photo: Matt Zambonin/IIHF
They say if you don’t know the name of the ref, it’s the best compliment you can pay him or her. But sometimes, you need to know the name, and the back story.
Anna Kuroda, for instance, has officiated more WW18 games than any other woman, 16 over four tournaments, but she got to the top through perseverance, hard work, and talent.
She was born in Miyagi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, on the east coast of Honshu island. “I started to skate when I was about three years old,” she began. “A lot of my family and relatives played ice hockey in Miyagi, and my father coached a girls’ team, which is why I started to play ice hockey when I was young. I really enjoyed skating. I played defence.”
Kuroda played until she was about 18 and, as she explained why she stopped, tears rolled down her cheek. “In 2011, we had the tsunami,” she related. “Miyagi was very hard hit and many buildings were destroyed. Many people died or were unable to live a normal life. My family was okay, but a lot of my teammates didn’t have homes any more. Everything was gone.”
Indeed, on March 3, 2011, a 9.1 magnitude earthquake struck off the east coast of Japan, triggering a tsunami. The earthquake was the most severe in Japan’s history. Of the 20,000 deaths that resulted, more than half were from Miyagi.
Kuroda found solace in hockey, and one day someone asked her to be a linesperson at a game. “Since we didn’t have a team any more, I said okay, I’ll try. And when I did, I really liked it,” she continued. “And then I was able to go to games and tournaments around Japan as a linesperson. It was a very difficult time at home, but this gave me some joy.”
She also got her first taste refereeing, and she was studying to be a chiropractor, but in 2016 she decided to move to Tokyo and challenge herself. She wanted to become a better linesperson, work higher-quality games, and experience a greater level of competition. It was a life-changing decision, but she wanted to push herself to be the best she could be.
It was during this time that she made the leap from the line to refereeing. Again, she saw this as part of the need to improve and grow, and the thing she always had going for her was her superior skating, which is essential for any referee.
Her time there was successful, and the more she pushed herself, the more successful she became. But in 2020, Covid forced her to leave Tokyo and return to Miyagi. Now, with much more experience, she refereed games at all levels and in various parts of the country, junior and senior, men’s and women’s leagues.
During her time in Tokyo, Kuroda refereed a national tournament and was spotted by a referee supervisor for the Japanese federation who proposed she move up to higher levels of play. She was thrilled by another leap up and reffed at the All-Japan Women’s Ice Hockey tournament, the most important women’s event in Japan. It was first contested in 1982 and has been going annually since.
Soon after, the Japanese federation nominated her to work an IIHF tournament, and in 2019 Kuroda worked four games at her first senior event, the U18 Women’s Worlds in Obihiro, Japan. She has been a fixture at WW18 ever since.
In addition to U18 level, though, Kuroda also has experience at the Division I-A level of the Women’s Worlds, but her heart is in the junior level.
“I prefer U18 to the senior level because this level is the basis for development,” she explained. “It is so important for the players to learn and grow at this level, and I enjoy being a part of that.”
Kuroda pushes herself every day, every game, and every event. “Every tournament I feel the pressure to perform well,” she said. “The teams are there fighting to win, and I know I need to be at my best at all times. I want to succeed and do well for them.”
Now 33, Kuroda still lives in Miyagi and works with a recruitment company, finding the right job for the right person and the right person for the right company. Throughout the season she refs about twice a week and is in the gym four times a week keeping in game shape.
Like many refs the world over, she often has to drive to a game and drive home right after, because Miyagi doesn’t have as many quality teams as she needs to work to stay sharp. Men’s games typically start later in the evening, making for a very long day before getting up the next morning again to go to work. If there’s a big game, however, junior or senior, she’ll do what it takes for the opportunity.
One thing is certain. Kuroda is in this for the long haul. She has no plans to retire by any age or date, saying, “I’ll keep going as long as I can and as long as I’m in good shape. I might also like to referee at the top level of the Women’s Worlds, if I can find the time and handle the workload with my job.”
And when she hangs up the whistle, she definitely wants to stay in the game. “There are more senior people than me in Japan right now who are training young officials, but I would love to do that at some point.”
In the meantime, Kuroda is soaking up the atmosphere in Sydney, getting ready for the playoffs, and then returning home to referee in domestic leagues around Japan. Every game she works at WW18 she improves on her record, and the teams are glad to have someone of her ability calling their games.
