New Delhi, 24 May 2021: After conducting two sets of online workshops from September 2020 to March 2021 as a part of the induction program for the new Umpires and Technical Officials in Hockey India officiating system, Hockey India has successfully added 126 candidates to Hockey India’s Potential List of Umpires & Judges. The Induction program for both Umpires and Technical Officials are divided into 3 different levels. Level 1 sessions are designed to provide the candidates basic knowledge of the latest FIH Rules and Regulations of Hockey, Officials’ Roles and Responsibilities, etc. In order to achieve Level 2, a candidate has to pass an Online Test based on the Level 1 sessions attended earlier. Level 3 sessions are based on FIH General Tournament Regulations, FIH guidelines for fitness of Umpires, information on match reports and statistics for technical officials (Judges), HI Grading Guidelines, importance of performance feedback reports and various other operational knowledge. After the completion of the Level 3 workshops, the final assessment of the eligible candidates are made through an Online Viva.
The candidates in the Potential List have become eligible to be appointed for the upcoming Hockey India sanctioned Sub-Junior and Junior category tournaments. Nine Judges and seven Umpires have already been appointed in the Hockey India sanctioned Sub-Junior & Junior category tournaments held earlier this year. The 126 candidates (37 Female & 89 Male), who hail from 19 states across India, have been shortlisted from an exhaustive list of 227 candidates, who were a part of the induction program (124 candidates in the year 2020 and 103 candidates in the year 2021). The 227 candidates were selected through the induction program as per Hockey India’s eligibility criteria after they were nominated by their respective registered Hockey India state member units.
A total of 60 Judges (21 Female & 39 Male) have been added to the Potential List, meanwhile, a total of 66 Umpires (16 Female & 50 Male) have been added to the list. The potential candidates are also being provided an opportunity to attend the ongoing Asian Hockey Federation Online Education Workshops.
Speaking on the induction of 126 candidates to the Hockey India Potential List of Umpires & Judges, Mr. Gyanendro Ningombam, President, Hockey India said, “It’s fantastic to note that as many as 126 new candidates have become eligible to officiate in Hockey India sanctioned Sub-Junior and Junior category tournaments. Along with focussing on the growth of players at the grassroot level, it’s equally important to focus on growing the strength of Umpires and Judges and providing them with an opportunity to hone their officiating skills in the sport of hockey. I wish the candidates all the very best for their upcoming challenges. The induction of new officials in the Hockey India officiating system will further add to the level of competition among the officials and will motivate them to work harder in order to improve their performances and maintain their grades “
