Champions Behind the Scenes - Carmen Teo

Sportswoman at heart: A referee’s commitment to sports

Carmen whistling at an international floorball match.

Since retiring from the national floorball team 10 years ago, 44-year-old Carmen Teo has focused her energy on contributing to the game in a different way – as a referee. Carmen's passion for officiating games goes beyond her love for the one sport; it reflects her passion for all sports.

Finding community with floorball

Sport has always been a major part of Carmen’s life. In primary school, she did track & field and badminton. In secondary school, she picked up taekwondo and began competing in it. She discovered floorball through the polytechnic Sports & Wellness module, where she played with her classmates.

Young Carmen with the National Floorball Team

Although she had many sports interests, Carmen was attracted the most to floorball’s culture of camaraderie, where everyone in the team trained together, ate together and worked towards a shared target – something missing in the other sports she took part in.

In 2001, Carmen politely declined an invitation to join Singapore’s taekwondo national team for that year’s SEA Games to focus on training with the floorball national team for the 2001 World Championships in Riga, Latvia. She’s been committed to floorball ever since.

Early days with the whistle

Carmen’s interest in refereeing started when she was asked to officiate a match while still a goalkeeper for her local club. Following that experience, Carmen enrolled in a course offered by the International Floorball Federation (IFF) to improve her refereeing skills.

Carmen refereeing a local floorball match early into her referee career.

As she began her journey as a match official, one important thing Carmen learned was how to lead a game instead of policing it. She distinctly remembers one occasion early on when she responded to a challenge from a respected senior player by raising her hand to communicate, "Talk to the hand".

“I definitely regretted this action thereafter and reflected on how to get better. Never again will you see me do such things,” says Carmen.

From rivals to referee partners

After a few years of refereeing, Carmen began the process of becoming an international referee. But before the Singapore Floorball Association (SFA) could nominate Carmen to the IFF, she had to select a permanent refereeing partner. In floorball, having two referees allows for better field coverage, improved decision-making, and quicker handling of the game's fast pace to maintain fair play and player safety.

Carmen with Binbin during their early days as referee partners.

Carmen selected Lin Binbin, whom she had officiated local matches on and off for about two years. Although they eventually became a refereeing pair, they had previously been goalkeepers for opposing local teams.

“I was from Liitto FC and Binbin was from Titans FC, so we constantly competed against each other. We even competed for the national team goalkeeper position!” recalls Carmen. “We both have the same passion yet many differences that complement each other in various ways.”

Carmen and Binbin at Singapore’s OCBC Arena for the 2023 Women's World Floorball Championships.

It’s this dynamic that has made Carmen and Binbin such exceptional match partners over the last 11 years. Carmen is task-oriented and focused on game protocol and preparation, while Binbin excels in handling player confrontations when tough calls have to be made. Together, they cover all aspects needed to facilitate good game flow.

Getting to the world stage

In January 2013, Carmen and Binbin earned their stripes as IFF-appointed international referees. The duo’s first official international nomination was for the 2014 World University Floorball Championships at Singapore OCBC Area. 

Carmen refereeing a Women’s World Floorball Championships Qualification match.

Since then, they have officiated at several major tournaments overseas, including the Women’s World Championships, Women’s U19 World Championships, and the Men’s and Women’s Southeast Asia Floorball Championships.

Becoming an international referee has been a major achievement for Carmen. It has provided her with valuable opportunities to officiate higher-level matches with teams from Europe, where floorball originates. Carmen has learned a lot from various IFF referees she has worked with, notably Czech Men's pair Tomas Kostinek and Martin Reichelt.

Since then, they have officiated at several major tournaments overseas, including the Women’s World Championships, Women’s U19 World Championships, and the Men’s and Women’s Southeast Asia Floorball Championships.

Becoming an international referee has been a major achievement for Carmen. It has provided her with valuable opportunities to officiate higher-level matches with teams from Europe, where floorball originates. Carmen has learned a lot from various IFF referees she has worked with, notably Czech Men's pair Tomas Kostinek and Martin Reichelt.

Carmen and Binbin posing with fellow IFF referees.

One of Carmen’s fondest memories from her international career was when the Norwegian coach thanked her and Binbin following a Women’s World Championships match. He asked which country they were from and even though his team had lost, praised them for a job well done. This gesture reminded Carmen of the impact a referee can have on a match.

Pressing on for sports

After 21 years as a referee, is retirement on the horizon for Carmen? Far from it. Carmen has already decided that her next milestone will be the SEA Games or the 2025 World Games in Chengdu if her physical abilities allow her to do so. If not, all’s not lost, for her passion for sports still burns.

“Well, if I cannot withstand the physical aspects of floorball refereeing anymore, I may switch to another officiating career where the sport does not require physical elements,” says sportswoman Carmen.

Carmen shaking the Slovakian Coach's hand before a match

As for her aspirations for floorball, Carmen hopes that the sport will one day be included in the Asian Games or Olympics. She also hopes to help grow and retain the pool of referees for floorball locally. She wants retiring athletes to know that, with effort and commitment, they too can continue contributing to the sport in a meaningful way.

Carmen and Binbin playing floorball with a local team during their downtime.

“Being a referee can be a thankless job. There will always be someone unhappy with a call that you make. But #norefnogame. We’re here to ensure games remain safe and fair. I hope to see more athletes consider coaching or officiating after retirement, and for more local one to be nominated as international referees!”