Anna Kuroda, for instance, has officiated more WW18 games than any other woman, 16 over four tournaments, but she got to the top through perseverance, hard work, and talent.
She was born in Miyagi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, on the east coast of Honshu island. “I started to skate when I was about three years old,” she began. “A lot of my family and relatives played ice hockey in Miyagi, and my father coached a girls’ team, which is why I started to play ice hockey when I was young. I really enjoyed skating. I played defence.”
Kuroda played until she was about 18 and, as she explained why she stopped, tears rolled down her cheek. “In 2011, we had the tsunami,” she related. “Miyagi was very hard hit and many buildings were destroyed. Many people died or were unable to live a normal life. My family was okay, but a lot of my teammates didn’t have homes any more. Everything was gone.”
Indeed, on March 3, 2011, a 9.1 magnitude earthquake struck off the east coast of Japan, triggering a tsunami. The earthquake was the most severe in Japan’s history. Of the 20,000 deaths that resulted, more than half were from Miyagi.
Kuroda found solace in hockey, and one day someone asked her to be a linesperson at a game. “Since we didn’t have a team any more, I said okay, I’ll try. And when I did, I really liked it,” she continued. “And then I was able to go to games and tournaments around Japan as a linesperson. It was a very difficult time at home, but this gave me some joy.”
She also got her first taste refereeing, and she was studying to be a chiropractor, but in 2016 she decided to move to Tokyo and challenge herself. She wanted to become a better linesperson, work higher-quality games, and experience a greater level of competition. It was a life-changing decision, but she wanted to push herself to be the best she could be.
It was during this time that she made the leap from the line to refereeing. Again, she saw this as part of the need to improve and grow, and the thing she always had going for her was her superior skating, which is essential for any referee.
Her time there was successful, and the more she pushed herself, the more successful she became. But in 2020, Covid forced her to leave Tokyo and return to Miyagi. Now, with much more experience, she refereed games at all levels and in various parts of the country, junior and senior, men’s and women’s leagues.
During her time in Tokyo, Kuroda refereed a national tournament and was spotted by a referee supervisor for the Japanese federation who proposed she move up to higher levels of play. She was thrilled by another leap up and reffed at the All-Japan Women’s Ice Hockey tournament, the most important women’s event in Japan. It was first contested in 1982 and has been going annually since.
Soon after, the Japanese federation nominated her to work an IIHF tournament, and in 2019 Kuroda worked four games at her first senior event, the U18 Women’s Worlds in Obihiro, Japan. She has been a fixture at WW18 ever since.
In addition to U18 level, though, Kuroda also has experience at the Division I-A level of the Women’s Worlds, but her heart is in the junior level.
“I prefer U18 to the senior level because this level is the basis for development,” she explained. “It is so important for the players to learn and grow at this level, and I enjoy being a part of that.”
Kuroda pushes herself every day, every game, and every event. “Every tournament I feel the pressure to perform well,” she said. “The teams are there fighting to win, and I know I need to be at my best at all times. I want to succeed and do well for them.”
Now 33, Kuroda still lives in Miyagi and works with a recruitment company, finding the right job for the right person and the right person for the right company. Throughout the season she refs about twice a week and is in the gym four times a week keeping in game shape.
Like many refs the world over, she often has to drive to a game and drive home right after, because Miyagi doesn’t have as many quality teams as she needs to work to stay sharp. Men’s games typically start later in the evening, making for a very long day before getting up the next morning again to go to work. If there’s a big game, however, junior or senior, she’ll do what it takes for the opportunity.
One thing is certain. Kuroda is in this for the long haul. She has no plans to retire by any age or date, saying, “I’ll keep going as long as I can and as long as I’m in good shape. I might also like to referee at the top level of the Women’s Worlds, if I can find the time and handle the workload with my job.”
And when she hangs up the whistle, she definitely wants to stay in the game. “There are more senior people than me in Japan right now who are training young officials, but I would love to do that at some point.”
In the meantime, Kuroda is soaking up the atmosphere in Sydney, getting ready for the playoffs, and then returning home to referee in domestic leagues around Japan. Every game she works at WW18 she improves on her record, and the teams are glad to have someone of her ability calling their games.