Day 4: We get respect by giving respect.

The camp is well under way. We didn’t know it yet, but we were in for an incredible day. A rude wake up reminds us of yesterday’s training session. But we’re not here to rest, and we’re all on time at 7:30 for the speed workout. Today, after the muscular wake-up call, it’s all about explosivity work and lateral movement work.

Then it’s off to breakfast, always eagerly awaited, as you’ve probably noticed if you read our recaps this week.

Like every day, we had a theory session before lunch. Today in two distinct parts.

First a long discussion about patience whistle. Why should referees use the patience whistle, and why is it useful? Thanks to this “tool” we have a little space to process the play. But also, sometimes we need to call directly and there’s no room for that: foul to stop the clock, mismatch, obvious foul, etc.

Then we had the honor of having Fernando Rocha, a former Euroleague referee with an illustrious career, with us for a video conference. He discussed several important points with us:

• Act of Shooting, difference between FIBA and Euroleague
• Principle of semi-circle
• Game management
• And then we had time to ask him our questions. What an opportunity for us!

After lunch, a little rest, a pre-game session, and a fitness session (again!) Afterwards, it was time for games. We’re getting tired, but we’re having fun applying everything we’ve learned.

After dinner, we were lucky enough to have our 2nd video conference of the day, this time with Paulina Gajdosz. She’s currently in Mexico at the U17 Women’s World Championship. We had plenty of time to chat with her and ask her many questions about her tournament, but also about her life as a referee.

What a day!

This camp is about a lot more than refereeing, it’s about “how to be a good person”. Great values… And remember: “We get respect by giving respect”

by Yoann Buttet