European Championship for MEN, ADANA

ADANA, THE CITY OF KEBAB OR WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL

Adana, an agricultural city, south of Turkey, is famous for the traditional dish, kebab. However, kebab has been facing a strong opponent for the last 5 years. Wheelchair basketball is on the agenda of the city more than anything. Adana gradually became a city of wheelchair basketball. In 2005, a preliminary round for Willi Brinkmann Cup was organized, in 2006 the finals of Andre Vergauwen Cup was a big success and then in 2007 the finals of Willi Brinkmann Cup was organized, recently in 2008, U22 European Championship was organized and selected one of the best organizations in Europe by the participants. Finally in 2009, the third biggest event in the world of wheelchair basketball after the Paralimpic Games and World Cup, European Championships for Men will be organized in October with the participation of 12 best teams of Europe. To be able to represent their nations in the World Cup in 2010 Birmingham, the teams will try to be ranked in the first five.


After the big surprise of Sweden in Wetzlar Eurobasketball 2007, home team Turkey is looking for the same kind of rise. Turkey is aiming to be in the first five and participate in the Gold Cup for the first time in her history of wheelchair basketball. Each year the nations grow more equal and this makes the sports more unique and exciting. In addition, the citizens of Adana is well known for their liking of wheelchair basketball. They showed their interest in the final of U22 European Championship last summer Turkey vs. Spain game. All the tickets were sold out and there were a lot of spectators who stayed outside.


It will not be a suprise for anyone, if Adana makes a bid for the World Junior Championships in 2013. Behind all this change there is a dedicated group. Starting from Mr. Ali Duran Karakaya, the person in charge of wheelchair basketball for the Turkish Sports for the Physically Disabled Federation, who is also the President of the LOC and Mr. İsmail Güneş, the coordinator of the LOC, made the mayor, the governor and all the firms of the Adana believe that wheelchair basketball is a great sport and got their support. In addition, National Lottery, Turkish Presentation Fund, Hilton Hotel and TEMSA, THY (transportation sponsor) decided to sponsor the organization.


In every organization of Adana, I was a referee, a TV commentator, an interpreter or a volunteer. That’s why I’m sure Adana will give us an another unforgettable tournament.

Good luck Adana.

See you in October 5th

Utku ERTAN
Honorary Adana Citizen

Dedicated to All Retired Officials

It is time for a little bit fun. I was going to sing this song for IWBF referee Aharon Markovitz who retired in 2006. Now, he is a game commissioner. Unfortunately I couldn't sing it. Now it is time to share it with you.

YOUR GAME

And now, the end is near;
And so you face the final curtain.
My friend, I’ll say it clear,
I’ll state your case, of which I’m certain.
You’ve lived a life that’s full of basketball,
You’ve traveled each and every country;
And more, much more than this,
You refereed your game.
Mistakes, you’ve had a few;
But then again, too few to mention.
You did what you had to do
And saw it through without exemption.
IWBF planned each charted course;
Each careful step along the byway,
But more, much more than this,
You refereed your game.
Yes, there were times, I’m sure you knew
When you called less than you could do.
But through it all, when there was doubt,
You ate it up and spit it out.
You faced it all and you stood tall;
And refereed your game.
You’ve called Gold Cups and Paralympic Games
You’ve had finals and tough games
And now, as tears subside,
You find it all so amusing.
To think you did all that;
And may I say - not in a shy way
No, oh no not me,
You refereed your game.
For what is a ref, what has he got?
If not his mates, then he has naught.
To say the things he truly feels;
And not the words of one who kneels.
The record show, you took the blows
And refereed your game.
Yes it was your game.

Adapted by Utku Ertan from the song “My Way” by Paul Anka

The Chance to Bring More Quality On the Court

Too often in the last 20 years I met international refs which told me:

“I get not enough possibilities for going into high-level games.”
“I have not enough experience in these games.”

That means that some internationals go on the court without having this necessary and important experience. Therefore these refs get sometimes problems to handle the top games in the way they should. After the game the ref feels unhappy and the follow is that also the teams are not happy about what was going on during the game.

The players and coaches are training very hard to raise their standard during the whole year. The referees train mostly themselves or with the feed-backs of the supervisors in different ways, but mostly on lower levels. To understand when a disadvantage is important for the situation in the game or not, is really a big point and is not easy to realize. To realize this for the highest level the ref needs permanent training for reaching this point. After reaching this level it is much easier to follow now the development of our game. I know that there are also other important points like the game-management etc. for being a good referee.

In this article I want to concentrate on the point of getting experience on the high level because I think that all nations have the possibility to help us referees for this important point and therefore for their / for our game.

Every year we have in the different countries friendship-tournaments in what ever way. A lot of these tournaments are preparation-tournaments before big international events. What I realized for my own country Germany is that in the last years we had more and more of these events. Excellent possibilities for the teams and the referees to „train“ themselves. We have the luck with a really good cooperation with our national teams and their staff especially the managers. They realized very early that we need this possibilities for our own development. Normally we get for every event of the teams the possibility to send a delegation-ref with the team outside the country wherever they go (if the host country accepts this).
For tournaments in Germany it was normally every time allowed that refs from other countries can participate in our tournaments. We realized that not a lot of countries used this possibility.

