Am I Really Here?

By Amy Hassick

"I never thought that umpiring a sport I love would bring me to places I had never imagined I would go.
Just as important, umpiring has helped me become the person I am today."   — Amy Hassick

The following is by Amy Hassick, a rising star for USA Field Hockey who started officiating while still a college player. Contacted by USAFieldHockey.com less than two weeks before she would take the field at the 2009 Women's Junior World Cup (August 3 to 16, 2009, Harvard University, Boston, MA), Amy was gracious in her response to our request for more information about her journey behind the whistle.

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It’s a cool, cloudy, fall day and I’m trying to keep the butterflies in my stomach from taking over. I’m bouncing up and down, trying to stay warm, blowing in my hands to keep them from stiffening up, and then the whistle blows. Game on!

I’m in Santiago, Chile, doing my first appointed international tournament and all I can think is, I’m about to umpire a game of the best players of their respective countries.

I’m in awe, and the players are off. I was in such a zone. Suddenly, I went down – face first into the turf. What on Earth happened? As I dug my feet into the ground to scramble my way up, I glance behind me to see just what it was that took me out. There it was. Simple. The corner flag had fallen over onto the playing surface. I didn’t see it as I rounded the corner heading into my circle with the play. The players turned into the circle, full throttle, not even glimpsing at my mishap. I immediately sprinted into position and checked with my partner, who was in the right position for assistance -– laughing, giving me a ‘thumbs up’. Play on!

For the rest of my life, (A) I will never live that moment down, and (B) I will never forget that first game. Two years later, I’ve been appointed to the Junior World Cup in Boston. How in the world did I get here?

Well, it all started out during the summers of my college playing career when I coached at a local hockey camp. I found that I actually enjoyed umpiring the night scrimmages. The first taste of what was ahead.

After college, I decided I wanted to try my hand at coaching, I applied to my first job and got right into it: recruiting, planning practices, games, etc. Heading into the third year, I wanted out. I wanted to actually enjoy a fall season without hockey interfering. Ahhhhhh, what a breather it was, but after only one year, I missed it. I missed the hot, sweaty August preseasons, the fantastic games on cool, New England nights, and I wondered, How can I get back into a game that I've loved for a third of my life? I no longer could play competitively and I had no desire to coach anymore. Hmmm... I remembered the enjoyment I had umpiring during those summers back in camp.

Umpiring? Really? Why not? I remembered one of the umpires who did many of my college games because of the fairness and dialogue she had shared. I was sold.

In 2002, I started the process by taking an introductory course. For the next two years I umpired at summer jamborees and, in the fall, junior high and high school games, earning my Level I rating in the process. I didn't even own a car at this point—here I am biking, walking, and taking public transportation to umpire hockey games! What on Earth was I thinking? The following year I searched to find some information on how to get my Level II rating so I could start officiating at the college level.

I was put in contact with the umpire I remembered from my days in college. She assigned me to a spring college play day where I would be evaluated. It was there, and from that same umpire, that I received my Level II rating. What a feeling to have the umpiring torch passed to the next generation. Six months later, I umpired my first college game!

At this point, while teaching and umpiring, I was still playing indoor hockey for a local hockey club in Boston. In 2005, I attended an umpiring clinic the club was hosting in conjunction with a high school play day. The head clinician was Steve Simpson, a retired FIH umpire from the USA. I attempted to officiate my best and absorb as much information as possible. Towards the end of the day, Steve approached me and asked if I was interested in umpiring at a higher level. Who? Me? You bet!

A month or so later I was introduced to the gentleman who coordinates umpires for international development, and my training began. The next year I did a variety of tournaments: regional tournaments, national tournaments (JFK, Women’s National Championships, Men’s National Championships, etc), and anything else that I had the opportunity to officiate. I even drove ten hours to the March on Madrid series in 2006 to watch the best teams and umpires in the world. How often do you get to see that? I couldn’t let the opportunity pass.

The following year, big things started happening. In March of 2007, I got a call that the U21 team was going to China for a test series, and would I be able to represent the USA as its umpire for the series? Are you kidding me? China?!? I packed my bags and never looked back.

Two months later, I received my first official FIH appointment to a Four Nation Tournament, an invitational being held in Chile. It was there that I received my FIH badge – the first step to reaching the ultimate of international appointments, the Olympics!

Let me get this straight. In less than six months, I’ve gone to two countries, on two different continents? Awesome! While umpiring for the USA? Even better!

My whole life I'd been trying to get to a place that I couldn't as a player: the Olympics. How does a player get there? For the love of the game, they do physical training, video analysis of other teams as well as their own, technical emphasis, mental visualization, nutrition, and most of all, heart. As players, we strive to be the best we can. So do umpires. Some people do it for money, some people do it to stay in shape, some of us do it because we love the game, and some of us want to umpire at the Olympics. Everyone has a purpose to fulfill within this game. To each his/her own. Whatever the reason is, it is a wonderful feeling to walk off a game and know that you’ve just finished umpiring a well-fought game. Even the players who have just lost feel justified with the outcome, and when you are a part of that – it’s simply amazing.

And here I am with my latest appointment, about to umpire at the Women’s Junior World Cup, a goal I set for myself only two years ago. There will be umpires from 18 other countries there and I’ll be representing the USA. Nervous? Of course. But I know that I’m ready for this. I’ve trained, practiced, and watched countless hours of video, not only of myself but also of others. As I write this, I'm less than a week away from walking onto a pitch with the best U21 teams in the world, all vying for that top spot, to be called number one. And I hope that I reach the championship game too. If not, I’ll be busting my butt for that next chance. Watch out!