During the summer break, many initiatives were launched to prepare for a strong start to the new season. A great deal of work has been done by the people in the office, and certainly also by many volunteers, such as the Sports Commission and the Umpire Commission. Our national teams also competed in several international tournaments this summer. You’ll find stories about those in this newsletter as well. And of course, we all enjoyed a beautiful summer, although perhaps a bit too dry and hot… I hope everyone had a wonderful time with friends and family, whether here in Switzerland or elsewhere.

Now, back to hockey!

Many club teams have resumed training, and by the time you read this, matches will already have begun. I wish you all a fantastic and sporty season, with good and tough yet fair competitions, plenty of fun, no injuries, and respect for opponents, coaches, trainers, and umpires. And that includes the people along the sidelines.

The header of this column is a call to action. As you probably know, Swiss Hockey has high ambitions, but not enough resources. Every year we struggle to secure a fair budget and to maintain it. Within two years, the funding from Swiss Olympic and BASPO will change, and unfortunately not for the better. So, we definitely need to act.

Last week, we held a special meeting with the board and invited several club presidents to brainstorm with us. The most important outcome is the decision to start searching for a new volunteer (F/M) dedicated to fundraising. A senior person who is willing and able to open doors and mobilise leads, which should come from all of us. This person will lead a fundraising team. Two people have already committed to contributing to this effort, and many ideas and initiatives are already on the table. What we need now is a dedicated individual to help secure the future of Swiss Hockey.

Last year, we issued a similar call to action to find new board members, and together we succeeded. Now, we need you again. Are you the person we are looking for? Or, if not, look around you: friends, family, club members, former club board members: anyone who wants to join a committed team.

Please contact me for further information.

If there is anything else you would like to discuss or any ideas you would like to share, please feel free to email me at rob.mudde@swisshockey.org.

 

Best regards,
Rob Mudde