The Hungarian Floorball Federation (HFF) achieved great success with the Hungarian Floorball Student Olympiad Championships. 600 teams and thousands of players have participated in this year´s competitions from numerous schools in Hungary.

The event is organised in cooperation with the Hungarian Floorball Federation and the Hungarian School Sport Federation. There are three different playing systems for the students who can compete within six different age groups (6 to 18). The most attended version of floorball is the "small field” version, 3 versus 3 on a small field and using small goals. Another version is the "unihockey” category with 3+1 players and a normal size goal. Last but not least, is the "classical floorball" version, with 5+1 players on a normal size field.

The exact number of participants in 2013 and 2014:

• Small field: 2012/13 - 434 teams        2013/14 - 457 teams         + 5,3%
• Unihockey: 2012/13 - 85 teams          2013/14 - 103 teams         + 21,2%
• Floorball:    2012/13 - 29 teams          2013/14 - 40 teams           + 42,7%

- We are really happy for this growth, which we achieved despite the fact that our government recently founded a brand new countrywide school funding  system, making the schools´ everyday life a bit more complicated, Róbert Gyula Jaczkó, Secretary General of the Hungarian Floorball Federation, explained.

The financial backup for the schools  has been cut and the paperwork for the financials is way more complicated than before. But the entry numbers are still growing:

- We put together a complete start kit for the schools who had not participated yet and we hope this will boost the numbers even more, not just those who play in school but also clubs and licensed players, Róbert Gyula Jaczkó added.

The plan is to add a 3+1 National Championship format to offer the opportunity for the many teams to join the HFF and be part of the national floorball family. More effective cooperation with the Hungarian Olympic Committee and with the government is also important to get more financial support and know how.

Additional news from the HFF

* Evelin Siklósi has been re-elected to the position of head coach for the Men’s U19 national team.
* Starting from this year, a player who wants to go to College or University and has finished on the podium in the HFF Championships in the previous years, can get plus points in the application process. Floorball is acknowledged by the application process authorities.
* The play-offs of both the Men´s and Women´s Championships are about to start in the upcoming weeks.
* The HFF has started a development strategy for floorball and the organisation and also in order to make the game more popular. The Each One Teach One project and the help from other Hungarian sport federations and the Hungarian Olympic Committee will be helpful to accomplish the strategy. The organising of systematic referee and team leader workshops/seminars have also started.

Source & more information: www.hunfloorball.hu