Special report: 2008 Olympic Games

    CARACAS, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan sports minister Victoria Mata said Friday that she will attend the softball opener at the Beijing Olympic Games.

    Invited by the International Federation of Softball Clovis Lodewijks, Mata will attend the opener between Venezuela and the reigning champion the United States in Fengtai, south of Beijing, on August 12.

    It's the first time and also the last time for Venezuela to compete in the Olympic softball tournament as the sport will be excluded from the agenda from the London Games four years later.