Archive for month: August, 2023
Dublin August 18: Anna Pim from Ulster yesterday received The Youth Leader Award for her EuroHockey Youth Festival project at the EHF Youth Forum in Monchengladbach. Anna was nominated by Hockey Ireland as their female delegate and presented to the 35th General Assembly of the European Hockey Federation.
The 18-year-old schoolgirl founded ‘at the Heart of the Game’, an education programme to deliver CPR and AED awareness to hockey clubs throughout Northern Ireland.
During lockdown she combined her love for hockey and her interest in St John Ambulance to create her ‘at the Heart of the Game’ initiative, educating over 300 young people in CPR and AED awareness to hockey clubs throughout Northern Ireland since.
Ulster Hockey said,
“The impact that this project is having on the Ulster Hockey family is immeasurable and has the potential to save lives within our clubs and the wider community. The feedback from clubs who have been involved is extremely positive. The demand from other clubs is high and the interest from other sports governing bodies is significant.”
Anna picked up the top EuroHockey award as she demonstrated her ability to create, plan, prepare and deliver a major project.
Lady Mary Peters, an Ambassador for ‘At the Heart of the Game’ said,
“It is a life-saving opportunity for the sports community in Northern Ireland. It is wonderful to see how sport can be harnessed as a tool through which to educate young people on important issues such as CPR and defibrillator use.”
Anna is making a huge impact in Ulster Hockey through coaching, volunteering, playing and her education programme. She is a significant role model for the youth. With the increasing number of cardiac arrests being reported within the sporting community at matches, training and in the clubhouse, Anna has empowered young people to know how to confidently help if someone has a cardiac arrest. She is teaching skills to them to unlock their full potential. No better way than to teach them something that will someday save a life of a teammate, family member or friend.
Through her partnership with Belfast City Airport and the kind donations from hockey clubs, schools, and individuals Anna has also raised enough money to provide AED trainers into St John Ambulance cadet divisions within these club areas. ‘At the Heart of the Game’ has exceeded all expectations in raising awareness of CPR and AED. The media attention has placed the importance of these lifesaving skills to the forefront of people’s minds. From BBC Newsline to Foyle Radio, front page of the Belfast Telegraph to ‘At the Heart of the Game’ Twitter and Instagram and much, much, more, Anna has been the face of this fantastic project.
Dublin, August 16th: High expectations have been set for the Ireland Senior Women Hockey Team as they make final preparations for their opening game of the EuroHockey Championships 2023 against England this Friday August 18th in Moenchengladbach, Germany. This is the elite level tournament for women in Europe.
Ireland (world ranking 13th) have been drawn in Pool B and will play England (world ranking 6th), Scotland (world ranking 18th) and Germany (world ranking 4th) in the first phase of the tournament. A total of eight teams will compete across two pools, with the top two in each pool qualify for the semi-finals.
Importantly, a top six finish for Ireland will secure a spot in next January’s Olympic Qualification groups in Spain or China and would also secure Ireland’s place in the 2025 European Championships in the first tier of nations.
Speaking ahead of the tournament Head coach Sean Dancer said:
“As a group we have made fantastic improvements over the past 12 months on and off the field and we have high ambitions, knowing the tough challenge of a very competitive European Championship. This year’s European’s also doubles as the first step of the Olympic Qualification process, adding extra pressure on all those involved. We will need to stay focused on ourselves and playing our attacking style of play.
Ireland captain Katie Mullan was confident that the preparations for this tournament had gone very well:
“We have played against the top 3 ranked nations in the World earlier this year, having taken on Argentina a few months ago and the Dutch a few weeks ago and we got our best result in recent years against the Netherlands. Five of the top ten highest nations in the World rankings are taking part in the tournament so it will be a real challenge for us but we feel we are ready to face that challenge. Looking at the Pool opponents themselves we also play regularly against England, Scotland and Germany either in friendlies or competitively, so we know each other well. This group of players will be ready for the challenge that we face starting on Friday.”
Ireland’s Pool B campaign begins on Friday 18th August 2023 with an afternoon match starting at 17:00 CET (16:00 Irish Time) with an opener against England. They are back in action the following evening Saturday 19th August against Scotland at 20:15 CET (19:15 Irish Time) and the group stages final game takes place on Tuesday 22nd August against Germany at 19:30 CET (18:30 Irish Time). The Ireland games will all be shown online at www.eurohockeytv.org details on how to subscribe are available on the EHF website www.eurohockey.org and www.premiersportsireland.com
Dublin August 15: Hockey Ireland and STATSports have set pen-to-paper on a new long-term deal that will see a continuation of the partnership that has been in place since 2018.
