Fiji Hockey National Head Coach Hector Smith Snr has been awarded the sport's highest coaching accreditation.
The 63‑year‑old long‑time Fijian hockey mentor Hector Smith was presented with the International Hockey Federation Master Educator accreditation during the final of the Fiji Invitational Series in Suva.
Smith says that it came as a complete surprise when he was presented with the accreditation.
Smith was the former coach of Fiji's senior men's and women's teams before moving into his current role as the Fiji Hockey Federation's national head coach, which allows him to get out into the islands, alongside the Fiji Sports Commission, and conduct coaching clinics in the community.
Smith said he was introduced to the sport that would become a life‑long sporting passion while growing up on Vanua Levu in the 1960s.
He says that since his school days and moving onto representing Fiji in the sport, he decided to put back something into coaching and he is thoroughly enjoying it.
Smith juggles his coaching commitments with a full‑time job as an engineer at Consort Shipping Limited but said after over half a century as a player and coach he relished the opportunity to give back to the sport that has given him so much.
