Debbie Lines, Author at World Croquet Federation

New Handicap Calculator – now available in Global Resources

Thank you to Brian Wainman for developing this Handicap Calculation tool.

By entering the type of game, such as GC 13pt or AC Handicap, and each players handicaps, the tool will quickly work out how many bisques you should have in AC handicap, how many extra strokes in GC handicap and the winner and loser points impact when playing AC advanced games.

Click here> https://chc.eu.pythonanywhere.com or access it from the Global Resources page of the WCF Website.

The operation of handicap systems is a matter for individual national governing bodies, however this calculator is believed to work in most WCF Member countries.

Brian welcomes any feedback or ideas for further development. Please contact him directly by email: wanderingwainmans@blueyonder.co.uk

Peter Payne is elected as WCF Treasurer

The WCF is pleased to announce that Peter Payne has been elected as the new WCF Treasurer.

Peter won the election from Jose-Maria Alonso-Gamo. The WCF is pleased to have had such strong candidates and thank Jose for his interest in supporting us.

Peter had a career in banking for 44 years and now runs a financial consulting and services company.

Peter joined CERN Croquet Club in Geneva in 1989 and helped to create the Swiss CA in 1991 and the European Croquet Federation in 1993. He was on the WCF Management Committee for a while previously and during this time worked with the committee that first unified the rules of GC.

On the lawn, he was a keen and active player for many years before personal reasons led to a sabbatical from croquet in 2006. Since returning to the game in 2018 he has been improving his game (both AC and GC), and recently was a proud member of the Swiss team that participated in the GC World Team Championship (Tier 2) in Spain.

He is keen to contribute his time and energy to develop our sport in the future.

Peter starts his role from 1st January 2022 and his term ends 31st December 2025.

Changes to the WCF Management Committee

Graeme Roberts

Graeme has been playing croquet since 1970 and has had a long and illustrious croquet history. He represented New Zealand in the MacRobertson Shield in 1982 and has played in the WCF World AC Championships twice, in 1990 and 2005.

Graeme has served on many croquet committees locally in Wellington and also at National and International level.

As a Championship referee he has officiated at many World Championships. He is one of the founding members of the NZCC Laws Committee and has served on the Committee since then. He is also New Zealand's representative on the AC Laws Committee (ACLC), and has been chair since 2017.

Graeme worked in New Zealand Public Service, within the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and its predecessors. Over a period of almost 36 years he served as a physical sciences assessment analyst, assessments manager, intelligence coordinator, senior policy adviser and principal policy adviser.

Roberts Stafeckis

Roberts had a career in the diplomatic services for Latvia and went on to be Commissioner General of Latvia at the World Expos in Shanghai and Milan. He currently runs a private business advisory company.

He started playing croquet in 2009 when he established the Ogre Croquet Club in 2009, and Latvian Croquet Federation later the same year. He has been President of the Latvian Croquet Federation since 2009.

Robert has been a member of the WCF Management Committee since 2014. His objectives are the promotion of croquet (AC and GC) as a serious sport in the existing WCF Member countries, as well as reaching out to new territories. He is keen to foster croquet activities in mainland Europe through the new WCF European Regional Committee due to launch early in 2022.

Roberts has played in the 2012 and 2021 GC WTC, 2019 GC WC, 2015 and 2017 GC European Championships.

Begoña Elzaburu

Begoña, and her sons, are keen croquet enthusiasts and have supported croquet in Spain for many years. In particular, she was a founding member of the Croquet Committee of Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro, a large multi-sports club in Madrid with 16,000 members. Since 2016 Begona has helped drive growth at the club by organising coaching, marketing and organising events, and as a result the croquet section has grown from just 30 keen players to over 250 players. She is now involved in helping other clubs to grow and serves on the Spanish Federation Committee.

Begoña recently helped to organise and run the successful World Team Championships Tier 2 held in Spain in October 2021.

As a player, she is one of the top Spanish Women GC players and has played in the GC Women's World Championship. A keen croquet traveller she has also played in England, Egypt, Ireland and even in Senegal.

Amir Ramsis Naguib

Amir Ramsis Naguib began playing Golf Croquet with friends at the Gezirah Club in Cairo in 1968. He became a strong player and represented the club in Men’s Doubles in matches from 1970 to 1975. However, marriage, children and building up and running his own tourist agency took him away from the game until 1992.

