On November 5 a battle between very totally different philosophies in our sport will likely be determined for the subsequent few years, possibly a long time. In brief the distinction may be summed up as “play for pay” vs “pay to play” or additionally “develop the fan base first” vs “develop the participant base first”
Two very totally different candidates are operating for the place of president of the FIH. Which is the acronym for “Fédération Internationale de Hockey”, French for the worldwide hockey federation. But it surely may as effectively imply the federation of worldwide hockey as an alternative. However the article on that distinction in nuance will likely be for one more time.
On the one hand there’s Tayyab Ikram, initially from Pakistan however as of late representing Macau (China). However we see Marc Coudron from Belgium operating as effectively. Each Ikram and Coudron clearly declare they need the perfect for his or her sport and its nationwide associations. However in actuality they need very various things. It’s a conflict of cultures. Each declare improvement to be their primary precedence. However for each improvement means one thing very totally different.
Tayyab Ikram
For Ikram sport (and thus hockey) is an occasion product, a part of the leisure enterprise. So when he says he needs to develop the nationwide associations or NA’s, he means get them cash from their very own nationwide olympic associations and their authorities. To assist these NA’s fund nationwide groups and particularly their very own administration. Which means some gamers, a few coaches plus a number of directors for every NA getting paid to point out up at worldwide occasions. First, Ikram claims, it’s about rising the variety of followers. As a result of that can enhance the income… and ensure all concerned are assured a job and revenue.
After we ask him what his first brief time period precedence can be as president he talks about displaying the best way to smaller NA’s learn how to get cash from their authorities and Olympic associations
Marc Coudron
Coudron believes sport (and thus hockey) is part of the training of your loved ones. It’s what you do along with household and pals as part of changing into a greater & more healthy individual. Mens sana in corpore sano. So right here it’s not about getting probably the most visibility with as few sources as attainable. It’s about getting extra individuals to be an energetic participant of their sport. Some aspiring topsport ranges. Most for enjoyable at a leisure stage, as part of the training and betterment of your self and your kids. It’s about rising the variety of gamers as a result of that can enhance the extent of training and well being in your nation & household. Worldwide hockey has a task in all of this, however it’s a means to an finish. Rising your participant base first, will assist develop your fanbase in a sustainable approach afterwards.
After we requested Coudron about his first brief time period precedence as president he informed us improvement is his brief, mid and long run primary precedence. However so as to do that, he first wants to verify the FIH funds are wholesome once more and a return to good governance tradition is required.
A conflict of cultures
Due to this fact the election of the subsequent president of the FIH is a alternative between two philosophies…or perhaps a conflict of cultures if you’ll.
If I have been a betting man, my cash can be on Tayyab Ikram for successful these elections. The reason being easy. The FIH has 140 members (= nations with nationwide associations or NA). Every NA has 1 vote within the elections. Regardless in the event you symbolize an NA with no enjoying members (as in zero… sure these exist I’m informed) or one with +100K members, it’s 1 vote per NA.
In the intervening time we’re missing severely in transparency and accountability. Representatives of the NA’s cannot be held accountable for his or her vote due to secret voting. The secrecy of a vote is sacred in the case of elections by people. Nonetheless it’s a sacrilege in the case of individuals voting on behalf of others (individuals they symbolize) in my view.
My tough estimate is a few 20 of those NA’s even have a wholesome inhabitants of hockey gamers and in whole possibly 40 additionally assist the philosophy represented by Coudron, with a precedence on rising the variety of gamers. This implies some 100 or so NA’s in my view exist primarily to assist their administration and ensure they proceed to obtain cash from the federal government and the Olympic motion. The latter usually tend to assist Ikram who will attempt to get them their funds from nationwide Olympic associations, with out actually asking them to decide to the troublesome activity of rising the variety of gamers of their nation. On paper sure, in actual life much less so. Whereas Coudron can even do no matter he can to assist them get their cash to run their NA’s. However, he can even anticipate them to work and present proof on rising the variety of gamers in return…
3 questions for each candidates
In my interview I requested them the identical 3 questions.
- What would you prefer to proceed?
- What would you want to alter?
- What will likely be your first short-term priorities if elected?
Fulfill the wants of IOC in any respect price
The #1 precedence for Tayyab Ikram is staying on the Olympic program, it doesn’t matter what. A very powerful job of FIH is satisfying the wants & needs of the IOC. So he needs to proceed on that path. Clearly for sports activities administrations that’s the “straightforward” income. The selection that ensures these working for NA’s and federations their revenue to run the game. Apart from that Ikram claims FIH is superb in good governance & improvement so not a lot wants altering there both. He talked about going additional with initiatives like watch.hockey to extend the fanbase in every single place. With the place attainable a good stronger concentrate on the followers.
Wholesome funds
Marc Coudron clearly is extra a candidate for change. The very first thing he talked about is cleansing up the funds of the FIH, being the banker that he’s in day by day life. As a result of, particularly as a non-profit organisation, you cannot afford to maintain on shedding cash yr after yr. He mentioned he may flip it round and ensure the FIH can be financially wholesome once more inside 3 to 4 years and… financially sustainable for the long run.
The second factor that got here to thoughts for him is restoring good company governance with an emphasis on transparency. He thinks he can handle this inside 1 yr in a sustainable approach. However is his primary precedence stays rising the variety of gamers (= improvement) world wide as his brief, mid and long run purpose.
