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Wednesday 6th July 2005

From - Brett Pickett

Dear Player
The 2005 International Baseball Federation’s (IBAF) senior World Cup of baseball is fast approaching
The tournament is to be staged in the Netherlands from the 2 -17 of September and will be featuring sixteen of the World’s top baseball nations

I write to inform you that you have been nominated as a possible member of the final national team to participate in this tournament

We have compiled a national squad of 60 players, from which the final team of 24 will be selected
The final team of 24 will be selected and announced on the 10th of August

IBAF require that a Provisional Team Roster (PTR) of 60 athletes be lodged with their office, from which our final team of 24 will be selected
As you have been nominated in our 60 man squad, your name will be listed on this PTR submitted to IBAF

I must inform you that as a member of our National Squad, you will be eligible for random drug testing from the moment the PTR is lodged with the IBAF office (to those of you already on our National Registered Testing Pool of Athletes, this will be nothing new to you)

It does not guarantee that you will be tested of course, it simply means that you become eligible for testing

You of course have the right to decline the opportunity to be a part of our 60 man squad and should you do so, we will not place you on our Provisional team roster
Please understand however, that if your name is not on the PTR that we lodge with the IBAF, there is no chance you can ultimately make the final team for the tournament

The PTR that we have to lodge with IBAF requires the signature of the individual player
The task of getting you to sign the form is of course logistically impossible as you are all separately in different parts of Australia and the world (something IBAF have failed to consider obviously)

In lieu of you actually signing the form, we ask that you send back an email/fax declaring your intention to be considered for selection and giving your consent to be placed on our PTR
The email should read --- "I (Full Name), understanding that I will become eligible for random drug testing by WADA and/or affiliated IBAF bodies, give my consent to be placed on Australia’s Provisional Team Roster for the 2005 Baseball World Cup"

Should you however, not wish to be considered for team selection, then please contact us and indicate your desire not to be nominated for team selection

We are working on a very tight timeframe here, so your prompt response would be much appreciated
Please get back to us immediately, even if you do not wish to be considered for selection

For your information, the staff for the team going to the tournament is as follows
----------Head Coach - Jon Deeble
----------On Field Coordinator - Tony Harris
----------Assistant Coach - Paul Elliott
----------Assistant Coach - Pat Kelly
----------Pitching Coach - Phil Dale
----------Physiotherapist - Bruce Rawson
----------Executive Officer - David Nagy

Given the timing of the tournament, any professional player selected in the final team will more than likely be travelling directly from the USA/Japan to the Netherlands
We are still unsure as to what date you would be released to travel to the Netherlands, but will be working with the individuals club on this matter
A lot will of course depend on whether the individual clubs are in play-off contention or not
As mentioned, we will work with the clubs on securing a release date for the player

For the players who make the final team who are residing in Australia, we envisage the team will be departing Australia on the 28th of August to arrive into the Netherlands on the 29th

We are still yet to confirm what Australian based players will be doing prior to departing for the Netheralnds, but will have this confirmed soon

For now we must simply lodge the PTR with IBAF, incudling your name and details

As mentioned above, we will be announcing the team on the 10th of August
We will contact you then to let you know whether you have made the team or not

For now, it is imperative that you get back to me with your consent to be placed on our PTR (or your desire not to be considered for selection)

Could you also please confirm for me your residential address and phone number

We sincerely hope you choose to make yourself available for selection for the World Cup
This is our benchmark event and it will of course be a wonderful preparation tool for the ultimate event next year, that being Major League Baseball’s "World Baseball Classic"

I look forward to hearing back from you
Please remember that we are working under a very tight schedule and need you to reply immediately

Kind regards
Brett Pickett
High Performance Manager
Australian Baseball Federation