Hato Baseball Team – trust each other and have fun!
WISE is launched a new series earlier this year to spotlight women’s sports team in Hong Kong! This series is not about the individual players, but about the team. What makes the team fun? Why do people like to be part of the team? Belonging, inclusion, support … There’s so much we gain from being part of a community. We believe in the power of sharing and learning about and from each other. We hope this series will serve as a little inspiration as we go about building our community in HK. Does your team want to be spotlighted? You can submit your details!
This article is written by Ailenemae. Ailenemae works as a domestic helper in Hong Kong since 2010 and is also an author and writer. She is a mentor and team leader for Uplifters as well as Ambassador for Pathfinders. Recently she wrote a book, Beyond The Sunset, a collection of poems about the stories of migrant domestic workers, and is a co-founder of Migrant Writers of Hong Kong, a group of unique and talented migrant writers.
TRUST is a very powerful word.
“If you trust someone to do something, you believe that they will do it. If you trust someone with something important or valuable, you allow them to look after it or deal with it.”
Hato baseball started 20 years ago. Poman Pang and Wing Yan Leung Stephy have been managing it for 5 years.
The founding members were looking for someone passionate about baseball and could commit themselves to manage and continue the team mission and name. Poman took the responsibility as the Team manager; and as part of that responsibility, she needs to grow the team.
The team is open to everyone. They welcome beginners as long as they enjoy baseball, have a positive attitude, shows determination and is willing to commit to the team. Every game they play requires 9 players and every team has a minimum of 12 players on the roster, as required by Hong Kong Baseball Association. The age range of the team is quite large: they have some 16 and 17 year olds who are still studying in high school, some players are in their mid 20’s and 30’s while the oldest is over 40 years old. However, age doesn’t matter at all, they join together to enjoy the presence and talent of each other and they are happy in what they are all doing.
Tough issues are normal to each team, right now, they are facing their biggest challenge. Originally, Hato belonged as a team under the Hong Kong Baseball Association. As such they received help from the government to supplement their expenses. However, due to the situation that Hong Kong has faced in the past three years, many things have changed. As a team, no matter how big or small the problems are, they are all hand-in-hand helping each other to overcome. They believe they will succeed.
Previously, women’s baseball in Hong Kong was divided into a division A and division B, but right now, as the resources have been getting smaller, they have combined into one division AB. This means that Hato competes in this one division available to women in Hong Kong.
They compete against other teams but the best part of it is they never treat each other as competitors. Women’s baseball in Hong Kong is a small community and it’s safe to say the teams enjoy every game together, laugh together, cheer each other on and are happy no matter who wins or loses. That is the best part of it.
Hato were invited to the 1st Taiwan Blueseeds Cup in 2019, an International Women Baseball Tournament, but in 2020, the tournament was cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, they feel so blessed to be invited by them, as baseball is Taiwan’s national sport and having the opportunity to compete there is an honour. They played in 2019 and learned a lot from the Taiwanese playing styles and technique. It was definitely an unforgettable and valuable experience for the team.
Hato would like to give this message to anyone who wants some outdoor activity:
Don’t be afraid to experience joining in club team, meet stranger and make friends with them, build strong bonding that will suits your passion, enjoy and have fun, get a healthy lifestyle, and motivates yourself to achieve your goals.
Hato Baseball team
Team manager: Poman Pang
Assistant team manager: Stephy Leung
Marketing team: Joyce Leung, Tszwai Ho
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
Instagram: hato_baseball