Ikram too talked about altering the monetary mannequin with a separate finances for his model of improvement. However focussed extra on explaining why his robust relationship with all the large Asian sponsors can be essential to maintain funds balanced. And he needs to run the worldwide occasions extra cost-effectively so more cash would develop into obtainable for the athletes in these occasions.
Gender steadiness within the govt board
When Ikram talked change he talked about wanting to alter the chief board of the FIH. He says he’s an enormous fan of the gender steadiness we’re recognized for in IOC circles. However, he’s not a fan of this gender steadiness being measured in numbers. So he needs to do away with the foundations imposing an equal variety of men and women within the govt board. He prefers to concentrate on “capability constructing” for each women and men.
So at present the rule in FIH is that from 8 elected members within the govt board we want 4 ladies and 4 males. That can change instantly when Ikram is elected. Moreover altering the foundations in gender steadiness he needs to incorporate extra co-opted members within the govt board from different sports activities or walks of life to get totally different and difficult views as an alternative of those that have been in hockey all of their life.
Coudron too needs a change within the election technique of the board. However he was considering alongside the strains of avoiding sketchy elections with uncertain guarantees and blocks of nations supporting their very own candidates, regardless of their suitability for the job. So Coudron’s resolution was a easy one. If the president of a continental federation is a person, the identical federation additionally appoints a lady. And vice versa. That approach we assure gender steadiness in a extra wholesome approach with out sketchy elections.
How do you assist the smaller NA’s?
As Coudron talked about the highest nations principally look to the FIH for organising the worldwide occasions like a world cup and managing the foundations. The challengers need some extra assist in bridging the hole. And the smaller hockey nations search for assist in rising the game of their nation. Assist with services, trainers & coaches who know what they’re speaking about and assist in organising a rising hockey neighborhood in their very own nation.
He has confirmed he is aware of how to do that. Nonetheless my concern is Coudron is a bit naive on this final bit and Ikram understands higher the wishes of those smaller NA’s.
A few of the adjustments Coudron suggests to assist the smaller nations with hockey on the worldwide scene (due to course this helps elevating more cash) is to develop the world cup, possibly even to 24 nations. Or to merge 5s and indoor into a suitable brief format subsequent to our normal of 11v11. We have to suppose totally different and we have to adapt…
Ikram says he’ll concentrate on serving to them to get more cash from their very own authorities and nationwide Olympic committees to run their very own administration. He packages this messages as creating hope for the smaller NA’s… So the primary (and in my perception solely) factor he’ll do for them helps them write their improvement plan in such a approach it can persuade their authorities to offer them cash.
Who’s the higher alternative? It relies upon…
There is no such thing as a doubt in my thoughts the world of hockey can be higher served by the method Coudron stands for. However that’s as a result of we share the identical ideally suited of wanting extra gamers for our sport. The place the main target of Ikram is on serving to extra individuals earn cash from the game.
Let me attempt to spin this in a optimistic approach,for each of them…The dream Ikram has, is rising the fanbase first and he hopes gamers will comply with. The dream Coudron has is to develop the participant base and followers will comply with.
I do realise I’m all of this by my European eyes, even when at the least I make an effort of listening and attempting to grasp different factors of view. Once I have a look at the info as I do know them, I see the European approach of doing issues has labored. In nations just like the Netherlands and Belgium we managed to first develop the participant base and due to that the followers (and media) have adopted. In each these nations, leisure hockey has created the inspiration for a sustainable approach of managing topsport. Hockey is on TV each week through the home season and all main occasions get their justifiable share of media publicity. Would we like much more? In fact! However hockey is being performed, week in, week out by gamers from each era, gender & skill. Wherever you reside, if you wish to play, you may play. In Belgium Coudron is likely one of the sports activities directors who made this attainable. And it’s not simply the European approach of doing this. International locations like Argentina and Australia additionally concentrate on this and make it work in their very own approach. So, let’s have a look at what method has delivered outcomes and adapt it to your native state of affairs to make it work.
Once I have a look at Asia, once more by my European eyes… I solely see a decline of a as soon as revered sport with some non permanent pockets of success that seldom show to be sustainable. Within the time Ikram has managed hockey in Asia, Pakistan has disappeared. Korea has vanished. China & Japan have seen some very brief lived remoted success tales, none of them leading to extra individuals enjoying hockey. Nor are there extra followers watching hockey. Malaysia appears to be doing okay. India will at all times be a particular place for our sport of hockey. The HIL was promising, however left the scene after solely 5 years. Their nationwide crew lately returned to the worldwide high, however remains to be unsuccessful in making our sport the sport of alternative for folks and children contemplating a sport. Once they arrange massive occasions just like the world cup, the stadium is offered out for the house video games. However we cannot see any return of their home arrange of hockey from this. When the Dutch organised these occasions, the stadiums offered out as effectively and we noticed a progress in gamers. Belgium’s investments in high hockey have quadrupled their variety of gamers through the reign of Coudron, stadiums promote out for main worldwide occasions and hockey is on TV each week in each nations.
So if you ask me who I might need to be the chief of our sport globally I might choose Coudron over Ikram any day. It doesn’t imply I feel the one approach is the so known as European approach. I’m satisfied the arrange of any sport will likely be totally different world wide. Nothing fallacious with that. I do need to counsel what works as of late and study from these finest practices. Construct the inspiration on home leisure hockey first!
However in the event you’re a sports activities administrator making your cash from this in a rustic with virtually no gamers and also you’re blissful residing the straightforward life that approach, your alternative will most likely be Ikram.
