As many will know, Sandy Steel has been the driving force for refereeing not just in Scotland but throughout the world with his previous role of President of FIVB’s Rules of the Games Commission and current role of member of FIVB’s Rules of the Game and Refereeing Commission. We asked Sandy to tell us a little bit more about what he gets up to for FIVB.
“Using the inaugural U17 Boys World Championships hosted by Bulgaria as its vehicle, FIVB ran its second FIVB Volleyball Referees Course from 21st August to 31st August. There were 26 candidates from all five continents. The initial selection was by interview: the five Confederations nominated their best International referees who had not participated in FIVB events. Based on knowledge and understanding of the Rules, the Casebook, the Refereeing Guidelines, Challenge Regulations, and abilities to speak fluently, read fluently and write fluently, all in English (the language of FIVB). The interviews were conducted using the Microsoft Teams app. The initial group of 35 was whittled down to 26.
For the next 10 weeks, the candidates received access to a special e-learning platform, involving presentations, videos, quizzes, and so on, all written by Sandy Steel, one of the Referee Coaches on site. The materials were specific to this level of course and as these were already international referees, the emphasis was NOT on rules; rather, it was about facilitating or directing the match as a “show” for the public and TV. The other lecturers and Referee Coaches were Willy Paredes (ARG) Guy Bradbury (CAN) and Frans Loderus (NED), in total providing more than 200 years of experience and advice.
On arriving on site, the candidates had three days of lectures, again focusing on the different skills needed for FIVB events, rather than a knowledge of the rules. A lot of time was spent on the work of the 3rd referee and the Challenge Referee – both functions necessary for the alternative court layout employed by Volleyball World. Extensive use was made of video clips.
The referees were then employed during the World Championships for the next days – each nomination corresponding to one or other of the referee functions: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, challenge, to provide a proper test of their abilities. The decision about whether a referee passed or failed the course was supported by an on-line examination which was marked by the software to give the lecturers instant feedback on how much the referees had absorbed the course material.
The good news: all passed the course and more importantly, there was a marked improvement shown by all the referees as the course progressed. This means they are now FIVB Referees, Grade C. So onwards and upwards – they can now be nominated for FIVB events. These referees will form the basis of FIVB referees in the future.”
