Stunning victories and raised a lot of silverware! He now heads up the coaching team of the Spanish men’s team. Listen here to discover more about his passion for instilling a love of the game in others and how his experience has enabled him to apply the lessons he has learnt during his career and his aspirations for this young ambitious Spanish team

To begin the 2024 series of EuroHockey Institute podcasts, Jack Rolfe speaks to Tom Kirby about his journey since his first taste of Hockey ID eight years ago to travelling around the continent, embracing a number of EuroHockey ID championships and all the laughs in between. They talk about what are key parts of an inclusive coaching session and how does an organisation create opportunities for Hockey ID players.

Olympic, World and European champion Thomas Briels talks to Jack Rolfe about the elements that made him the player he is, from learning to do the "ugly metres" that became intrinsic to his hockey DNA to coming around to what he saw as an unlikely captaincy role during the Belgian Red Lions' golden era. Tune in for this fascinating chat with one of the latest entrants into the EuroHockey Hall of Fame in our October EuroHockey Institute Podcast!

To start the fifth series of the EuroHockey Podcast, Mike Hughes speaks to Stephen Findlater this month about the incredible rise of Old Georgians, creating the culture and environment to get from relative obscurity to the very top of the English hockey tree and how he looks to try and bring that magic to new club Indian Gymkhana. Recorded earlier this summer, he reflects on how this journey was inspired by his time on the EuroHockey Top Coaches Programme (TCP) and the challenging environment...

Later this month, Marijke Fleuren's tenure as EuroHockey President comes to a close following a remarkable 12-year spell in the role. As such, who better to be our EuroHockey Institute Podcast guest as we look back on an incredible leader and game-changer for our organisation and our sport. She speaks to host Jack Rolfe who says of this edition: "I reflect on this podcast with Marjike about how she embodies so effortlessly two words I always associate with our wonderful game of hockey:...

Marieke Dijkstra is this month’s EuroHockey Institute Podcast guest, speaking to Jack Rolfe about her diverse and fascinating career in coaching. Following an international indoor and outdoor career, captaining the Dutch side to a first World Cup title on the boards in 2007. She then repeated the trick in 2015 as coach. Around that, she has been something of a game-changer. She made her way into the Hoofdklasse as a rare female coach of men's side, breaking past initial resistance to make...

For Pride month’s EuroHockey Institute Podcast, we have the incredible Nikki Symmons. A groundbreaker in numerous realms; a Yahoo & Involve Outstanding LGBTQ Role Model 2021 & 2022, a dual Irish international across hockey and cricket, an ambassador with Athlete Ally, an inclusion and diversity advisor and, of course, a EuroHockey Hall of Famer. Nikki speaks to Jack Rolfe about her career, the devastation of missing out on Olympic qualification, her subsequent attempts to escape...

This month, we turn the tables with regular EuroHockey Institute Podcast host Jack Rolfe receiving the questions from the EHF's Stephen Findlater. The Englishman talks about his coaching journey and expanding his horizons through the Coaches 4 Europe program. It is an adventure which has also seen him found the Coaching Lab and the innovative Match Play Cards which are now used in over 50 countries and by many elite clubs outside of hockey such as Arsenal, Liverpool and West Ham. Now based in...

Series 4 Episode 6 - This month on the EuroHockey Institute Podcast, we have an extra special guest with FIH World Cup winner Christopher Rühr talking to Jack Rolfe. They discuss coaching creativity, motivation and how this marries with the high-level tactical awareness that is synonymous with German hockey. Have a listen to this fascinating chat with one of the sport's current superstars!

To celebrate International Women’s Day, we have a special EuroHockey Institute Podcast this month with Shirley McCay, Ireland’s most capped sportsperson who is now making a major impact on the next generation. Her story is symbolic of the “Green Army” and their rise from nowhere to the top table in the world, reaching the 2018 World Cup final. She speaks to Jack Rolfe about growing up far from the hockey hubs of Ireland but how her background helped shape her, how her ‘stubbornness and...

Series 4, Episode 4: Norman Hughes talks to Jack Rolfe about his remarkable life in hockey, from a reticent 16-year-old who took up the game when he "wasn't big enough" for football. From the sulphur-fumed pitches of northern England, he would soon travel the world, winning Olympic and World Cup medals as a player and then coaching the Great Britain senior men on the highest stage. Hughes went on to use those experiences in his role as the EHF's Education and Development Manager and playing...

Series 4 Episode 3: In our first EuroHockey Institute podcast for 2023, Jack Rolfe speaks to the wonderful Cecilia Rognoni. She reflects on an outstanding playing career, highlighted by Argentina’s breakthrough Olympic silver medal and the “best tournament of my life”: World Cup gold in 2002 in Perth when she was named player of the tournament. The journey took her to the Netherlands to initially play and then coach. Cecilia talks about those experiences - and playing with Luciana Aymar -...

