Tina Bachmann needs no introduction to hockey fans. The double Olympian is a national hero in Germany and hugely respected by players and fans across the hockey-playing world. Now she is turning her hand to coaching with equal amounts of success.
Bachmann started coaching HTC Uhlenhorst Mulheim in 2014 and, just 18 months later, her team won the German Indoor Clubs Championships. This is a big deal in Germany as indoor hockey is taken very seriously and the club scene is highly competitive.
“We spend much more time preparing for indoor in Germany than they do in other countries,” explains Bachmann. “In the Netherlands where I played for Oranje Zwart, we maybe trained for a month before the club indoor championships. In Germany we start training three months ahead of the competition.
“It is getting tougher because the outdoor schedule is intense, but I believe that the indoor game has a very positive impact on the way we play the outdoor game, so we continue to put in a lot of effort into the indoor game.”
HTC Uhlenhorst Mulheim’s victory was made an even bigger deal because it is the first time a woman has coached a team to the gold medal in this competition and Bachmann’s success, so early in her coaching career, is making waves in a sport where female coaches at the top level are far and few between.
Why there are so few coaches is something that Bachmann feels unqualified to comment on. “I have no idea. All I know is that I have always loved coaching. I coached the junior boys at this club years ago, and now they are grown-ups playing in the men’s team. Coaching has just always been something I have been interested in.”
The structure is in place for Bachmann’s coaching career. Like all the national team players, she has a second career. In the morning she teaches mathematics, German and Physical Education in a primary school. In the afternoon she coaches her club team.
“For me there is no difference who I am coaching,”says Bachmann. “Whether it is the U18 men’s team, the U16 women’s team or the senior men’s team, it is all about hard work and pushing yourself. That was Tina Bachmann as a player and that is Tina Bachmann now. I might make some adaptations when I am coaching men because they are more physical and stronger, but my philosophy is simple - I am a coach that always wants to win and I ask a lot from the players. I am pretty hard – on myself and on others.”
Bachmann says she has learnt a lot in the first 18 months of her coaching career. “I have gradually distanced myself from the players so I can take a wider view. For example, as a player and as a coach I like structure. But I know there are creative players who like flexibility and freedom and to work outside the structure. It scares me, but I know they are really important for the team.”
Hockey is a sport that prides itself on inclusiveness therefore the fact that Bachmann has achieved such success with a men's team is of no surprise. Reflecting on her progression from the field to the sidelines and offering advice to those who want to get into coaching, she said: "For me, as a teacher, it was not difficult to get into coaching, it is just something that I have always wanted to do. For a woman, or a man, looking to get into coaching I would suggest getting involved with your club and then just learn as much as you can - from other coaches, from players and by going on coaching courses. I learn something new as a coach every day."
The past 18 months have certainly been a sharp learning curve. Bachmann pays tribute to the knowledge she has gleaned from the FIH Coaching Academy, but also says that she has had tremendous support from the other coaching staff and management at the club. Where her coaching career will take her is anyone’s guess, but she says she is not ruling anything out. Based on this initial success, Tina Bachmann’s coaching career could turn out to be as glittering as her playing career.
Bachmann's story is yet another example of the progress being made in the sport of hockey, progress that is driving the International Hockey Federation's Hockey Revolution. This 10 year strategy is aimed at making hockey a global game that inspires the next generation and highlighting such success is key to engaging and motivating others to get involved in hockey.
For more information about the Hockey Revolution, click here.
More information about hockey in Germany can be found here.
