ICC EUROPE LEVEL 1 UMPIRE COURSE IN MADRID
Budding officials from all the different leagues in Spain took part in a 3 day umpire event in Madrid last weekend to complete the ICC Europe Level 1 course.
The 16 hour curriculum ran over 3 days and was hosted by ICC Europe tutor Keith Healey. It was held in the 4 star Novotel Sanchinarro on the outskirts of Madrid that is managed by Madrid CC and Spanish International Phil Reid.
Candidates from Lanzarote, Cataluyna, the Southern league and the ECCL leagues were put through their paces and tested on the laws of cricket with a 2 hour session on the Friday evening, 8 hours on the Saturday, and a further 6 hours on the Sunday.
8 modules were covered extensively, and some of the subjects touched upon included the officials role before the match, calls and signals, the use of runners, the pitch and the wickets, and unfair play. At the end of the course all the candidates took a 50 question multiple choice exam. 10 of these questions were classified as red questions and focused on either the no ball and the leg before wicket laws.
In order for the candidates to pass the course they must get at least 80 % of the questions correct, and furthermore, get at least 8 of the 10 red questions right. The exam papers are currently being marked by Graham Cooper at ICC Europe.
The course was organised by the Cricket Espana Umpire Co-ordinator, John Howden and subsidised by the ICC Europe education budget for officials that Cricket Espana received at the begining of the year. The following clubs, associations and leagues had representation on the course.
ECCL Division 1 League
Jon Woodward, David Leonida, Charlie Marrow, Russell Atkinson (Madrid CC)
Ittfaq Ahmad, Muhammad Ashraf, Affan M Siddique (Madrid United CC)
ECCL Development League
Jon Algar, Gary Williams (San Fulgncio CC)
Michael Wilson-Prestell (Orihuela CC)
Lanzarote League
Geoff Dean, Craig Trapps, Paul Jones ( Lanzarote Cricket Association)
Southern League
Previn Menon (Combined Colleges)
Ray Fry (Unattached)
Cataluyna Cricket Association
Aseq A Arman, Nadim (Bengali CC)
Muhammad Adnan Khan, Naveed Ahmed Chaudry (Cornella CC)
Finally thanks to all involved in making the course a success, the candidates for their time and commitment, Phil Reid and his staff at the Novotel Sanchinarro for their splendid hospitality, and last but not least, the tutor Keith Healey for his professionalism in delivering the course.