STATSports will provide its GPS tracking and performance monitoring technology for both Hockey Ireland Senior Men and Senior Women’s national squads.
Hockey Ireland has had unprecedented success in the last number of years with the women earning a silver medal at the 2018 London World Cup and becoming the first ever female team to represent Ireland at an Olympic games, in any sport in 2021.
Meanwhile, 2023-24 will see the senior men compete in World Hockey’s Pro League against eight top Hockey teams from around the world.
In addition to working with the national sides, the Newry-based company want to make their technology as accessible as possible for grassroots teams in Ireland and will be running educational events and discounts to engage with local clubs, players, and coaches through this partnership.
Eoin Cunniffee, Head of Athletic Performance commenting on the renewal:
“STATSports Apex GPS equipment and software play a very significant role in our performance planning, analysis, and management processes. As a result of the flexibility and user-friendly nature of the technology, it is easy to monitor the physical load of our players when they are not with the international team.”
Lisa Jacob, Hockey Ireland’s High-Performance Director, commenting on the partnership:
“STATSports is a key partnership for Hockey Ireland, enabling our senior women’s and men’s teams to maximise individual and team preparation and performance with cutting edge software and technology. This critically underpins our player and programme management while we look to qualify for Paris 2024 and become a Top 8 nation in world hockey.’
STATSports, CCO and Co-founder Sean O’Connor, added:
“We’re delighted to announce the renewal of our partnership with Ireland Hockey. At STATSports, we take immense pride in our collaboration and support of Ireland’s sporting organisations. We’re dedicated to driving the sport’s development here at home and helping the national team further their success on the global stage. This renewal underscores our commitment to this.”
Hockey Ireland names team for 2023 EuroHockey ID Championship
Park Developments announce support for ‘Hockey4All’ programme.
Dublin August 10: Hockey Ireland has named its team for the 2023 EuroHockey ID Championship taking place in Mönchengladbach, Germany from August 21 – 24. The tournament coincides with the EuroHockey Championship 2023, and features ten teams from across Europe including: Belgium, Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain. Hockey ID is the adapted format of hockey for players with an intellectual disability.
Ireland’s participation in the 2023 EuroHockey ID Championship is joined by Park Developments’ confirmation of support for the Hockey Ireland ‘Hockey4All’ inclusion programme, which looks to ensure those of all abilities become an integral and invaluable part of the Hockey community in Ireland.
Jilly Cotter, Director, Park Developments commented:
“Park Developments are proud of our 60 year history of building, creating and supporting communities. As we renewed our support for the Irish Senior Ladies Hockey team this year, we wanted to expand our support to include the “Hockey4All” Program as a key area for development within the Hockey family, by supporting young people with disabilities and giving them an opportunity to play and enjoy the game. We would like to wish the Hockey ID Ireland squad the very best of luck this summer as they prepare of the Europeans in Germany this August”.
Hockey Ireland Hockey4All programme Manager, Sue Haslam, commented:
“Over the past 12 years, the Hockey4All programme has enabled athletes of all abilities to become an integral and invaluable part of the Hockey community in Ireland. The backing of Park Developments will allow us to further accelerate our strategy to grow Hockey4All throughout clubs, and in partnership with schools, Local Sports Partnerships and other organisations. With this new partnership, we look forward to developing the player pathway, playing and international opportunities for all our Hockey4All athletes.”
The Team: (Back row, left to right) – Joe Whelan, Cameron Ward, Daniel Fortune, Tony Ryan, Charlie O’Reilly. (Front row, left to right) – Ben Purcell, Ruthanne Gallagher, Louis Olden. Missing are team members Niamh Kiernan and Matthew Burke who were unable to join the photograph.
The Team and Staff: (Back row, left to right) – Scott Mulligan (Head coach), Aryana Nieland (coach), Joe Whelan, Daniel Fortune, Tony Ryan, Charlie O’Reilly and Klaas de Vries (coach). (Front row, left to right) – Cameron Ward, Ben Purcell, Ruthanne Gallagher, Louis Olden. Missing are team members Niamh Kiernan and Matthew Burke who were unable to join the photograph.
