Published by the government of Zimbabwe
Petros Kausiyo
28 November 2009
Harare — ZIMBABWE'S Young Warriors might have been conspicuous by their absence at the just-ended Fifa World U-17 championships but the country's presence in Nigeria was somewhat still felt.
Former Zimbabwe Referee of the Year Felix Tangawarima, now a Fifa Regional referees instructor for Eastern and Southern Africa, ensured that the Zimbabwean flag was part of the bi-annual youth football jamboree in Nigeria.
Although the local game normally pays much of its attention to its coaches, players and administrators, Tangawarima has been the unsung hero of Zimbabwean football and has lately become its ambassador, travelling around the continent on Fifa and Caf business.
The lanky seven-time Referee-of-the-Year was in Algeria earlier in March leading a team of instructors that prepared and later oversaw the performance of the match officials at the African Under-17 championships.
But the Fifa Under-17 championships have been growing in stature and this year the world soccer governing body responded by appointing top referees to officiate at the tournament.
For the first time in the history of the World Under-17 tournament, Fifa appointed the same officials they have earmarked for the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa. It has been a remarkable period for Africa with Fifa tasking the continent to stage three World Cups inside a year.
Apart from the Under-17 World Cup in Nigeria, Egypt also staged the Fifa Under-20 Championships, won by Ghana with the biggest of them all the World Cup rolling into South Africa between June and July next year.
In the Under-17 final in Lagos, Switzerland won the tournament after beating hosts Nigeria 1-0.
Tangawarima said the referees who officiated at the Fifa Under-17 finals were drawn from all the six confederations that make up the Fifa family.
"We had 53 referees and assistant referees from all the six confederations. All of them are candidates for the 2010 World Cup and this tournament was used as part of their preparations for 2010," Tangawarima said.
On that Nigerian tour of duty, Tangawarima was not short on good company with three other technical instructors, two physical instructors and two psychologists helping him.
The other technical instructors were Leslie Irvine (Northern Ireland), Shamsul Maidin (Singapore) and Valentine Ivanon of Russia.
"The Instructors and the referees went 10 days before the tournament and the referees were prepared by the instructors both technically and physically.
"Basically the instructors covered all aspects of the laws of the game their Interpretation and application both theoretically and practical.
"After the tournament started, we would cover areas according to the DVDs of the games which would have been played.
"All in all it was a big challenge and responsibility and a big honour to prepare the highest level of referees.
"It was also the first time that a Fifa Under-17 tournament had referees for the World Cup taking charge of the games," Tangawarima said.
After helping oversee the smooth running of the Under-17 African and Fifa championships, Tangawarima immediately switched base -- moving to Cairo, Egypt for the Caf elite referees course, which ran from November 20-25.
The course attracted 50 participants, 24 referees and 26 assistant referees from across the continent.
"This course is being organised to prepare Caf referees and assistant referees for the Orange Africa Cup of Nations Angola 2010," said Bester Kalombo, the Caf Refereeing Manager.
According to Kalombo, the three specific activities planned to achieve this objective were:
l All referees and assistant referees had to undergo medical examinations according to medical protocol set by Fifa and Caf.
l All referees and assistant referees will have to pass Physical fitness tests except those referees and assistant referees who were selected for the just-ended Fifa tournaments as certification of the state of their physical fitness was already done there and Caf consequently adopted the results of those tests.
l Two days of intensive work on aspects of the laws of the game was done with special reference to topical issues related to Laws 11 and 12.
Kalombo said although the elite course was a regular feature on the Caf calendar this year's course was unique in that it was also used as a selection platform for the Nations Cup panel.
"The only new thing in this years' course is that it coincides with 2010 selection process of the referees and assistants referees who will be recommended for World Cup in South Africa 2010 and Orange Africa Cup of Nations Angola 2010.
"And to this effect, we shall receive 2 Fifa visiting instructors in both technical and physical areas to support the course," Kalombo said.
There is no rest for Tangawarima, who is now based at the Fifa development office in Botswana.
Immediately after the elite course in Cairo, Tangawarima left for Nairobi, to prepare the referees who will handle matches during the Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup tournament in Kenya.
Zimbabwe's Warriors have been invited to the 2009 edition of the Cecafa Senior Challenge tournament pencilled in for November 28 to December 13.
But Tangawarima will not wait to see the entire Cecafa tournament through, as duty also calls on his again, this time in his fatherland.
Tangawarima will be one of the instructors at the Futuro III regional referees' instructors' course which gets underway in Harare on Monday.
It will be Tangawarima's second homecoming on Fifa referees' business inside four months, having been in Bulawayo for a top referees' course in August, which he conducted with the help of the South African Carlos Henriquez.
Zifa chief executive Henrietta Rushwaya, who has been working closely with Tangawarima, to help build the capacity of the local game, was full of praise for the former referee this week.
"We are proud of him. Some of the communication problems we had with Fifa have been eased because he guides us on a number of issues and on how best we can access Fifa's assistance.
"I think the progress from the days he was a referee is a lesson that his ought to learn from. They need to realise that patience is a virtue and if you are doing well and remain consistent Fifa will recognise that. Felix is a smart guy in his dealings and in his appearance, he is an ambassador of our football and we salute him. He is one man who will tell you straight up if he feels what you are doing is wrong.
"If we could have as many people as him, it would be great for our football," Rushwaya said.
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