Canada vs Germany met in the B-Final at the Women’s World Floorball Championships on Sunday May 8, 2016 in Belleville, Ontario, Canada. Photo by James Paddle-Grant/ActiveImages.ca
Written By Martin Durkin
A tournament such as the Under 19 Women’s World Floorball Championships isn’t just about the games unfolding on two different rinks. The tournament itself is a five day event with too many components to count, helping the overall show become a success.
After a week inside the Wellness Centre, you begin to realize how much the event has turned into a living- breathing- and exhausting experience for all involved. Exhausting with a smile on the faces of everyone you meet.
None of this would be possible without the work of so many people working behind the scenes. Because the world championships have gone so well, you get to see some amazing moments, such as the Czech Republic marching through the hallways before every game and singing at the top of their lungs.
If you come down the stairs, you have volunteers and security, doing their job but at the same time, wanting to greet you with a smile and talk for a few seconds about the day. If things weren’t running this well, you wouldn’t get that, instead you would have silence and perhaps a nod.
Fred Rutter has been a volunteer working as security for the entire world championships. Since Tuesday evening, he like so many others wearing a red or orange shirt, has put in either 5 or 10 hours, doing his part to help the cause.
For Rutter, the overall experience has been an eye opener on a personal level. “The objective of doing something later in life, volunteering at events like this. It’s interesting to meet the different volunteers and see how things are done behind the scenes,” said Rutter.
“I’ve really enjoyed it, we haven’t had any problems. Most of us are first timers learning on the go,” said Rutter, who admits he’ll miss not coming in here Monday morning. “It’s been an interesting experience to be here every day helping out, and Monday I’ll have to go back to work.”
It doesn’t just end with volunteers. Arena staff are a major part of the overall production. Comparably they operate very much as a stage crew setting up for a rock show, which this tournament very much has been, with dance routines between periods to keep fans entertained. There’s clean up before and after the day’s events take place. For guys like Justin Somerville it can sometimes mean doing double time and putting in an 18 hour day.
“We do everything from top to bottom,” says Somerville who hopes more will come of the sport, now that floorball has been showcased to the Quinte region. “I’m hoping this builds community spirit, maybe this tournament will build into something local. I have kids and this would be great for them to get into,” said Somerville.
In order to get fans geared up and players feeling the vibe, you need music. That’s where Jason Ferguson comes in with his company, Definitive Entertainment Productions. His day begins at 7 a.m. and ends around 11 p.m. Before opening ceremonies even began, Ferguson was looking after piping and draping. He had a full day making sure trusses were up safely, that wiring was not in the way for camera crews running on the floor focused on the game and not what their feet were walking through. But it’s not the hard work that Ferguson focuses on. It’s the experience of the overall week.
“This is a lifetime experience, I didn’t realize how big a deal this was going to be,” said Ferguson. “This is going out around the world, on the internet, on TV, over the radio, and into print.”
Knowing he was part of something that truly matters, Ferguson believes that if you didn’t attend, well… “Shame on you. You missed out on something huge,” said Ferguson.
Match Secretariat Matt Sinclair is another person who has been inside the Yardmen from sun up until sundown. Whether it was straightening boards, carrying flags, bringing trophies out, or bringing the dancers in between periods, Sinclair is the guy who has either been hands on, or making sure his crew was on top of things.
Taking time off from his regular job, Sinclair made this tournament his vacation. When most people look for somewhere tropical so they can lie on a beach, he was running between rinks, keeping all the details in check.
Although exhausted, he says he found the time exhilarating.
“I’m going to take away so much from this tournament. There’s the memories, meeting the teams, watching their faces, hearing their stories, even just driving around town seeing them at the restaurants, in the park, even
inside the mall,” said Sinclair.
Not only did Sinclair find it an honour to use his vacation time to volunteer at this event, he found it a privilege to meet all the different people from 14 different countries. “It was great, it was exhausting – exhilaration,” said Sinclair.
From the floors to way up in the rafters, the work and the dedication is endless. If you are sitting in one of the Yardmen’s famous green seats and looking up at the Jumbo Tron, think of Brianna Christopher. She’s sitting inside a small box next to the lights and speakers making sure all the advertising properly appears on that monstrosity of a screen hovering over the floor.
“I’ve been here every day since the week before,” says Christopher who sits in the box, alone, for nearly 12 hours a day. Yes I’m volunteering, but I go to Durham College for Sports Management, which is why I was asked to do this. And it’s been a rewarding experience,” said Christopher. “This world championship is happening in the town I grew up in. The Yardmen has been so quiet for so long now, it’s just great to see it up and alive again,” explained Christopher, wrapped in a blanket; fighting a head cold.
As a city, we’ve broken attendance records, we’ve housed teams and families from 14 different countries, and we have fed and completed janitorial duties. Schools have come in and met players from around the world. Kids who have come with their classes have begged their parents to come back on the weekend.
What can you say about a world tournament such as this? After gallons of coffee has been walked in and out of the building, after boxes upon boxes of pizza and hamburgers have been trotted through the rooms to those who haven’t eaten since the day before, after hundreds of floorballs have been lost or given away to young fans….what can you say?
Cameras and book bags have been slung on the backs of media running between two rinks. Sweepers have kept the playing floor clean. And everyone who has been behind the scenes, doing those dirty jobs, has been laughing and joking. It hasn’t mattered if it’s 7:00 a.m and they’re not quite awake yet or if it’s 11:00 p.m and they’re wishing a cot was in the hallway where they could just flop for an hour or two.
The Under 19 Women’s World Floorball Championships 2016. The Wellness Centre. The Yardmen arena. Those famous back-aching green seats. One song sums up the tournament. A song which Belleville has played in this famous arena for 20 years or more after great goals and great wins. As the famous Irish Rover tune goes, “Wasn’t That A Party.
