International Hockey Federation

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The Fédération Internationale de Hockey (English: International Hockey Federation), commonly known by the acronym FIH is the international governing body of field hockey and indoor field hockey. Its headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland and the president is Narinder Batra. FIH is responsible for field hockey's major international tournaments, notably the World Cup.

Video International Hockey Federation

History

FIH was founded on 7 January 1924 in Paris by Paul Léautey, who became the first president, in response to field hockey's omission from the programme of the 1924 Summer Olympics. First members complete to join the seven founding members were Austria, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, France, Hungary, Spain and Switzerland.

In 1982, the FIH merged with the International Federation of Women's Hockey Associations (IFWHA), which had been founded in 1927 by Australia, Denmark, England, Ireland, Scotland, South Africa, the United States and Wales.

The organisation is based in Lausanne, Switzerland since 2005, having moved from Brussels, Belgium.

Maps International Hockey Federation

Structure

In total, there are 138 member associations within the five confederations recognised by FIH. This includes Great Britain which is recognised as an adherent member of FIH, the team was represented at the Olympics and the Champions Trophy. England, Scotland and Wales are also represented by separate teams in FIH sanctioned tournaments.

AFHF - African Hockey Federation

ASHF - Asian Hockey Federation

EHF - European Hockey Federation

OHF - Oceania Hockey Federation

PAHF - Pan American Hockey Federation

The FIH World Rankings was updated once after the major tournament finished, based on FIH sanction tournaments.

src: internationalhockeywiki.com

Recognition and awards

The Player of the Year Awards have been given annually since 1998 for men and women, while the young category was added in 2001 to honour the best performances for junior players (under 21).

Another award, the "Honorary Award", was given to people who have made outstanding contributions to field hockey.