A lot of times we had for example refs from the Netherlands in our tournaments. They used in 2007 two of our tournaments for preparing their candidates for the international licence and both passed the exam last year. Australia brought for the second time a ref to Germany. To my opinion for the first time we had last year a Canadian and a British ref in a tournament.

The question now is why more refs are coming in the last year?

We changed the system for participating teams in our tournaments.
For example:
Paralympics-Preparation-Tournament in Osnabruck at the end of may 2008
Teams: GB – Australia – Canada – Germany
Regulation: Every team must bring a ref into this tournament.
If not they have to pay 500,oo € (example) to the organizer for a local ref.
We had 3 refs from GB, Australia and Canada and additional a couple of Germany. These nations realized very quick what our intention was and gave their refs a chance to go for their own development. That was great for the refs because it was the highest level they could get at this time. 4 of the top 5 of the world played in this tournament on a really high level.

I know that also some other countries give their referees the possibility for this development. But I know that we have a big difference in handling this point all around the world.

Normally as team I must buy one ticket more for the ref when going out of the country. If this team next time makes a tournament in his countries the other teams bring their own refs into this tournament. It saves the host-team a lot of money for local refs which they don’t need. To my opinion a very clear system, which costs not so much money and it gives a lot of referees the possibility to develop to a better standard.

I am sure that we all in this big family in this fantastic sport can get more comfort and more quality on the court in our international tournaments all around the world if we give the referees a chance for more possibilities of development!

Uli OTTO

Former IWBF Referee

Referee Supervisor

You Are Only As Good As Your Next Game

I am now completing my 48th year of basketball officiating at all levels: from professional league in Canada and international running basketball; university/college; senior men/women/high school and wheelchair basketball. My first experience with wheelchair basketball was in 1974 at a local level. In 1975 I received accreditation for an IWBF license in Bruges at the first Gold Cup event ever held; what an experience! I even received an award for being the “Best Referee in Arnhem”. I have officiated at championships throughout the world; something I am extremely proud of but, as “good as I was considered to be”, that was “yesterday”.

So arguably, I possess the credentials to speak about this topic: YOU ARE ONLY AS GOOD AS YOUR NEXT GAME.

I will outline what I believe are some of the most important elements necessary for success at the international level of officiating. Use those that help your game.

1. Building a Resume
2. How? Learning Experience
3. Apply these experiences at the next game and every following game
4. Exploration-ask/talk to the experienced officials
5. Watch video
6. Be a spectator in other games-watch other officials
7. Seek a mentor
8. Be receptive to “ criticism” always
9. The evaluators are only there to HELP development
10 After your last “good game”-how do you come back?
11 What is your obligation to the next game you are going to do?
12 Don’t LIVE on your reputation
13 Ask the veterans-PICK THEIR BRAINS
14 Composure-Don’t loose it! Remember who is in control
15 Admit if your are wrong (not such a bad thing; in fact it can actually help to develop credibility)
16 Don’t let your “EGO” get in the way when officiating
17 Even “veteran” officials should/must admit to making mistakes
18 Game management (clock awareness, etc).
19 Communication (players/coaches/fans).
20 Getting the call right! (Talk to your partners to confirm)
21 Integrity (make the calls when you have to)
22 Image (what you look like on the floor)
23 Not just making the calls; but getting them right!
24 The three “T’s”-Talk/Technical/Toss-players/coaches

I recognize we all have different perspectives on our own ability as officials; evident with those few recognized at the international level at World Championships but, as I have said before: YOU ARE ONLY AS GOOD AS YOUR “NEXT” GAME. Don’t referee on past success; referee for the game that you have been assigned to, and do it like it is your first one where nobody knows you and being acknowledged as a good official is important to your future.

Don Steponchev
Former IWBF Referee

Referee Supervisor

Motivation in Officiating

MOTIVATION IN OFFICIATING


To Mr. Don Steponchev for his encouraging words....

Motivation is the set of reasons that determines one to engage in a particular behavior. According to various theories, motivation may be rooted in the basic need to minimize physical pain and maximize pleasure, or it may include specific needs such as eating and resting, or a desired object, hobby, goal, state of being, ideal. (Deci&Ryan,1985)

In this article, I’ll talk about the types of motivation and what motivates an official to improve in officiating. Motivation comes from two things: you, and other people. There is extrinsic motivation, which comes from others, and intrinsic motivation, which comes from within you. For example; intrinsic motivation occurs when in the beginning the official, engages in a game, as a hobby, without obvious external incentives. However, when the referee is promoted and starts to become professional, status (e.g. being an international official) may provide a more powerful factor than the motivation provided by an enjoyable workplace. Intrinsic motivation is the motivation that comes from inside of the performer. That is, the official participates for the love of the sport. Extrinsic motivation comes from outside of the official.. Status is the most obvious example, but relagation and threat of not having (good) games to officiate are also common motivations. The crowd may cheer the official on, and this motivates him or her to do well. Officiating decisive games are also incentives. Competition is often extrinsic because it encourages the official to overcome the others, not to enjoy the rewards of the game.

