Introducing Coreen Beckford: Chair of the Officials Education Management Group

England Athletics have recently brought onboard Coreen Beckford as Chair of the Officials Education Management Group (OEMG). With a keen interest in athletics, and a qualified official herself, we are very excited to bring Coreen into this role and look forward to seeing her get stuck in. We caught up with Coreen to talk about her background and what she is looking to achieve as the Chair of the OEMG.

Having been an avid spectator for her whole life, Coreen is a big athletics fan herself. As a child, Coreen was also a keen athlete; "When I was in school I had exceptionally long limbs which meant I was automatically thrust into high jump, long jump, 100m, 200m, relays and hurdles. I enjoyed being a part of the sporting scene, but I always suffered an underlying anxiety (before I even knew what anxiety was) at having to perform on the day. It was a terrible fall in the hurdles at age 15 that caused me to draw a line under the prospect of being an athlete myself. That never stopped my love for watching the sport though."

Coreen's love of athletics and sport was not diminished by this terrible fall, however, and she found herself looking for new ways to get active and volunteer when she discovered our officiating qualifications. She explains; "I looked into golf events, rugby and then just by chance I stumbled across the England Athletics website and learnt about the pathway levels for becoming an official. Previously I had assumed that the officiating world was a closed-off circuit to the normal public."

Inspiring the next generation of officials is something that is very important to us at England Athletics and Coreen, she comments:

"If you have a spare day with no plans, then please just join us and try it out. Pick a role in the track team or an event on the field, and simply try it out. Don't over-analyse it! Just join us. There is nothing like trying something out first hand, surrounded by a good team of strangers, to give you a taste of whether you think you are going to enjoy it or not."

Looking ahead to her new role as Chair we asked Coreen what she is most excited about; "Placing a stand-alone focus on the training of Level 1-3 officials with a fresh set of eyes, and almost professionalising the steps that need to be taken to become a world-class British official. I am excited at the thought of modernising a few things and showcasing the achievements of the OEMG over the course of my time. I aim to take the approach of 'eating the elephant one bite at a time' because I like ticking things off my sticky-note lists.

"Officials are almost the unsung heroes of athletics and so I want to do my bit to help with their competency training and upkeep."

We are very much looking forward to seeing Coreen thrive in this role and achieve all that she has planned for the officiating world, increasing the recognition and credibility of the OEMG. She explains; "We are a very new group so I hope that our outputs will be able to speak for themselves over the course of my time."

With the Olympics in full swing, we thought it was only right that we asked a few topical questions. When asked if she had a favourite Olympic memory, Coreen told us "As a child, there was an occasion where I had to attend a funeral and I had been stuffed into a very uncomfortable, poofy black dress. After the funeral we all went to a family member's house, and I remember sitting in front of the TV for an Olympics 100m men's race that Linford Christie was due to run. I remember the enormous feeling of tension and excitement for his race and the way the room went quiet as the starter began the proceedings. It was indescribable. I can't remember if Linford won or not. I do remember fighting with my stuffy dress though!"

Looking ahead to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, Coreen spoke about what she was most looking forward to; "The modern pentathlon without a shadow of a doubt. The modern pentathlon at the Tokyo Games was the most extraordinary thing that me and my friends had ever watched."
It was great to catch up with Coreen and we are very excited to welcome her as Chair of the OEMG. We hope that you can join us in welcoming her and if you are interested in becoming official yourself, click the link below to explore our officiating qualifications.