Australia · Australia
A recent FIH story focuses on the Belong in Hockey programme, an initiative helping refugees enter the sport through transport, community support and social competition.
8 april 2026 · 1 min read · StickAtlas Desk
When hockey becomes a support network
The Toowoomba story expands the traditional idea of what counts as hockey news. In Queensland, the Toowoomba Hockey Association has used the Belong in Hockey programme to help refugee families, especially from the Yazidi community, find connection, routine and confidence through sport.
The project changed scale when the team stopped waiting for people to come to the club and began taking sessions into a TAFE centre where many refugees were already attending English classes.
Another decisive step was something very practical: providing transport so participants could travel from home or class to the hockey ground.
The impact is already measurable: the programme went from 20 participants with 7 progressing into club hockey in year one to 30 participants and 13 moving into formal competition the following year.
The value of the piece is not in a scoreline or a table, but in showing how hockey can create real belonging. For Australia, it is a powerful story because it explains the sport through its social impact, not only through results.
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