After understanding the types of motivation, we can have a look at what motivates an official to improve.. Rewards are important factors. Rewards are external to the person; such as praise or money. For example; being congratulated by his mentor, game commissioner, coaches or players after a tough game, the official is motivated. Rewards are sometimes internal to the person; for example, satisfaction or a feeling of accomplishment.. For example; having officiated a final game with no problems, the official is again motivated. Goals are another important factor. If the official sets himself short or long term goals and be determined to reach them, he is most likely enthusiastic to improve himself in officiating. Another important factor is having fun while officiating. If you still enjoy and love the game, you’ll still be learning or sharing information with your peers.

To conclude, motivation is a very significant factor in officiating. To be a successful and respected official, one must find ways to motivate himself to improve in officiating.
Utku ERTAN
FIBA/IWBF Referee

A Tribute to Wetzlar

I first went to the German town of Wetzlar in 2005 during the Champions Cup Finals where I was nominated as a non delegation referee. With a busy schedule, we didn't have enough time to know the place. However, wheelchair basketball is well promoted in the city.

The team of Wetzlar, Lahn-Dill, have dominated Europe in the last few years, winning the European Championship title in 2004, 2005 and 2006 and is well supported by nearly 1,000 spectators. They have a small band and a mascot cheering on the team and the people.When I experienced this atmosphere I remember saying to myself: “I wish we had this kind of promotion for wheelchair basketball in our country.” Anyway, after two years, a European Championship of Men and Women, again in Wetzlar, was great in every respect. Games in August Babel and Rittal Arena attracted many spectators, and the media.The President of Lahn Dill and the local organizing committee, Andreas Joneck, and his crew achieved a great success and increased the awareness of wheelchair basketball not only in Europe but also in the world.The opening ceremony was like a mini Olympic Games. Mr. Joneck succeeded in involving the people of Wetzlar either as a driver, team host, volunteer, waiter or even spectator.

Personally, I would like to award the title of "The Capital of Wheelchair Basketball" to Wetzlar. The organisers have shown that Germany is one of the leading countries in wheelchair basketball by getting the support of world wide brands like Audi, Spalding, German Wheelchair Sports Federation, local organizations and civil organizations. This town should be taken as a role model by other countries.

As a result I would like to congratulate the LOC once again for promoting this wonderful sport, wheelchair basketball. I also would like to thank all the volunteers, drivers and people of Wetzlar for making us feel that we were a part of their family. I hope to see Wetzlar and the friends there in the near future

Witnessing the History

When I first started refereeing wheelchair basketball in 1999, there was no Junior Turkish National team, no Turkish clubs participating Eurocup Events, no international Turkish referees, no Women Turkish National team, no media interest in our sports, no sponsors. Men Turkish National team was in Division B losing all their games by big differences, there was only 7 or 8 teams in the country, no international organizations in the country.

Then in 2001 we had the first team, Izmir BŞB SC, participating in the Eurocup events and our first international referee,Selçuk Kaçın. Then in 2002 Junior Turkish team played the final in European Championship and in 2003, Turkish Men team played the final in B Division European Championship, then again in 2003, İzmir BŞB Sports Club played the final in Andre Vergauwen Cup in Spain. Then in 2003, Turkish Men team participated in the A Division European Championship and redelegated to B Division and in 2004 they became the champion in B Division European Championship and delegated to A Division again. In 2003, National Women team was formed. Junior National team represented Europe in 2005 in World Juniors Championship in Birmingham. Meanwhile in 2004, 2005, 2006, Finals for the Andre Vergauwen Cup and Willi Brinkmann Cup was organized a couple of times in our country in İzmir and Adana. BJK organized the Champions Cup Finals in 2006 in Istanbul. In 2007, İstanbul Cadbury Kent Engelli Yıldızlar played the final of Willi Brinkmann Cup and finally Galatasaray SC won the Champions Cup and the Intercontinental Cup in 2008, the biggest success achieved by a Turkish team in this branch.

Now the National team is in A Division, there are 6 international referees, Women National team is participating in international tournaments, the Juniors are having a European Championship organization at home, there are sponsors for the teams, the games are broadcast by TVs. Turkey is the only country represented with 6 teams in Eurocup events. There is one Champions Cup winner and two Eurocup Finalists. For a country who has met this sports for a decade, this is an incredible success. In addition, there are three leagues with more than 50 teams and 700 players and 100 referees.

And the best part of all these is, to be able to be the part of this development and to witness the history while it is being written.

I love this game…

Utku ERTAN