many of Japan’s major cultural sites.  We will also take in a professional baseball game in at least one of the areas we stay.  Be prepared for a major cultural experience!

Baseball is the national sport in Japan, and they play with great intensity.  The high school teams play 11 months a year, and are very technically proficient.  This will provide some very challenging games for our team.   The trip will also give athletes and family members traveling with them a great international experience.  It will be a great opportunity for building relationships between Japanese and American high school players who can carry these relationships through the rest of their lives.  The relationships built through international exchange and travel programs have often built lifelong relationships and provided further travel opportunities.

Travel:  We will begin with a training camp in San Diego for 2 days.  This will allow us to issue uniforms, practice a couple times, and sightsee in San Diego.  We will then travel to Japan from San Diego together.  Our travel agency may be able to book your ticket as a 3 leg ticket: your home to San Diego, then San Diego to Tokyo, then Osaka to your home.  While in Japan each player or family member traveling with the team will have a Japan Rail Pass for the last 7 days, allowing travel on all Japan Rail trains throughout the country, including the “Shinkansen” – the “bullet train”.  The rail system in Japan is well developed, sophisticated, and efficient, while the road system is not.  The terrain of Japan makes it impossible for them to develop a highway system like we have in the U.S.  But the Shinkansen travels through mountains in long tunnels at speeds in excess of 140 mph, making it the fastest way to travel between any two cities.  It is usually faster than flying!  All seats on the Shinkansen are like business class on an airplane – plenty of leg-room!  We will also travel by bus in some of the base areas for local games and some touring.

Lodging:  We will stay on the 3 military bases we are working with, and in hotels in Yokohama and Osaka for 2 nights each.  Base accommodations are spacious and nice, and usually have high speed internet.  The local hotels will give you the flavor of Japanese culture.

Meals:  Some meals will be included in the cost of the trip (some breakfasts at hotels and some team dinners), but most meals will be at the discretion of the team member or family member.  We will have designated eating times and areas, but you will have flexibility in most cases on what and where you eat.  Each traveler will bring enough cash to cover these expenses.

Qualifications: Athletes are being sought from all regions of the US.  There are several requirements to be a member of this team representing the U.S. in Japan.

• A desire to travel and use your baseball skills in new settings.

• A willingness to serve our military personnel deployed to Japan through baseball.

• An open minded attitude toward other cultures and new people.  Japan is a different culture than ours.  We need to fit into their culture as much as possible while we are guests in their country.

• Willingness to teach basic baseball skills to elementary age children.  This is crucial as players will be presenting the clinic.  It could be a significant news story in the military media and in the Japanese media.

• Ability to present yourself well and represent your country effectively.  You will be wearing clothing identifying you as a part of this American Ambassador Team for most of the trip.

• Baseball skills!  The games will be competitive!  The Japanese take their baseball very seriously, and the servicemen on the bases will come out to play hard, as well as being a few years older than our players!

Cost & Requirements: The cost will be $4,800 per player to cover all expenses (excluding airfare): 1 week JR Pass, lodging (double occupancy), uniforms & clothing, embroidered baseball bag, fees, meals, tours and sight-seeing, and the post trip photo book and DVD.  This is the approximate cost for all team members traveling.  Each player will need to provide their own glove and bat. 

Family members are welcome and encouraged to join their players on the trip.  Family members will travel with the team for approximately $700 less than the team members.  Family members will be issued an embroidered polo shirt as a part of the group for representing the team in some areas.  We also can use family members in some roles such as team doctor/nurse/trainer, book keeper (game stats), and assistant coaches.  In some of these roles more uniform items may be issued.

All persons traveling will also need to have a current passport.  Some of the items in the travel will be billed and covered for the entire group, and some items (some of the food and entertainment) will be left to each individual to pay for as we travel.  ISA will give each player and family member an approximate total amount of money recommended to carry while traveling.  There are locations on each base to exchange currency while in Japan as well as in the airport on arrival.

Sponsorships: Because we are partnering with US military bases and serving our military personnel serving in Japan, you may be able to get financial sponsorships from local businesses to help defray some or even all of the costs of the trip.  Businesses with military interests and business owners with military backgrounds may be particularly interested in sponsoring you for the trip.  If you find just 11 sponsoring businesses who will contribute $500, your trip will be paid for!  This is a very small amount for a business to provide – many would be willing to help.  With any sponsor donation toward your trip of $500 or more, ISA will make an 8 x 10 picture of the team in Japan thanking them specifically by name for their help in serving our military personnel deployed to Japan.  Your player can then frame this picture appropriately and present it to their sponsors when they return.  Sponsorship letters and materials will be emailed to any player requesting them.  Sponsorships may also be tax deductable.

The following schedule will be updated for next summer (2012), but it will look similar to this schedule that was developed for the summer of 2010.  We will shift he dates to complete the entire trip in July so it will not interfere with football training camps or school start dates.

Background & Experience: Todd was a 3 sport athlete through high school and college, and won a Collegiate National Championship in track & field in 1984.  He was recently inducted into the St. Olaf College Athletic Hall of Fame.  He has been coaching many sports for 25 years, as well as working as an athletic director in San Diego, California.  He has traveled extensively to Japan spending over a year of total time in the country on 10 different trips.  He has now started this program (ISA) to give student athletes the opportunity to travel abroad within the context of the sport they love, and serve others while doing so. 

He also has experience working with the military.  Todd was an officer in the Marine Corps for 9 years, with over 1000 hours of flight time in the F-18.  He has run air shows at several military bases, including MCAS Iwakuni, Japan for the past 8 years.  Todd has led groups of athletes and young men in many settings.  As an officer in the Marine Corps he was in command of over 300 Marines for several years in his jobs running airfields.   Since then Todd has led many young men and women teaching and coaching athletes from junior high through high school for over 10 years.

Please contact Todd in San Diego, California at the email address, mailing address, or phone listed below to indicate your interest in the trip.  This detailed description as well as a trip application with specific costs and fund-raising & sponsorship information will be emailed to you. 

International Sports Ambassadors

732 Via Barquero

San Marcos, CA 92069, USA

Email: CalAthletics@sbcglobal.net

Website: www.CaliforniaAthletics.com