Embassy Promotes Baseball in Benin (Oct 4, 2012)

The American Cultural Center hosted a group of young baseball enthusiasts on October 4 for a screening of Field of Dreams, one of the most popular American baseball movies. Before the film Assistant Public Affairs Officer Alexis Wolff spoke to the group about the history and current state of the sport in America. She pointed out that no Major League baseball player has ever come from an African country and challenged the players to work hard to develop their skills and change this.

After the film, Beninese hip hop legend Akotchaye Koulaoun Okio, from the group Ardiess, spoke to the players about his recent experience traveling to the United States on an International Visitors Leadership Program, during which he had the opportunity to attend a professional baseball game. He hopes to promote the spread of baseball in Benin, as does the team’s coach, Fernando Atannon.