From 15-18 September, the Germany 2017 referees met in Frankfurt, Germany to take part in a three-day referee seminar, which featured a variety of theoretical, practical and physical test. The seminar was a partnership between the IHF and the German Handball Federation (DHB) ahead of the 2017 IHF Women’s World Championship as referees were tested and prepared for the highlight of international women’s handball.

 

Led by IHF Playing Rules and Referee Commission (PRC) Chairman Manfred Prause, and supported by Commission of Coaching and Methods (CCM) Caretaker Chairman Dietrich Späte and PRC Member Ramon Gallego, the three days were based on a foundation of four pillars: rules, technical understanding, physical and psychological.

 

Späte and Gallego undertook the rules and technical understanding aspects of the seminar with all 16 couples passing the video and rule tests, as well as the ever-popular shuttle runs. Beforehand, they were divided into groups and asked to prepare work on the main refereeing topics at home, which was then presented at the seminar.  

 

Polar heart rate monitors were used throughout the practical sessions with each referee receiving an individual evaluation of their physical shape through continuous monitoring – a concept that will be also applied during the upcoming World Championship. This ensured targeted training with new methods in a controlled environment.

 

With our action-packed sport becoming quicker and quicker, and more exhilarating, the physical component is becoming more and more important in tandem and with this in mind, the IHF brought in outside assistance from the International Basketball Federation, or FIBA as it is more popularly known, in the form of FIBA Fitness Instructor Alejandro Vaquera.

 

With the emphasis of looking at, and learning from, other sports, Vaquera spent time going through a variety of aspects, not only sharing his experience and knowledge, but keen to receive all the information he could from the world of handball.

 

Also keen to exchange knowledge was Dr Christian Heiss, a well-known figure in sport in relation to mental preparation and management of the mind. Having worked with the German Football Association (DFB) and alongside many top athletes and sports, including athletics and volleyball, Heiss, who was also present at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil went through the mental preparation needed before games, presenting different concepts and practical methods on how to prepare for a game mentally.

 

Also present throughout the three-day course was Germany 2017 Local Organising Committee Chairman Berndt Dugall who concluded: “It was a demanding event but we can be very satisfied. The organisation went well and the referees did good work.”

 

“It was excellent, much better than expected,” said Späte after the conclusion of the seminar on Sunday night. “Frankfurt was a big advantage for the referees, who were coming from four continents around the world had direct flights so everything could be organised quickly.

 

“The whole group is all looking forward to the World Championship and this seminar has been such a success.”

 

The seminar is further evidence of the continued improvement of refereeing support from the IHF as Gallego, and others, remain in constant and direct communication with the IHF referees all year.

 

The Korean referee pair of Bon-Ok Koo and Seok Lee have been confirmed as the 16th, and final couple for Germany 2017 after the IHF Executive Committee confirmed 15 couples last month.

 

Full list – IHF Referees for Germany 2017

 

ARG: GRILLO LOPEZ Julian Ismael / LENCI Sebastian

DEN: HESSELDAL HANSEN Line / CHRISTIANSEN Carina

ESP: GARCIA Ignacio / MARIN Andreu

FRA: BONAVENTURA Charlotte / BONAVENTURA Julie

GER: SCHULZE Robert / TÖNNIES Tobias

HUN: HORVATH Peter / MARTON Balazs

JPN: HIZAKI Koyoshi / IKEBUCHI Tomokazu

KOR: KOO Bon-Ok / LEE Seok

MNE: PAVICEVIC Ivan / RAZNATOVIC Milos

NOR: ARNTSEN Kjersti / ROEN Guro

SLO: LAH Bojan / SOK David

RUS: ALPAIDZE Viktoria / BEREZKINA Tatiana

SRB: ANTIC Vanja / JAKOVLJEVIC Jelena

SWE: KURTAGIC Mirza / WETTERWIK Mattias

TUN: KRICHEN Samir /MAKHLOUF Samir

TUR: ERDOGAN Kürsad / ÖZDENIZ Ibrahim