FIH Academy, Hockey India Successfully Conduct Level 2 Technical Officials Course, Level 2 Umpiring Course

Bhubaneswar: The FIH Academy along with Hockey India successfully completed the Level 2 Technical Officials Course from 4 June to 6 June 2019 presented by FIH Academy Technical Official Educator Iain Dugald Mckay, FIH International Advancement Panel Technical Official. About eight officials which included two women and six men took part in this course.

“India has a great tradition of developing hockey officials and in partnership with FIH, we are trying to improve their capabilities and expertise to develop their skills so that they can spread their knowledge across their compatriots back home and enable others to engage in the sport as technical officials. All of them who had enrolled for the course were very interested, able and showed great desire to learn this course. This course will equip them to deal with any situation that arises during the course of a tournament,” stated FIH Academy Technical Official Educator Iain Dugald Mckay.

Speaking about their learning from the Technical Officials Course, 34-year-old Sunil Kumar Vikram Technical Official from Bihar said, “This is a great initiative taken by Hockey India. The presenters have tremendous knowledge and experience. I would like to thank Hockey India for giving me this opportunity. We have learnt in both theory and practically. I have learned from Mckay the basic skills which will undoubtedly help me become better technical official.”

The FIH Academy- Hockey India Level 2 Umpiring course too was held on the side-lines of FIH Men’s Hockey Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019. The course held between 8 June to 10 June 2019 was conducted and presented by FIH Academy Umpiring Educator Robert Willem ten Cate, who is also the FIH Pro League Panel Umpire Manager. The course was engaging and interactive with the umpires getting to watch matches at the ongoing FIH Men’s Hockey Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha 2019. A total of 11 Umpires including four women and seven men from across India had registered for this course.

“I am thrilled to see these young men and women and their enthusiasm for this course, I’m especially happy to see so many young female umpires showing interest to learn,” expressed FIH Academy Educator Robert Willem ten Cate. He further added that umpires need good preparation just like the players do before matches.

“Nothing beats preparation and that applies not only for players but also for the umpires. It is nice to see Hockey India recognize that by specially equipping their umpires for assignments coming up later on in their careers by organising these type of courses,” added the expert who is also the FIH Pro League Panel Umpire Manager.

“We have learnt more about umpiring skills, body language and game management. This course will surely help us improve our skills and Robert’s vast knowledge and interesting game scenarios were very informative and helpful. This was a very good initiative taken by Hockey India,” stated 29-year-old Archana Tiwari, National Umpire from Kolkata.

In the following days, FIH Academy Educator Course will be held in the city. The course which will be conducted between 11 June to 14 June 2019 will be presented by Mike Joyce, Executive Director – The Hockey Foundation and FIH Development Director. The purpose of the course is to effectively equip the attendees with practical knowledge and on-ground scenarios. There are total of seven attendees from India, Kenya, Japan and Netherlands.

The FIH Academy – Hockey India Coaching Education Pathway Level 1 Coaching Course will also be from 12 June to 14 June 2019. The course will be conducted and presented by FIH Academy Educator Darren Cheesman, Talent Development Coach from the Royal Belgium Hockey Association. The FIH Academy Coaching Level 1 Award is a vocational qualification that provides students with the opportunity to study and be assessed on their coaching theoretical knowledge. It also provides the opportunity for formative assessment and development planning. After the successful conduct of Hockey India Coaching Education Pathway across 4 zones of the country and also at National Institute of Sports, Patiala; Hockey India Level ‘Basic’ and Level ’1′ Coaching Course received overwhelming response with over 150 candidates attending the course. After successfully completing Hockey India Level ’1′ and Level ’2′ Coaching Course, over 35 candidates have become eligible for the FIH Academy – Hockey India Coaching Education Pathway Level 1 Coaching Course who will attend this course along with a candidate from Singapore.