FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 5th, 2013
Jeff Whipple Appointed as new Softball Canada National Director of Umpires
(Ottawa, ON) Softball Canada is very pleased to announce that Jeff Whipple (Fredericton, NB) has been appointed as the new National Director of Umpires (NDU). Whipple will take over the position that is currently held by Brian Van Os, who decided not to re-apply at the end of his term after serving as NDU since 2008. Van Os will continue to serve until the completion of his term on October 1st, 2013 and will help with the transition to Whipple.
“The sport of softball and the umpiring community in particular has been such a huge part of my life for many years” stated Whipple. “The opportunity to continue to play a role in providing opportunities for young officials to enjoy the experiences I have been fortunate to share is exciting. Our national umpiring program, through strong visionary leadership, is not just amongst the strongest national sports officials organization in Canada, but ranks right up there with the best in the world. I am excited to be part of continuing to build a stronger community, providing tremendous opportunities for umpires at all levels and ages and help support the revitalization of our sport. It is a huge challenge to fill some very big shoes, but I know we have a great leadership team in place both at the national and provincial level.”
Whipple started umpiring in 1986. After officiating at four Canadian Championships, he received his Level V and ISF certification in 1997, and subsequently officiated at two ISF World Championships (Junior Women, Taipei, 1999; and Senior Women, Saskatoon, 2002). He has instructed at many certification clinics and mechanics schools and has been an Umpire-in-Chief (UIC) or Deputy Umpire-in-Chief (DUIC) at eight Canadian Championships. He joined Softball Canada’s Officiating Development Committee (ODC) as a National Deputy Umpire-in-Chief in 2008, and has also chaired Softball Canada’s Umpire Program Review Committee since 2011. Jeff has been an excellent contributor to Softball Canada, providing valuable input to improving the umpiring program.
“I am very pleased to have someone with Jeff Whipple’s ability taking on the role of National Director of Umpires for Softball Canada” said Softball Canada President Kevin Quinn. “Jeff is a very hard working individual with tremendous skills as an educator and communicator. Jeff will bring a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and technical knowledge to this position. I am sure Jeff will do a fantastic job for us.”
“I want to take this opportunity to thank Brian Van Os for his tremendous dedication he has shown to our officials program” added Quinn. “Brian is very knowledgeable about our sport and brought a high energy level to his role as National Director of Umpires. Brian has assisted Softball Canada to forge a high level of International cooperation with various international officials around the world.”
-SC-
For more information, please contact:
Gilles LeBlanc
Manager – Marketing and Communications
Softball Canada
(613) 523-3386 ext. 3105
gleblanc@softball.ca
