The first project within the FIH Targeted Assistance Programme is underway as a team of coaches and umpires travel to Ghana in West Africa to launch the initiative. FIH has joined forces with England Hockey and Ghana Hockey in the first project under the Targeted Assistance Programme, to help build hockey’s profile and development in the West African country.
The FIH, in collaboration with England Hockey, UK Sport and the African Hockey Federation will spend the next four years working with coaches, players and umpires, primarily in Ghana, but also across other west African nations.
Mike Joyce, FIH lead for the TAP project says: “The long-term aim is to support African nations to build participation, coaching, umpiring and performance capacity, for men and women, in the West African region over a four-year programme.”
In the first stage of the programme – Hockey TAP West Africa – a team of three will be running the programme. Mark Jarvis, a former RAF serviceman and hockey coach at Wisbech Grammar School in Cambridgeshire, England, will be in charge of umpire education; while former England and Great Britain player Darren Cheesman will be running the high performance element of the project alongside Siegfried Aikman, FIH Master Coach and Academy Coach Educator from the Netherlands.
The Targeted Assistance Programme is part of FIH’s Hockey Revolution – a 10-year strategy to ensure hockey is a global sport that inspires the next generation. The focal point for this project is Accra, Ghana, as it is the most developed hockey nation in the region. The Ghana women’s team is currently ranked number two in Africa after South Africa. The core focus of this project will be on promoting the women’s game, although the long-term aim is to promote Ghana as a hub for hockey for both men and women.
Speaking about the programme, Darren says: “I’m involved in this project because I have a genuine passion for giving people and teams the opportunity to develop their potential and achieve results they didn’t imagine were possible. Having been over in Delhi with them (Ghana) for the World League tournament, we have already seen a huge improvement. The goal now is to keep that momentum going until African Nations later this year. To help them be as good as they can be, we need to do far more than coach the players; we need to support the coaches too as they have had very little exposure to International hockey themselves.”
The impact of targeted development work was in evidence when the Zambia men’s team finished seventh in the 2014 Youth Olympic Games, beating two higher-ranked nations, Germany and Mexico, during the competition. Other countries that will be involved with the West Africa TAP project include: Cameroon, Mali, Togo, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso.
The TAP team is currently visiting Ghana to work alongside players, coaches, teachers and officials. Among the plans for the next four years, the TAP programme will recruit and train more officials and coaches; support the national team with high performance coaching and athlete support; and work with the national association to enable them to host more international events.
Alongside the coaching and umpiring work, FIH and its partners are running a UK-wide equipment donation scheme, in partnership with Barrington Sports, while in August the Ghana Hockey Assocation Women will have a training camp at England Hockey headquarters, Bisham Abbey.
Leandro Negre, President of FIH, lent his support to the project, saying: “The TAP projects are an integral part of our 10-year strategy – FIH Hockey Revolution. By working closely with our partners and the national associations, we are helping to promote sustainable hockey development across the globe, ensuring that everyone has equal access to our great game. Not only does this introduce hockey to new audiences but it means we are contributing to health, welfare and societal development in these countries."
Preparing to visit Ghana, Mark Jarvis bubbles with positivity as he says: “Being part of the TAP team is a massive opportunity to impart some of my knowledge to the hockey players in Ghana. It is also a great opportunity to experience life in another country from both a sporting and cultural perspective.”England Hockey and Ghana Hockey are joining forces to help build hockey’s profile and success in the West African country.
