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Twenty-seven umpires and eight judges from EuroHockey development programmes came together in Breda for a hugely productive get-together at BHV Push.



It featured 17 umpires from the Umpires for Europe (U4E) course and 10 from the Umpires for Nations (U4N) and was their second seminar with their first taking place in Vienna in April.&nbsp;



Throughout the weekend, the umpires had a fitness test, were appointed to games at a tournament hosted by BHV Push, and had mentor meetings where they discussed their progress.&nbsp;



Eight promising umpires from this group will be selected for Umpire Development Programme (UDP) group 17 which will be announced in the coming weeks.



They worked in tandem with the Judges for Europe (J4E) course which had eight judges take part from six countries; they were educated by Rogier Warris (NED) and Edna Rutten (NED) via a classroom session&nbsp;



They then had the opportunity to sharpen their skills on the side of the pitch in conjunction with Joyce Wijnhoven (BEL) who was the tournament TD, working with Leon Rutten (NED) as technical official and Paco Vasques (ESP) as umpire’s manager.



Reflecting on the weekend, mentor Dawn Bonner said: “Breda presents a great opportunity for EuroHockey to coach and develop the future generation of international young umpires.



“The success is the format which includes a briefing from an accredited umpire’s manager and matches with junior players from Dutch clubs who have a high level of ability that gives the young umpires a good opportunity to practice their umpiring skills as preparation for international hockey.



“It also allows them to mix and work with their peers while having fun. This is a great EuroHockey programme that supports international young umpire development which supplements the education element that is delivered at Easter.”



Julia Jungbluth (GER) is one of the U4N participants and she added: “This was a great opportunity to be coached by experienced international umpire managers, exchange our perspectives on umpiring and learn from our fellow umpires from all over Europe.&nbsp;



“It was an amazing chance to show and improve our skills at a top level as well as to bond and make friends with like-minded people who are on the same development path as us.”



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized is-style-default"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://admin.eurohockey.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Judges-for-Europe-1024x773.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-2536" style="width:840px;height:634px" width="840" height="634"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The J4E group; picture above are the the umpire groups.</figcaption></figure>



From the J4E course, Irene Corales agreed: “It was a very comfortable and complete dynamic with lessons in the morning which we could put into practice in the afternoon; a course to learn the role of EuroHockey judge, from within and in action.”



U4E participant Aleš Větrovský (CZE) &#8211; now in his second year on the progamme &#8211; added: &#8220;If someone wants to improve their whistling and get further in Europe, this is definitely a good way.&nbsp;



“The views of people from abroad are, in many ways, different from those in the Czech Republic while you have Olympic umpires also watching over you and helping you like Paco Vázquez this year.&nbsp;



“In addition, the umpires you meet there are very likely to be met at various tournaments for the rest of your international career.&#8221;



** To find out more about each of the programmes mentioned, go to the EuroHockey Institute page here: <a href="https://eurohockey.org/eurohockey-institute#institute-officiating-umpires">https://eurohockey.org/eurohockey-institute#institute-officiating-umpires</a>

Breda gives developing umpires and judges a big Push in right direction

Twenty European officials have been appointed for next summer’s Olympic Games in Paris with the confirmed list announced by the International Hockey Federation this morning.



Austria’s Elisabeth Fuerst is one of the two Technical Delegates appointed. They will be backed up by 14 technical officials including Germany’s Christian Deckenbrock and Sonja Schwede, Netherlands’ Rogier Warris and France’s Sylvie Petitjean.



England’s Margaret Hunnaball and Dutchman Roel van Eert make up half of the team of four umpires managers.



On the umpiring front,&nbsp; England’s Dan Barstow, Hannah Harrison and Rachel Williams, Netherlands’ Coen van Bunge and Jonas van’t Hek, Scotland’s Sarah Wilson and Martin Madden, Ireland’s Alison Keogh, Germany’s Ben Goentgen, Czech Republic’s Jakub Mejzlik, Belgium’s Laurine Delforge and Poland’s Marcin Grochal are all rewarded for their excellent performances in recent years.



Udo Rolle &#8211; a recent recipient of the EuroHockey Diploma of Merit &#8211; is one of the three medical officers appointed.



They are part of an officials team which includes two technical delegates, 14 technical officials, four umpire managers and 28 umpires.



Speaking on the announcement of officials for Olympic Games Paris 2024, FIH President Tayyab Ikram said: “Officials play a fundamental role and give a very substantial part of their free time to their passion for the sport! This is remarkable and I’d like to thank each and every hockey official, anywhere in the world.&nbsp;



“To all those who’ve been selected for the Olympic Games in Paris next year: huge congratulations! This is a fantastic achievement. On behalf of FIH, I want to assure you of our full confidence, support and respect.&nbsp;



“And I’m particularly pleased that the split of all officials across both genders will be an exact 50-50, in line with the overarching gender equality principle which prevails in our sport.”



** To read the full list of appointed officials, click here: <a href="https://www.fih.hockey/events/the-olympic-games-paris-2024/officials">https://www.fih.hockey/events/the-olympic-games-paris-2024/officials</a>

Tag: Officials

Breda gives developing umpires and judges a big Push in right direction

Twenty European officials appointed to Paris 2024