On International Volunteer Day, we celebrate people from across the globe who selflessly give their service in the administration and promotion of hockey. From board members and committee chairs to coaches and umpires; from admin workers to the youngest ball patrol boy or girl – have all gone above and beyond to make our sport the very best experience it can be for all participants.

The list of FIH events made possible over the past year, due to the effective contributions of the volunteers include the Women’s Junior World Cups, Hockey5s Lausanne, the Women’s World Cup, the FIH Hockey Pro League and continue with the men’s and women’s Nations Cup! And while we are celebrating just a few individuals on the United Nations-led International Volunteer Day, it is worth thinking about, and recognising the work of each and every volunteer on every continent that made the return of all hockey events around the world possible, after a prolonged period of absence due to the global pandemic.

To honor these hard-working and committed individuals, FIH is presenting an FIH International Volunteer Day award, recognising the invaluable contribution of each nominee. All the recipients of the award have been nominated by their continental federation.

In Asia, Agatha Barbara Tedjamulya and Sobirov Sunatullo have been nominated by the Asian Hockey Federation.

Agatha has been working towards the development of hockey in Indonesia for 45 years. She has contributed to the Indonesian Hockey Federation and the Asia Hockey Federation in support of events like the Men’s AHF Cup Jakarta, Women's Asian Games Qualifier, Men's Asia Cup and Asian Games Jakarta 2018. She has also worked vigorously for the voice of women in Indonesia and was the primary coordinator for Olympic campaigns “Women Lead the Way” and “Give Peace a Chance” and is also leading the way for inclusivity in Indonesia. Thanks to her remarkable efforts, the Indonesian National Women Hockey Team has gained prominence and regularly participates in various international events.

Sobirov Sunatullo has dedicated himself to the development of hockey at the grassroots level in Tajikistan, by coaching youth clubs, schools and the junior national team for the past 17 years. He has been actively contributing towards the Tajikistan Youth hockey Center, which has produced several national players for both men’s and women’s teams. His contributions have enabled hockey players from Tajikistan to participate in various international hockey events. Not only does Sunatullo coach at the various schools and the hockey center for free, he also frequently provides hockey equipment to the clubs and schools, due to his love for hockey and his desire to promote the sport among the youth; for whom he has also organized many developmental programs and hockey events.

The Pan American Hockey Federation has nominated technical members who go above and beyond their roles to develop hockey, in Argentina’s Lorena Rinaldini and Víctor Tomlinson of Jamaica.

In addition to being a technical official, Lorena is an educator and constantly collaborates and contributes to new courses. She is also known to often provide support to other officials during tournaments, either with the use of technology or with anything else that they need help and support with.

After a long career spent in the development of hockey through his role in the competitions committee, Víctor Tomlinson is currently collaborating with the training and development of masters in the continent.

Kaluwin Potuan of Papua New Guinea and Lyn Basii of Solomon Island have been nominated by Oceania Hockey Federation for their outstanding contribution to hockey over the past many years.

As the president of Papua New Guinea Hockey Federation since 2010, Kaluwin Potuan has been an outstanding contributor to the growth of hockey and expansion of hockey into various regions of the country, ensuring that each area receives equipment to support development. Kaluwin’s lasting legacy is the tireless work that he put in towards the creation of a stadium with artificial water surface, built to provide a quality permanent home for all hockey activities, after Papua New Guinea had been given the hosting rights for the Pacific Games in 2015. That stadium is now in regular use and Oceania Hockey Federation used it to run their last Youth Olympic Games Qualifier in 2018.
Kaluwin, in his own personal capacity, has funded national teams, ensuring that they are regulars at Oceania regional events, and there was no prouder person in the stands than Kaluwin, when both PNG men’s and women’s teams won the Oceania Hockey5s championships in 2019.

Lyn Basii has been involved in hockey for 8 years now. She was selected in their first women’s national team in 2016 as a player and continued to demonstrate the true values of a volunteer, giving back to her hockey community and supporting a pathway for young girls and women. She is currently an elected Solomon Islands Hockey Executive Board Member and has been undergoing coach training to take up the role of national women’s coach at the Pacific Games in 2023. In 2022, Lyn volunteered to provide a group of 15 para hockey players with opportunities to enjoy the sport. Although she has a young family and the transport costs are high, she makes time to support the national women’s squad at training and Sunday matches. Her own words express her value as a volunteer: “I love the game and do not want to stop supporting the girls!”

The European Hockey Federation has nominated Trine Moll of Denmark and Bertrand Schoumacher of France for their utmost dedication to the sport of hockey in their regions.

Trine Moll and her family have been synonymous with the Slagelse Hockey Club which celebrated its 100th anniversary earlier this year. She is the current president of the club who have been part of the backbone of Danish hockey for many years, winning 128 titles across men’s and women’s outdoor and indoor national championships. Trine and her family have been extremely active and dedicated to the running of the club, particularly keeping up the training of the club’s children’s section.

Bertrand Schoumacher headed the excellent volunteer team at the EuroHockey Championship qualifiers in Dunkirk this summer who put together a special event. The tournament was one of two run by the French federation to be awarded an “eco-responsibility” label by their national Olympic committee for a range of sustainability and inclusivity initiatives put in place.

The African Hockey Federation has nominated Oko-Nikoi Dzani of Ghana for his decades of unrelenting service to the sport of hockey.

Oko-Nikoi Dzani is a financial entrepreneur whose passion for hockey is second to none. While excelling in a career in banking and finance for nearly three decades, Dzani has simultaneously taken on key administrative and managerial roles in the hockey world, such as a Finance Sub Committee member of the International Hockey Federation, member of the African Hockey Federation, 2nd Vice President of the African Hockey Federation and for more than 15 years, President of the Ghana Hockey Association as Deputy Managing.

Among the thousands of volunteers involved in delivering hockey events around the world every year, these are just the stories of a few. On this International Volunteers Day, we give our thanks to every single volunteer whose efforts help grow and develop the world of hockey. They truly are the stars of hockey behind the scenes.

FIH Hockey Leaders Award

To mark the International Volunteer Day 2022, International Hockey Federation (FIH) is thrilled to announce the launch of ‘FIH Hockey Leaders Award’, a new programme by The FIH Academy, with a greater focus on education and development of youth and adult volunteers.

The FIH Hockey Leaders Award will be an addition to the ‘FIH Youth Leadership Certificate’ programme. The FIH Youth Leadership Certificate programme was introduced in 2002, to recognise successful young leaders, nominated by their NAs, with the purpose of thanking voluntary work of young leaders and to keep them in the game at a critical age. It is also beneficial for FIH and the Continental Federations in finding out which National Associations (NAs) involve young leaders in their organization and also in identifying young leaders who can help at major events.

The FIH Hockey Leaders Award will serve the purpose of:

  • Educating volunteers by providing an introduction to various leadership roles and
  • skills in hockey
  • Rewarding recognised voluntary service in hockey
  • Supporting two groups: Young (Youth - U18) & Community (Adult - 18+)
  • Certifying on the basis of qualitative and quantitative performance
  • Encouraging Practical Placements

The FIH Academy Leaders Award aims to give learners the skills and knowledge to be able

assist in leading their own activities as part of a school, club or association. It has two stages - Young Leader (14-17yrs) and Community Leader (18+), both targeted at young people and adults in voluntary coaching, officiating and administrative roles.

The Award is designed as an introduction to various leadership roles in hockey and may be delivered by any FIH member affiliated club, school or organization using an FIH Academy Developer/Educator or Trainer.