FIH Trainers and trainee trainers: Michel Kinnen, Josh Burt, Ben Owers, Kerry Liebenberg, Amy Ryan, Minka Wooley.
Hockey Australia have commenced the first stage of their workforce development with the completion of two FIH Educator courses held recently in Melbourne and Perth. This marks the beginning of HA’s integration of the FIH Academy at Development level and the Coaching & Officiating Accreditation Frameworks, a major step toward delivering globally recognised, world-class education opportunities for everyone involved in the sport.
The course in Melbourne was a crucial step in developing their educator workforce, with a multi purpose training premise. Learning alongside the 2 lead trainers – Ben Owers (NZ) and Michel Kinnen (Belgium), were 4 trainee trainers: Amy Ryan, Josh Burt, Minka Wooley, and Kerry Liebenberg. Together, they facilitated the course which brought together 21 representatives from each of the member associations, plus 2 from NZ, spanning coaching, officiating, and umpiring, all working towards being qualified Educators.
As part of their learning, the Educators then delivered an FIH Level 2 Coaching course to 18 participants, further increasing the capability and confidence of the local coaching community.
Following the Melbourne programme, Michel Kinnen then travelled to Perth and to facilitate a second Educator course for an additional 6 participants, continuing the momentum and providing broader national access to this development pathway.
These initiatives also reflect a broader strategic intent: to build the FIH workforce across Oceania through strong collaboration between Hockey Australia and Hockey New Zealand. The shared delivery across both locations demonstrates what can be achieved through coordinated regional effort and a unified approach to development.
Hockey Australia aims to roll out the new frameworks and expanded opportunities in early 2026, providing a clear pathway that aligns with global standards and strengthens capability across all areas of the sport.