The IFF Referee Committee has nominated eight referee pairs from eight different member associations to the Men’s U19 WFC Final Round, which will be played in Halifax in Canada from the 8th to 12th of May 2019.

The IFF RC has also nominated three referee observers and the Head of the Referees in this tournament is Mr. Ronny Brännbacka from Finland. His observer team consists of Mr. Tony Holmer from Sweden and Mr. Adrian Kretz from Switzerland.

– This time we maybe have more so-called newcomers than before, but they are still all very experienced referees and we are positive that the referee team will make good work in Halifax, says Mr. Carlos Lopez, the IFF Referee Committee chair.

– This tournament acts as a normal step towards even tougher tournaments in the future and hopefully we will see all of these referees at some stage also in the adult’s WFC Final rounds, he concludes.

Jakub Furmanek CZE
He is 35 years old and lives outside of Prague on the countryside. He works for Czech Floorball and is about to graduate from the University. He has been a referee longer than a decade. He also likes outside activities like camping and gardening.

Vlastimil Solc CZE
He is 36 years old and lives in Prague. He has been an international referee since 2014 and this is the first major event for him and his pair on the international level. They have been refereeing the Czech Play-offs though. He works for sport business as a Key Account Manager and has a family.

Thomas Ellis FIN
He is 38 years old and an electrician that lives in Helsinki with his wife and two kids. In his free-time he plays both floorball and football and is also coaching his daughter’s football team. He’s been on the international level since 2016.

Janne Sjögren FIN
He lives in the city of Vantaa next to Helsinki and works as a consultant. He’s 33 years old and has been a referee for more than 15 years. On the international level he has been since 2016. In his younger years he also spent some time in Australia, also refereeing floorball there.

Kaspars Kristapsons LAT
He is 27 years old and he lives in the city of Talsi by the Baltic Sea with his wife and son. He works as a fitness trainer and a fireman. He has with his pair refereed the MU19 final in 2017 and also the WUC final in 2016. They were also refereeing in the Men’s WFC 2016 in Riga.

Maris Kumerdanks LAT
Lives in Sigulda which is 50 km North East from Riga and he works as system administrator. He has a wife and two sons and he is 32 years old. He has been an international referee for more than a decade but he started his career with another pair.

Bartosz Burek POL
He is 33 years old and a CEO from the city of Poznan. He is single and has been a referee for more than 17 years. He was promoted to the international level in 2009. He has also been a player in the Polish Men’s U19 team. His hobbies outside of the floorball field are very sport related, such as wind surfing, squash and running.

Wojciech Czarnecki POL
He is 37 years old and a building engineer who lives close to the city of Gdanks. He is married and has two kids, a girl and a boy. Outside of floorball he is a true music man and likes to listen to music and also plays the guitar. The first international assignment for him and his pair was the Men’s WFC qualifications in Poland in 2010.

Sharil Ismail SGP
“Rello” is 36 years old and works as a sports coordinator. He’s been a referee since 1998 and on the international level for way over a decade. They have now refereed on international level with his present pair since 2016. He’s been to the Men’s WFC in 2014 and in Men’s U19 final rounds in 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017. He also works as a referee educator in the AOFC region.

Oswind Rosayro SGP
He is 30 years old and he has been refereeing for 13 years. He works a sports coordinator and is teaching Floorball in schools. When not refereeing he plays floorball, futasal and field hockey.

Tomas Beno SVK
He lives in Bratislava and is self-employed. He is 28 years old has been refereeing for 13 years and out of those 13 years, eight years together with his pair. This is their first major event on the IFF level. Sport is his hobby in general and he enjoys also to watch good sports.

Roman Sklenica SVK
He is 25 years old and comes from Bratislava. He is soon about to graduate as a paramedic. He also has a background as a referee educator and observer in Slovakia. When he has free time he relaxes by listening to music.

David Geiser SWE
He is a teacher in high school and teaches history and religion. He is 32 years old, married and lives in Gothenburg. This is the first IFF major event for him and his pair. Outside of floorball he likes to spend his time with music and travelling.

Henrik Nilsson SWE
He is 33 years old and a medical student. He lives in Linköping with his wife and daughter. Like most of the Scandinavians his other hobbies outside of floorball are fishing and cross-country skiing. Also travelling is close to his heart.

Benjamin Hohler SUI
He lives in Basel and is 35 years old. He is married and works as the head of operations and security in a Swiss bank. He’s been refereeing for 15 years and together with his pair for nine years. For them this is also the first IFF major event.

Pascal Koch SUI
He is 34 years old food engineer and he also lives in Basel. He also has 15 years’ experience of refereeing and as an international referee this is his second season. Outside of the floorball rink he likes cooking and taking care of his garden.