UDP Group 10 had the opportunity to meet at the EHL in Banbridge, Ireland (7-9th October) as part of its third seminar. Ines El Hajem (FRA) one of the umpires from this group, sent us a report so we get an inside look at what happened!
A view from the inside – Ines El Hajem on UDP Group 10 at EHL Round 1
Carol Metchette and Michiel Bruning, our mentors, prepared an exciting program for the weekend. We all arrived on Friday evening at the hotel, where we updated each other on our summer tournaments and the start of our national leagues.
On Saturday morning, we had a meeting at the hotel. Carol and Michiel showed us a very special video: ehe briefing video sent to the Olympic umpires before the Olympic Games in Rio! We saw the umpire managers explaining what they were expecting from their team. It was such an inspiring video: positioning, accurate decision making, protecting skills, team work, these are just a few of the key topics included. We dissected the video as as a group and discussed different scenarios.
Before leaving for the venue, we were given our tasks: Watch all games and look at consistency and flow of the game. Banbridge was a great venue, and after the games we were able to catch up with the umpires appointed, who very kindly took time to talk with us as soon as they could. Chatting with experienced umpires and umpires managers (some just coming back from Rio) is one of the most valuable aspects of our UDP seminars. After the games, we had the chance to share dinner all together. Many of the umpires were from other UDP groups, so we could share our pride to be part of this program which prepares umpires to perform at the highest levels.
On Sunday, our new task was to observe the rapport between the umpires and the players. Following the games, we compared notes and debriefed.
The whole weekend, we were incredibly fortunate to meet people who support the UDP programme: we would like to sincerely thank EHF President Marijke Fleuren and Inez Cooper, Chair of Education Committee, for making this experience possible. David Voskamp, EHF Competitions manager, was also very kind and took the time to explain his role and his support of the UDP.
Thank you to all our umpires and UMs, and to the great organisers who put on a fantastic tournament. Lastly, thanks to our mentors, Michiel and Carol for the work and dedication!
Next for UDP Group 10 : our first practical weekend in the Netherlands in a few weeks. Stay tuned!