BELMONT-born international hockey umpire Ayanna McClean has joined a select group of elite world class umpires who have been awarded a Golden Whistle, after umpiring 100 senior international matches.
McClean is a former defender for the Trinidad and Tobago women’s national team.
Daughter of Cheryl McClean-Franco, the former Ventures Hockey Club player, international umpire, and journalist, Ayanna is the first umpire in the Central American and Caribbean region to umpire 100 senior international matches.
Among those offering hearty congratulations was the Sports Company of Trinidad and Tobago (SPORTT).
McLean’s first international appointment came 16 years ago at the 2005 Junior Pan American Games in Puerto Rico. Since then, she has umpired at the Pan American Games, Pan American Youth Games, the Hockey World League and the 2018 Hockey World Cup in London. She is the second person from the Caribbean to be qualified to umpire at a World Cup or Olympic tournament, after Roger St Rose, and the first woman.
Upon receiving her FIH Grade One qualification in 2013, she became the highest-ranked female umpire from the Caribbean, and has been so ever since.
Source: https://trinidadexpress.com
