April 26, 2004 BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - The Pan American Hockey Federation (PAHF) held its annual Board and Committee meetings in Barbados on April 23 to 25, 2004, during the 2nd Women's Pan American Cup. The PAHF Board approved Panama as a provisional member, pending approval by the PAHF membership at the next Congress in 2005. Panama becomes the 22nd member nation of the Pan American Hockey Federation. The Junior Pan American Championships have been awarded to Cuba (for the men) and to Puerto Rico (for the women). Both competitions will be organized in the first quarter of 2005 and serve as the continental qualification events for the FIH Junior World Cups to be held later in 2005. "The Junior Pan Am Championships are very important for hockey development in the Americas and we look forward to the stimulus that they can give to hockey in these two important hockey playing nations" said Tony von Ondarza, President of PAHF. The PAHF Board also decided that 12 teams will compete in the next Pan American Cups (M & W). To reach these numbers, a qualifying tournament will be organized for the Southern countries and one for the Northern countries. The dates and countries for these competitions will be decided at the next Board meeting in 2005. Theo Ykema, FIH Development and Coaching Committee chair made a presentation to the PAHF Board and other National Federation representatives on international development projects and worked during the week with the PAHF Development Committee. "We were delighted that Mr Ykema accepted our invitation to attend the PAHF meetings in Barbados. He brings a wealth of experience from all over the world and added a lot to our discussions. As well, he learned about our issues and challenges here in the Americas" said Bev Johnson, PAHF Development Committee Chair. The Board endorsed a meeting of the PAHF working group to be held in Miami in the fall. The purpose of this meeting will be to develop a plan for hockey development in the Americas over the next four years. The plan will be submitted to the Congress for approval in 2005. Filipe dos Reis, provided Board members with an update on progress in the organization of the 2007 Pan American Games in Brazil. Plans are well underway and the situation for hockey will be very good at these Games. The next meeting of the PAHF Board will be held in early 2005 at the time of the Congress.
The Pan American Hockey Federation (PAHF) is recognized by the FIH as the governing continental federation for all field hockey in the Pan American region. There are 22 member Nations of the PAHF. For more information please contact info@panamhockey.org. | ||||||
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