The WBSC said it had partnered with the Olympic Channel to show matches from previous baseball and softball tournaments at the Olympic Games.

Matches will be played in accordance with the Tokyo 2020 schedule, with softball matches beginning yesterday as the sport would have started competition prior to the Opening Ceremony, which was scheduled for tomorrow.

The WBSC showed coverage of Canada's match against Chinese Taipei at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games to open the rewind series, with the clash held at the 8,800-seat Golden Park Stadium in Columbus, Georgia.

Eight teams participated in the Atlanta 1996 softball tournament, with Australia, Japan, The Netherlands, China, Puerto Rico and the United States also among the nations represented.

The WBSC said the match between Canada and Chinese Taipei was among the most interesting games of the round-robin phase, with the match ending 2-1 to Canada after an extra innings.

Neither side were able to progress to the medal rounds of the competition, however.

The first Olympic softball gold medal match, which featured the US and China, will be shown today.

Two matches from Sydney 2000 will be shown, with New Zealand and Canada's opening round match the focus tomorrow and the gold medal match between the US and Japan shown the following day.

Japan and China's opening round match at Athens 2004 will be broadcast on July 26, followed by the gold medal contest featuring Australia and the US the next day.

The softball rewind will conclude on July 28, the date this year's final was scheduled, with the Beijing 2008 gold medal game between Japan and the US completing the series.

The Olympic baseball rewind will follow from July 29 to August 8.

The series will open with two matches from the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games, with hosts Spain's match against the US the first contest.

Cuba and Chinese Taipei's gold medal match from the Games will also be replayed, while the series will feature Atlanta 1996 contests between Italy and South Korea in the opening round and Cuba against Japan in the final.

Cuba will feature in both Sydney 2000 rewind matches, with their opening round fixture against The Netherlands shown on August 2 and their gold medal tie against the US shown the following day.

The series will conclude with Australia and Japan's semi-final showdown at Athens 2004 on August 4.

Baseball and softball were axed from the Olympic programme following Beijing 2008, but are due to return in Tokyo.

This year's Games were pushed back to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.