Series 4 Episode 2 - “I don’t find it my work! I can do this 24 hours a day with zero remorse. I love it. It’s a full time hobby!” Tin Matkovic speaks to Jack Rolfe about his journey in hockey, from its beginnings in Croatia to playing, coaching and umpiring across Europe. It has been a hugely varied set of experiences, feeding his “addiction” to the sport and has taken him to the EHL Men’s KO8 with SV Arminen, the Junior World Cup with Austria and, most recently, to Berliner Hockey Club...

Helen started her international career in 1999 at the age of 17 and became the youngest ever woman to represent GB hockey at an Olympics in Sydney the following year. She went on to compete at four Olympic Games and as part of the senior leadership group played a central role in propelling the women’s game to victory on the world stage at Rio 2016. As she stepped on to the podium alongside her team mate and wife, GB captain Kate Richardson-Walsh, they also entered Olympic history as the first...

Robin Rösch is a coach with extensive, successful, and international experience in top-class hockey. Whether as a sports director, as a coach, or even as a coach educator for the EHF and FIH. Robin is currently the sports director at SC Frankfurt 1880 and the Head Coach of the Austrian Men and U21 teams. Tune-in to Robin in conversation with Jack Rolfe, founder of The Coaching Lab, as they discuss indoor hockey, Robin’s journey and more.

With more than 300 international caps for Trinidad and Tobago, Kwan Browne has had an illustrious 17-year international career. A career that has seen him represent his country at the Commonwealth games, Pan American Games and Pan American Cup. Add to this his domestic career for Canterbury, East Grinstead and Hampstead & Westminster and you begin to see why Kwan is such a stalwart of the global hockey community. Alongside playing, Kwan has become a distinguished coach, having been...

Adam David Commens is a former field hockey midfielder from Australia, who was a member of the team that won the bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. Commens was nicknamed Billy by his teammates, and earned a total number of 143 caps (20 goals) for Australia. Commens was named head coach of the Belgium national field hockey team on 4 July 2007. Commens was coach and a key player of the Royal Antwerp Hockey Club (RAHC). His new assistant will be Murray Richards. Commens...

Today we are celebrating International Women’s Day and Siobhán Madeley took over the EHF Podcast from Jack for a special edition with Marijke Fleuren, EHF President, Executive Board Member FIH, Member IOC Commission "Women in Sport", Member of the EHL Board and we are joined by Marco Moers and Mandy Beck who are part of the ABN Amro Diversity & Inclusion policy team. The theme for IWD 2021 is “choose to challenge” so it seems fitting to discuss this topic with Marijke, Marco and Mandy as...

Dennis Bergkamp is a Dutch professional football coach and former player. Originally a wide midfielder, Bergkamp was moved to main striker and then to second striker, where he remained throughout his playing career. Nicknamed the "Non-Flying Dutchman" by Arsenal supporters due to his fear of flying, Bergkamp is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation. Upon retiring, Bergkamp insisted he would not move into coaching. He turned down an offer to scout for Arsenal and...

Sarah is a strategic consultant in innovation, business & brand strategy, specialising in the power of storytelling & cultural understanding to engage and change behaviour across a wide range of sectors and business challenges. In her 20+ years working in the industry, she have worked extensively with global brands such as Lexus, NIVEA, Johnson and Johnson, Bupa, McDonalds, Jack Daniels and Eli Lilly… Alongside her business career, Sarah have been involved in high performance...

Laurine Delforge is an international field hockey umpire and a Belgian field hockey player. She was the winner of the 2016 FIH umpire award and was one of the two first women to umpire at the Euro Hockey League. Playing career Delforge started playing hockey when she was 6. She started playing at Royal Parc Hockey Club in Brussels, but later moved to Royal Antwerp. Delforge currently plays for Royal Antwerp in the top Belgian league. She played for all the Belgian youth squads, but has...

From the beginning of his adventure with hockey, a Wart Poznań club player. He combines his field hockey adventure with a coaching career. From 2014 he was the coach of the senior team of Warta Poznań and in 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 the Savona Hockey coach (Italy) during the Indoor season. In youth groups, Mateusz Grochal worked in the Grunwald Poznań team (2013-2016) and from 2016 until today with AZS Politechnika Poznańska. In the national teams in 2009-2017, a video analyst at the PZHT...

In the field hockey pitch, the traveler climbs mountains invisible to others. Visiting as many different countries and cities of the world as possible is one of the Ugnė Chmeliauskaitė dreams for few last years. 2018, Ugnė visited 12 different countries of the world, and 2019 she has added nine more countries to her travel map and has planned four more routes. However, a traveler cannot just walk with her head up and admire the city's architecture - often, sometimes, she visiting the...

Lisa Jacob is an ex-international Irish hockey player (2006-2014) who now plays her club hockey for Old Alex HC. She became the first Irish woman professionally contracted with a Dutch Hoofdklasse club, playing for SCHC in 2013. After almost a decade playing international hockey, Lisa was contracted with the Irish Women’s Rugby 7’s squad for 18 months. Lisa is passionate about the potential of individuals and teams and works as a high-performance business and life coach. She is also a coach...