The Council of the International Korfball Federation has today accepted Suriname as (Associate) Member of the International Korfball Federation. This implies the team of Suriname can participate tomorrow officially in the IKF Open European Beach Korfball Championship, due to start in The Hague.

A few final administrative matters still need to be resolved, but the Federation meets the criteria for admission based on the files submitted.

Photo credit: Surinaamse Korfbal Federatie

The application of Suriname is noteworthy. Korfball was played for many decades in Suriname during the time it was a Dutch colony, but after independence in 1975, formal korfball structures gradually disappeared in the Caribbean country in South America, and Suriname was expelled as member of the International Korfball Federation some years ago. However, korfball continued to be played in school without a formal federation taking care.

Following a recent initiative by former Dutch international player Gerald van Dijk. A group of players with Surinamese roots in the Netherlands revived the Federation, and formally established the Surinaamse Korfbal Federatie. The SKF plans to actively work on the development of korfball in Suriname, along with strong international competitive ambitions, as they intend to participate in next year’s IKF Panamerican Korfball Championship in Cali (Colombia) which serves as a qualification event for the 2019 IKF World Korfball Championship.