This week in the Qatari capital, Doha, the first of three preparatory seminars for officials of the women's World Cup took place. The tournament will be held in Australia and New Zealand from July 20 to August 20, 2023.

Representatives of UEFA attended the seminar, with two more such events planned for next month for other confederations. Referees from AFC, CAF and OFC will travel to Doha next week, while CONCACAF and CONMEBOL members will hold their seminar in Montevideo at the end of February.

Among the European referees selected to work on the women's World Cup 2023, there are representatives from Ukraine — Kateryna Monzul and Marina Striletska. The official FIFA website in its commentary about the seminar talks about Monzul, whostarted her refereeing career in 2002 and has since experienced a series of bright moments in her work. Kateryna was forced to leave home due to the Russian aggression in Ukraine and received support from colleagues around the world.

“Now I have two families — one at home and another as a referee.” Recalling when the full-scale war in Ukraine began, it was a huge shock for me. I did not know what to do. But when I came from Ukraine, I received tremendous support from the refereeing family. And I would like to thank everyone who helped me. This happened at the most critical moment for me,” — cites the resource Kateryna Monzul. The Ukrainian alsocompared her preparation to machine work:“The system must work. If a part does not work, the entire system needs to be rebuilt. You must be ready physically, mentally and psychologically.”

Photo fifa.com

For those referees who participated in the seminar in Doha, the program included practical sessions, strength and agility tests, VAR simulation, and theoretical lectures. In addition, real match episodes were analyzed using video recordings. After the seminar, World Cup 2023 officials will continue to improve their professional skills and can use these materials to prepare mentally, physically, and technically.