CAIRO, Egypt, Oct. 21, 2025 – An important meeting of the FIE Refereeing Commission took place in Cairo from October 17–19, 2025, in the presence of Mr. Abdelmoneim El Husseiny, FIE Interim President and Ms. Gulnora Saidova, FIE Secretary-General.
The meeting was attended by Irina Knysch, President of the Refereeing Commission and all Commission members: Amgad Badawi, Olga Cojocari, Saleh Ferjani, Marius Florea, Chang Gon Kim, Ana Kovrlija, Vladislav Shamis, Papa Khassoum Toure and Katalin Varga, all of whom held several important discussions over the three-day meeting.
After meeting in Istanbul in person, as well as holding several virtual sessions held in recent months, Mr. El Husseiny decided to convene an in-person meeting over three days to discuss the Commission’s strategic direction for the next three years, leading up to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
The meeting began with opening speeches by Mr. Abdelmoneim El Husseiny, FIE Interim President, who emphasised the significance of the meeting, stating: “I consider this workshop very important for the FIE. We must define our strategy for the coming three years. One of the key areas in our strategic plan is the development of refereeing. Transparency and collaboration with athletes and commissions are essential.”
Ms. Gulnora Saidova, FIE Secretary-General, highlighted the need for in-person collaboration: “We have many important topics that must be discussed face-to-face. It is crucial to hear feedback from our professionals — especially the Refereeing Commission — on how we can continue improving our refereeing system. Referees are among the most important elements in FIE competitions.”
Ms. Saidova explained in detail the FIE strategic plan to ensure all members of the Refereeing Commission were fully informed and aware of every aspect of it. She also announced the FIE is studying new initiatives, including the introduction of video referees to assist in crucial match decisions, beginning as early as next year.
“This is one of our key ideas, and, with the support of the Refereeing Commission, we hope to implement it soon,” she added.
Ms. Irina Knysch, President of the Refereeing Commission, outlined the main goals of the meeting: “We organised this meeting to find solutions for developing a new generation of referees, to raise the overall level of refereeing and to discuss the use of video technology.”
She explained a major focus will be identifying and training young refereeing talent: “This season, we are launching a new project to visit select Junior World Cup competitions and invite federations to send promising young referees. Our goal is to discover new talent and help them grow.”
Ms. Knysch also emphasised the importance of consistency and education: “Sometimes what is seen as a referee’s mistake is simply a different interpretation of priority. We aim to create clear standards and publish them on the FIE website. The planned Academy in Budapest will also play a key role by organising courses and seminars to train referees who show talent and strong leadership potential.”