Now a successful businessman, Amir returned to croquet at the Heliopolis Club and was soon representing the club in Men’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles. Over the next ten years, he became the team manager and a generous sponsor of tournaments and the top Egyptian players.

In 2001, Amir stood for election as President of the Egyptian Croquet Federation with the widespread support of the playing community. He immediately set about reorganizing the inter-club competitions, namely the Egyptian League, the Egyptian Cup and the Egyptian Federation Cup, and introduced for the first time a domestic ranking system for men and women. His other priority was the upgrading of the Egyptian Croquet Federation centre and the restoration of its three courts.

Amir was elected to the Management Committee of the World Croquet Federation in 2002. Golf Croquet now stood on at least equal terms with Association Croquet and the Golf Croquet World Championship was now well established, having been held five times since 1996. However, Amir recognised the needs of women and the older and younger players and, with the support of David Openshaw, the then WCF President, was the driving force behind the formation of a Women’s Golf Croquet World Championship, first held in 2005, an Under 21 Golf Croquet World Championship, first held in 2009 and an Over 50 Golf Croquet World Championship, first held in 2010. All the inaugural events were held in Cairo and were great successes. These events are now permanent items in the WCF championship schedule.

Amir also travelled widely to promote Golf Croquet, visiting England, Italy, the USA and China to showcase the fearless, hard-hitting Egyptian way of playing Golf Croquet. Inevitably, the Egyptian approach influenced the tactics of top players in other countries and, eventually, led to the emergence in 2011 of the first non-Egyptian Golf Croquet World Champion. As the President of the Egyptian Croquet Federation, Amir exercised his considerable administrative skills by acting as the organiser and manager of the Egyptian squads that have had and continue to have so much success at World Championship level. During his tenure, Egypt has won four Golf Croquet World Championships, three Women’s Golf Croquet World Championships, two Over 50 World Championships and one Under 21 Golf Croquet World Championship.

Amir was elected as President of the World Croquet Federation in 2012 and served two four-year terms, retiring at the end of 2019. He was a very popular President who ensured that he attended almost every World Championship during his period in office. He remains a member of the WCF Management Committee and hopes to continue to serve croquet in Egypt and internationally for as long as he can.

The discovery in the 1980s that Egypt played Golf Croquet, and to a level undreamt of by players elsewhere, remains a pivotal moment in the history of the sport. It led to the establishment of Golf Croquet as a serious code in its own right, shrugging off its previous reputation in other countries as an unimportant practice game that provided occasional amusement for Association Croquet players.

Egypt is still the world’s major Golf Croquet nation and the skills of its players, especially the younger stars, are a continuing inspiration to players all over the world. The importance of Amir’s role in maintaining and developing Egyptian croquet for more than twenty years, and thereby supporting croquet worldwide, cannot be overstated. He has been one of the most influential national administrators in the history of croquet and the game owes him a considerable debt of gratitude.

November 2021 Newsletter

We are pleased to report that between 11-16 October, in Cadiz Spain, we held the delayed 2020 GC World Team Championship Tier 2.

Held at the Real Club de Golf Vista Hermosa in Puerto Santa Maria, the Sherry Golf Jerez, and at the Real Club de Golf Novo Sancti Petri. Six full teams, plus a reduced Canadian team and a Select team, competed for the World Croquet Federation Salver.

Spain were seeded top and successfully beat second seeds Wales in the final by 10 matches to 3. The plate was won by Switzerland who beat Latvia. Players from Portugal and the UK joined the Canadian team and the Select teams to allow the event to continue with the scheduled 8 team format.

For full details please see our News Item on the WCF website: GCWTC T2 Spain News Item and the event website: https://gcwtspain2021.com/

Stephen Mulliner Retires as Secretary-General

Stephen Mulliner retired on 31^st August 2021 as Secretary-General of the WCF. During his tenure, the WCF has taken responsibility for managing the AC Laws, GC Rules and the Rankings as well as holding many successful championships.

Stephen was presented with a thank you gift from the WCF Management Committee on his retirement as Secretary-General on 31st August 2021.

Stephen has worked tirelessly to support croquet and will be missed by his colleagues on the Management Committee and all the Members he has supported so efficiently.

Stephen is replaced by Debbie Lines, who took over from 1st September 2021, after shadowing Stephen as his Deputy during the previous year.

We wish Stephen all the best with his future endeavours and hope to see him at many croquet events over the coming years.

