The arbitration of the Confederation of South and Central American Handball has been growing exponentially. This is due to the hard work being done by the CosCABal Refereeing Commission to raise the level of competition.
Thedy Adjemian is the Chief Referee of the Confederation of South and Central American Handball. He and a team are in charge of the detection, selection, training, nomination to continental tournaments and promotion to become international referees of the teams that are part of the countries that make up CoSCABal .
“You have to work together with the countries and that requires a lot of work. You also have to think all the time about what is going to be best for the referees you select and how to train them”, said Adjemian.
Outstanding South American arbitration
The work being done by Thedy Adjemian is bearing fruit, in the last Junior Women’s World Championship held in North Macedonia, two CoSCABal couples participated and had an outstanding performance.
On the one hand, María Inés Paolantoni and Mariana García from Argentina, on the other hand, the sisters Bruna and Renata García from Brazil, “… the two pairs were among the 3 best refereeing couples of the ranking; which means a historical fact for our Confederation, for the South American refereeing”,expressed Adjemian and added: “Furthermore, the Argentinean pair (Paolantoni/Garcia) will referee in the next Olympic Games Paris 2024, further exalting the work done”.
Thedy Adjemian is also an IHF Reader, i.e. he is part of a select group of people chosen by the International Handball Federation to give referee trainings all over the world and at the most important championships.
He will be present in Paris 2024 and it will be his third Olympic Games since he was part of Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.
“The Olympic Games are the biggest dream one has in Handball. I take it with all the anxiety and passion I always felt.”
Dual function
Thedy Adjemian will fulfill a dual role at Paris 2024 as he will be a technical delegate and referee evaluator. “I feel proud, I’m happy, it’s a recognition also to be so many years working with the referees.”
“It is very important the validation of my peers and for them to do so is for me the gold medal that one cannot have in an Olympic Game.”
“A good refereeing level in countries improves and empowers players and coaches. This is why we want countries to become aware of the importance of arbitration. Sometimes, it is not so high on the agenda and people think that the national teams and coaches are the most important thing, but when you have good referees, your competition improves, your players improve.
When you have a low level of refereeing, your players and the level of play gets worse.” Adjemian stated.
Refereeing plays an essential role in the development of the sport discipline, which is why the Confederation of South and Central America Handball is committed to the growth and dissemination of the refereeing work that is part of the continent’s handball activities.
Photos: courtesy of IHF and Germán Paez/CoSCABal.
By Rocío Mariel García Sigüenza.
