Prior to the Chinese National Championships starting on December 10th, 2010, a 3-day seminar for the National Umpires Panel was conducted by Australia's former World Cup and Olympic umpire Jan Hadfield, one of FIH's most experienced Umpire Managers.

The seminar was held in the excellent conference facility at the ‘Minhang Hockey Stadium’, Shanghai, the venue for the Championships. A total of 20 umpires & Umpire Managers were in attendance.

Each Provincial Government in China has residential “Sports Schools” with 1st-class playing facilities for each sport, dining facilities, conference rooms & accommodation for scholarship holders. At the Minhang complex 14 sports are accommodated with hockey being classified as a “1st Tier” sport.

Two sessions per day were held covering a range of topics, including the 2011 Rules, and focussing on the key issues which had arisen at the 2010 Champions Trophy & World Cup. The “Dartfish Player” video clips were a valuable asset and provided excellent examples of the various incidents being discussed.

The Chinese Hockey Association is both progressive & pro-active in its umpire development programs – no expense is being spared in preparing Chinese umpires for careers in International hockey. Their National Championships have highly efficient professional administration while their umpires have earned great recognition both within China and around the world.