2022 Events

The 2020 GC World Team Championship Tier 3 (delayed into 2022) is to be held at Guildford & Godalming, UK, between 20^th July and 23^rd July.

We can now confirm that the 2022 GC World Championship is to be held at the Sussex County Croquet Club between 30^th July and 7^th August. It will be preceded by a qualifier 25^th to 28^th July, venue tbc.

The 2022 AC World Team Championships Tiers 2 and 3 are to be held at Budleigh Salterton, UK, from 9-14^th August 2022.

The 2022 AC World Team Championship Tier 1 (The MacRobertson Shield) is to be held at Cairnlea, Victoria, Australia, from 12-29^th November 2022.

The WCF and the Event Hosts are monitoring the pandemic closely. As a result, the Invitation Dates for the above events will be delayed until approximately 5 to 6 months prior to the event start.

Event Frequency Survey – Forward calendar

A Member Consultation, requested by Croquet New Zealand, was recently concluded. It considered the merits of a reduction in the frequency of WCF Singles Events to reduce both time pressure and costs for players and Members.

The result of the consultation was inconclusive. The WCF therefore decided to undertake a Top Player Survey. This went out to circa 600 GC and AC players in mid-October. We are currently awaiting feedback before collating and analysing the results.

Elections for Treasurer and Management Committee

The nomination period finished 31^st October. We received more nominations than there are open positions. Elections for both the Management Committee and Treasurer positions have therefore started with Member votes due by 5^th December.

Gender Policy

The WCF has been consulting with our Members over the past twelve months regarding our Gender Policy. Following feedback from Members it was decided to wait for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to update their policy after the Tokyo Olympics. The IOC have recently advised that they are delaying the publication of their new ‘framework’ until after the February 2022 Winter Olympics. As there are no immediate Women’s events planned, the Management Committee has decided to wait until this is available before finalising our policy.

GC Country Rankings as at 30th September 2021

Position	Country	Average	Players
1	Egypt	2,557	6
2	England	2,459	6
3	New Zealand	2,393	6
4	USA	2,347	6
5	Australia	2,301	6
6	Spain	2,259	6
7	Wales	2,172	6
8	Canada	2,144	6
9	Ireland	2,048	6
10	Switzerland	2,035	6
11	Sweden	2,033	6
12	South Africa	1,988	6
13	Latvia	1,964	6
14	Scotland	1,943	6
15	Austria	1,924	6
16	Germany	1,920	6
17	Norway	1,876	6
18	Czech Republic	1,828	6
19	Finland	1,706	3
20	Mexico	1,607	3
21	Belgium	2,339	1
22	Jersey	2,008	1

2020 Tier 2 World Team Championships (held in 2021) – Champions Spain

From October 11 to 16, the 3rd Golf Croquet World Team Championship Tier 2 was held in Cádiz, Spain, at the headquarters of Real Club de Golf VISTA HERMOSA, SHERRY CROQUET and Real Club de Golf Novo SANCTI PETRI

It was the first WCF tournament since the Coronavirus pandemic began. Contested by the teams of Wales, Switzerland, Latvia, Norway, Scotland, Spain and Canada (although only two players were able to attend) and an eighth Select team that played friendly matches to help the schedule.

The atmosphere was fantastic and will remain in the memory of all the teams, the organizing committee, and the main many spectators who visited.

On the dedicated event website: gcwtspain2021.com, you can find all the details, photos, interviews and results. The semi-final and final matches were streamed on the FEC Facebook account.

Spain beat Wales in the final by the result of 10 to 3 and for the first time in its history it has qualified for Tier 1. Fantastic news for the Spanish Croquet Federation!

The Teams

Winners: Spain
Jose Riva (captain), Jose Alvarez-Sala, Rafael Romero, Basilio Iglesias, Andrés Alvarez-Sala, J and Manuel Álvarez-Sala.

Runners up: Wales
Angharrad Walters (captain), Ian Burridge, Arthur Rowe and Mike Parry

Winners of the plate: Switzerland
Neil Thomas (captain), Peter Payne, Ian Sexton, Daniel Studerus, Kevin Collins

Runners up of the plate: Latvia
Roberts Stefeckis (captain), Normunds Zelcans, Janis Steins, Silvija Freimane and Tomass Freimanis

Norway
Steinar Olsen (captain), Trond Jansen, Viggo Olsen and Lasse Holberg

Scotland
Martin Murray (captain), Alan Francis Campbell Clark, Thomas Halliday and Stephen Wright.

