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Women step up the pace

Women referees have stepped up their fitness work to keep pace with developments on the field.

The rapid evolution of women's football in recent years - technically, tactically and fitness-wise - means that women referees have also had to step up their game to keep pace with developments.

Fitness equals performance
Europe's international women referees were told at their fourth annual UEFA seminar in Nyon, Switzerland, that top physical condition had become essential for them to produce top-quality performances at major tournaments such as the FIFA Women's World Cup and the UEFA European Women's Championship. "Referees are now doing more to prepare for matches," said UEFA referee fitness coach Werner Helsen. "Figures show that since 2001, there has been a considerable increase in the fitness of top referees. Training regimes have changed substantially.

Game has changed
"Football has changed in a dramatic way," he added. "The game is faster, players are fitter and stronger - and this means that referees have also had to adapt accordingly. In comparison to the late 1980s and early 1990s, a top referee has to run up to 13 kilometres in a game, and there is much more high-intensity running than before."

Devotion to fitness
Referees' devotion to fitness nowadays, said Helsen, was a key factor in helping improve their performance on the pitch. "If [referees] practice more and get fitter, for example their heart rate is lower during games, this increases their ability to keep up with the play. It is important that in the final stages of games, for example, when players get tired, that referees are able to keep up with the play to be able to take the key decisions that often arise in the last few minutes. Modern training is helping them to reach these levels of fitness."

International gathering
Around 40 women referees from 31 countries - a number of whom are also officiating at top domestic men's matches throughout Europe - are attending the course, which also includes the FIFA fitness test. "Referees are athletes, and their dedication to fitness shows that they are concerned about their professional standards," UEFA Referees' Committee chairman Angel María Villa Llona told them.

World Cup analysis
The course includes analyses from a refereeing point of view of the recent FIFA Women's World Cup in China. "I'd like to congratulate the team of European referees and assistants who went to China, they did an excellent job" said Mr Villa Llona. "And after this course, the referees will go on to take charge of matches in further competitions. They should have no problem in maintaining the high levels that they have set."