Australia:
One of Australian hockey’s greatest contributors has received the sport’s highest Presidential honour, with former Kookaburras coach Richard Aggiss AM awarded a President’s Award at the FIH Stars Awards in Oman.
The accolade, which recognises long and valuable services to hockey that have benefited the game at the international level, joins a long list of awards in Aggiss’s esteemed career.
A Member of the Order of Australia, and Hockey Australia Hall of Famer, the former Australian Men’s National Coach said he was over the moon when he received a message while onboard a cruise ship off the coast of Japan.
“I was in the middle of the South China Sea or somewhere, so the internet was a bit unreliable and all of a sudden I received a message from FIH about my award!” He exclaimed.
“I was really, really shocked and quite humbled, I knew there was a President’s Award but I never dreamt for a moment that I’d be considered.”
During his time coaching, Aggiss achieved a winning record of over 80 per cent from 151 international matches, laying a foundation for the Kookaburras which saw them go on to become one of the best teams in the world.
His legacy as a coach didn’t end there, as he went on to become the inaugural Head Coach, establishing the AIS programme in Perth in 1984. He then extended his knowledge further abroad, running coaching courses for the FIH all around the world before serving on the FIH Hockey Rules Board for over 10 years.
It was during his travels coaching that he would meet the current President of the FIH, Tayyab Ikram.
“I’ve known Tayyab ever since he was a young man, we met while I was running a coaching course in Kuala Lumpur and he was a course organiser, so he’s done very well and it was nice of him to remember me.
“I said to him, I started as a 12-year-old in a small country town called Harvey, about 100km south of Perth. I wasn’t particularly good at the game to start with, but I started playing like country kids do and the rest is history really. 65 years later I’m still involved.”
Richard admits he reminisces on his side’s World Cup gold medal win in London in 1986 as a proud moment in his career, but equally, he says the impact they made on the Hockey Rules Board also sticks out as a highlight in his 65 years.
“We changed the way hockey is played. It was a bit of a revolutionary time in Hockey at that time, and I loved being involved in that, as well as the people I worked with, they were a fantastic group of people.”
Undoubtedly leaving a legacy on and off the pitch, Richard says he’s enjoying watching the Kookaburras and Hockeyroos from afar as the legacy of the sport continues.
“It’s great to see people like Mark Hager become the new national coach. I pretty much started his international playing career in 1984 when he came to the AIS in Perth. I think just about everyone who’s coached the Kookaburras since I have had something to do with so it’s great to sit back and watch.
“I love the game, the intricacies of the game and the tactics but I love the people in hockey, they’re wonderful people and it’s the people I’ve met who I still meet up with all around the world.
“I can’t thank my two daughters Kylie and Karen and my wife, Joan enough, I would also like to acknowledge Australian hockey’s contribution to my long involvement in hockey. It’s been a journey and it’s a sport for life.”
