“Such incidents should never be found in sport”, summarizes the sanctions and protest committee in the judgment which was announced on Wednesday. There, the selection writes that the player Høvik player Dimitrij Osokin is banned from participating in bandy matches in Norway until 31 December 2024 – i.e. until the end of the year. Osokin has the right to appeal the sentence. It was during the bandy match between Ullevål and Høvik on 14 January that the incident happened. After referee Fredrik Bjørseth Vigsnæs had sent off Høvik player Osokin for ten minutes, he was hit by the same player soon after. REFEREE: Fredrik Bjørseth Vigsnæs. Photo: Dag Robert Johansen / news – Very serious incident The judgment states: “The selection assumes that confronting a judge, by tackling him in the chest deliberately, with not insignificant speed and force, after having been judged to an expulsion, and the game is stopped, is a very serious and completely unacceptable act. There do not seem to be any mitigating circumstances for the act”. In the judgment, it is also emphasized that the Høvik player must have raised the club, which the selection perceives as a threat. “A threat to hit a judge, as is clearly the case in this case, the committee believes is probably a very serious incident. A referee is on the pitch to ensure the rules of the game and the safety of the players. When a judge experiences being exposed to such a threat, this will undoubtedly do something to you”, write the selection about the incident. They sum it all up like this: “In this case, there are two different incidents, both of which have a great degree of seriousness. Taking care of referees in sport is, according to the opinion of the committee, very important and it must be reacted very strictly for reasons of public prevention when such incidents occur”. Has regretted Esben Hansen, sporting manager of the A team at Høvik, said the following to news about the matter on Tuesday: – We regret the incident. Have apologized to the judge. Beyond that, he (the player) does not wish to comment on the case. He added that the player has also apologized to the referee. Hansen did not wish to say anything more about the case after the verdict came down. The player has also not provided sufficient explanation to the sanctions and protest committee. When news spoke to referee Fredrik Bjørseth Vigsnæs on Monday, he had not been in direct contact with the player in question. He nevertheless thanked Høvik for apologizing and support from the bandy community. – I have spoken to the manager of Høvik and received an apology from Høvik about the situation, which I appreciated. I have received a lot of support and many pleasant messages from the bandy community in general. Concern for safety Last year, the refereeing community reacted when a collision between a player and referees, which referee Tarald Moe Bjølseth thought was deliberate on the part of the player, was not punished. Vigsnæs stated ahead of the game on Sunday that he felt that the referees had received good treatment this season. Afterwards, he feared what would happen in the event of several similar incidents. – What scares me is that we had a situation last year where a referee was hit. So we have this situation this year. If this is going to be a recurring thing, then I am concerned about the safety of judges, said Vigsnæs. He fears that such incidents may contribute to scaring off potential bandy referees. – We are struggling with recruitment, and we are struggling to get people who want to referee bandy matches. It is difficult to motivate people to be willing to referee bandy matches when you have to fear for your own safety. – In what way can this scare potential judges? – It can scare them considering that you don’t want to expose yourself to the risk of judging, he said.
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