By Mwangi Ngamate
mwangi@caymannetnews.com

Former Bahamian Olympian, Frank “Pancho” Benjamin Rahming took members of the sporting fraternity through officiating courses of track and field last week.

Speaking to Cayman Net News in an exclusive interview, Mr Rahming said officials should avoid pitfalls that bring disrepute to the various disciplines.

“We are all human and we have to know the rules to reduce officiating mistakes,”he said, in the light of Ireland football team missing the World Cup, following an officiating error that favoured France recently.

In the build up to the goal by France, former Arsenal star and Real Madrid striker Thierry Henry, handed the ball, but the referee and linesmen did not call this foul. This led Ireland to protest, asking FIFA for a rematch.

Mr Rahming accompanied by his sister Stephanie Rahming was visiting the Islands to train officials who will be working at the Carifta Games to be hosted in the Cayman Islands next April -- a meet that will see some 600 athletes competing.

“Don’t be too quick to call a decision, remember you are there to enhance the performance of the athlete through fair play and not to make their life miserable,” he said.

He urged the officials not to be rough on athletes and make them as comfortable as possible because they are under a lot of tension and stress in their efforts to perform well.

“If they are excited and perform badly, the athletes take on the officials. But you must also ensure that nobody gains unfair advantage over the others.”

Mr Rahming, who is also the technical director for the Bahamas Track and Field Association, noted that the field events are the most technical to officiate, and everyone needed to be in a strategic position to ensure that nothing went wrong.

He said an event such as the shot put would need keen officials strategically positioned to ensure that the athlete does not toss the shot from behind his ear, which would be an offence.

He noted that the course has been a refresher for some and a new beginning from scratch for some of the students taking it in Cayman.

Ms Rahming also took the students through the Field Recording Sheet and showed them how to enter data and to quickly pick out winners.

According to a local athletics official, Harcourt Wason, the course was definitely worthwhile and was very enlightening.

He said that the 50 students who took the course were very enthused by the perfomance of the Rahmings.

There are now 70 officials who work with the Cayman Islands Athletics Association. However, an additional 70 persons are needed to ensure the smooth flow of the games.