Officials - who needs them?

WE DO!! Just about anyone who is trying to run an athletics club or organise an athletics meeting needs Officials.

Most importantly, competing athletes need to relax, happy in the knowledge that the competition is being run under conditions fair to all.

There can never be too many Officials at an athletics meeting. The duties are varied. You may think that you know very little about officiating or that you must sit an exam before you are let loose near athletes, but that is not true any more.

Since the beginning of 2007 UK Athletics have changed the way Officials are trained and there are two ways in which you can become an Official:

 Getting started

If you are unsure what discipline you wish to specialise in, i.e. Field Judge, Timekeeper, Starter/Marksman or Track Judge, then you can take a Level 1 Assistant Officials course which gives you a basic grounding in all aspects of becoming an Official.

These are normally requested by Clubs and arranged through the Joint County Officials Secretaries.

After that you can then take a Level 2 Course in your chosen discipline. However if you know which discipline you wish to take up then you can go straight into the Level 2 Course.

 The next step

To become a fully qualified Level 2 Official you will need to attend at least four athletics meetings and complete a logbook and answer a few questions in the Logbook. This is then assessed by your course Tutor and passed to the County Officials Secretaries who will arrange for UK Athletics to issue the relevant Pass/Licence. You will also need a CRB check details of which can be obtained from your Joint County Officials Secretaries, Eileen and Terry Williams.

You will find that Hampshire Officials are very friendly and only too willing to give encouragement and advice to newcomers. We also publish a six-monthly Officials Newsletter with up to date advice on Rule Changes, experiences of our Officials throughout the season and other useful information.

 Contact us

For details of Courses please contact Hampshire AA Joint County Officials Secretaries, Eileen and Terry Williams by phone - 01252 664455 - or

COME INTO OFFICIATING. IT'S FUN, FRIENDLY AND VERY REWARDING!