Taiwan and the 2001 Baseball World Cup: The National impact of a World sporting event

National identity is one of the most contentious issues in Taiwan. This paper examines the relationship between the staging of the 2001 Baseball World Cup (BWC) and wider issues such as that of Taiwanese nationalism and broader sociopolitical values in Taiwan. It attempts to explain the impact on Taiwanese nationalism of hosting such a sports mega-event. The paper argues that baseball in general, and the 2001 BWC in particular, was a political vehicle utilised by the 'new' government to promote social integration/national identity; and it evaluates the responses of the Taiwanese to baseball used for this purpose.