Graduated in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, with a Master’s in Biomedicine. He also has a master’s degree in Teaching at the University of Extremadura. This training is linked to his love of sports, as well as chess, without forgetting his political side.
This is the 29-year-old from Trujillo, Fran Fernández Porras who, for the second consecutive season, will be a basketball referee in the national category of the EBA league. This task will be combined, one more year, with athletics, in the high jump, a modality with which he has achieved different successes.
His refereeing facet began when he was in Catalonia with his university studies. There, in 2015, he filled out a document from the Catalan Federation that offered information for the courses. After passing that training, he began to referee in lower categories in minibasket. After a few months, he began to referee the children’s matches and later, cadets. He remembers that there were informants to assess the performances.
In 2019, he returned to his homeland. After the hardest months of the health crisis, he went to study that master’s degree from the Faculty in Badajoz and resumed his refereeing activity, again with lower categories. However, he quickly rose to higher levels until he reached the Diputación league. In the 2021-2022 season, he refereed in the First National League. Fernández details that, there, through the Extremadura federation, reports are being made to evaluate the arbitration proceedings. These documents offer a note and, in addition, help to analyze the failures in order to improve. All of this is coupled with monthly meetings. You also have to pass tests and exams, along with physical tests.
promotion to the league
After the good performances, the technical director of referees from Extremadura called him to tell him that he was being promoted to the EBA national league, as well as to the Women’s League 2. That premiere took place last season and he will repeat this course. She points out that, in this category, the same monitoring is done, but through the Spanish Basketball Federation. There is also a ‘clinic’ at the beginning of the season. This time, it will be done online. Currently, there are six referees from the region in this national league, out of a total of 181. Their matches normally take place between Extremadura and Andalusia.
The referee from Trujillo explains that, in the beginning, you only limit yourself to whistling a few steps or some fouls or another type of infraction, but it is difficult to have a complete vision of the game. “Obviously, if you come from playing basketball, it’s much easier, but I, like many people, when I played I didn’t know the rules well until I started to whistle, because you have to apply many things and concepts.” Fernández Porras recalls that, as a referee, “the regulations are our main friend.”
It highlights that, as time goes by, one feels more secure and masters each of the facets of the game, how to position oneself and where to look at each moment. “Experience makes you gain self-confidence.” You also learn how the teams play and even how to manage protests and failures themselves. “Nerves are always present, because it is what pushes you to do something, but over time you know how to manage them,” he argues.
The falls
Fran recognizes that referees, like anyone else, make mistakes and “we must be the first to recognize it and be critical of our mistakes to continue improving.” Taking that aspect into account, the goal is to try to hit as many times as possible, he says. Likewise, he insists that, if that ruling comes or there are many protests for a decision, you have to be able to continue refereeing with the best level. “If a player fails, they can go to the bench, but we have to spend 40 minutes at the best level,” he says.
Over the years, he reiterates that experience makes criticism and protests from coaches and players better managed. In addition, “the regulation is on our side.” About the public, he assures that it does not affect him because he is focused on the game and everything that happens on the track. He qualifies that he has only managed to disqualify a person in a minibasketball game. He went to a delegate of a team.
Focused on the EBA league, it does not forget athletics. Already, from a very young age, he specialized in high jump, being one of the best in the region. Belonging to the CEA Tenerife 1984 club, this season he managed to finish third in the Extremadura Championship, with a jump of 1.84 meters. However, in this last course he managed to jump 1.88 meters.
He explains that, perhaps, this last season he has trained less, due, above all, to preparing for the oppositions. However, this activity has never been lacking by being present in different competitions.
All this has been combined by giving classes. In recent months, he was also very active in the municipal elections as part of the United for Trujillo list.
2023-08-20 08:20:13
#basketball #referee #Trujillo #jumps #high