Canada
Hesham Elzoghby and Patrick Little

Select Team
Begoña Gómez (captain), Susana Romero, María Taylor, Ignacio Fernández-Prada, Fernando Soto, Begoña Elzaburu, Margot Engström and Marlis Weissenborn

AC Country Rankings as at 30th September 2021

Position	Country	Average Grade	Players
1	England	2533	6
2	Australia	2528	6
3	New Zealand	2392	6
4	USA	2369	6
5	Scotland	2203	6
6	Ireland	2147	6
7	Wales	2145	6
8	Canada	1794	6
9	Germany	1522	6
10	Sweden	1500	6
11	Austria	1530	5
12	South Africa	2085	3
13	Switzerland	1991	2
14	Jersey	2161	1
15	Luxembourg	1965	1
16	Mexico	1407	1

Would you like to help run the WCF?

Three members of the Management Committee (MC) reach the end of their four-year term of office on 31^st December 2021. These are: Pete Landrebe, Roberts Stafeckis and Geoff Young. Roberts Stafeckis has indicated that he intends to stand for re-election.

I’d like to thank Pete and Geoff for their service over the past four years and wish them well with their future croquet endeavours. They have been valued members of the MC and their experience and insight will be missed.

In addition, Chris Clarke has found that the difficulties of managing the WCF Barclays Bank account from New Zealand cannot easily be resolved and he has therefore resigned. The MC has decided to change the bank account to one easier to use as an international organisation and is researching this now. Nominations for the role of Treasurer are therefore being sought. All positions start 1^st January 2022.

If you are interested in helping to run the WCF, please contact your governing body and they will explain in full what is required for your nomination. Applicants from RCOs are welcomed but you need to be aware that you must be nominated by a Full or Associate Member.

If we have more nominees than positions, elections will follow.

Nominations are required into the WCF by 31^st October 2021 at the latest, so please allow time to liaise with your nominating Member so that they have time to process your application.

I am happy to talk to anybody who wishes to discuss what is involved.

Debbie Lines
WCF Secretary-General

Terms of Reference for the Treasurer

1. To manage the finances of the WCF according to the Financial Regulations.
2. To prepare the annual budget for approval by Council.
3. To guide Council and the MC in all financial matters, and propose finance policy.
4. To maintain a record of the non-financial assets of the WCF.
5. To prepare annual audited accounts.
6. To manage the WCF’s investments according to the approved investment policy..

Terms of Reference for the Management Committee

The MC shall settle urgent questions and have general administrative powers to carry out the work of the WCF and manage its financial affairs on a day-to-day basis, subject to the direction of Council. The role includes condensing issues into a manageable size in order to facilitate Council considering them efficiently and in reasonable timeframes. Its terms of reference are:

1. To implement policy and actions in pursuit of the agreed direction given by Council.
2. To present to Council an annual plan for the following year including a budget.
3. To manage the operating funds according to the budget.
4. To inform Council regularly of progress, activity and issues.
5. To prepare proposals and make recommendations as part of formal Consultations to Council.
6. To distribute to relevant sub-committees the tasks they are to execute, to oversee their activity, to take decisions concerning the reports of these sub-committees, and to forward them to Council.
7. To present to Council recommendations for the admission, the striking off the rolls, or expelling of Members, as well as for any sanctions which might be imposed.
8. To monitor the Statutes with a view to identifying possible improvements for proposal to Council.
9. To maintain and approve all WCF Regulations, subject to ratification by Council.
10. To manage a rolling 10 Year Schedule of events, to solicit bids against this plan once approved by Council, to assess bids and reach formal agreement with the host Member, and to ensure the event is organised according to Statutes and Regulations.
11. To publish the International Sporting Calendar for the year(s) ahead.
12. To gain Council approval for any novel event types not already included in an approved 10 Year Championship Schedule, before soliciting bids.
13. To promptly alert Council should the MC consider that the sporting interests of the WCF are not adequately defended in a particular territory.
14. To appoint or dismiss the Secretary-General.

Stephen Mulliner retires as WCF Secretary-General 31.8.21

Stephen with his retirement gift presented by the WCF Management Committee.

Stephen Mulliner retired yesterday 31^st August 2021 as Secretary-General of the WCF. During his tenure, the WCF has taken responsibility for managing the AC Laws, GC Rules and the Rankings as well as holding many successful championships.