TAHITI – A trio of match officials in Tahiti have been awarded FIFA status – Referees Averii Jacques and Norbert Hauata joined Assistant Referee Phillipe Revel were handed their badges from Maco Ploton and Tino Wohler of the CFA.
The trio’s FIFA accreditation begins on January 1 and ends on December 31 – one calendar year. To qualify for FIFA status an official must be less than 40 years old at the time of their first candidature, officiate at the highest level in their respective federation for no less than two years and to pass a rigorous series of FIFA fitness tests.
Jacques, Hauata and Revel’s candidatures were submitted with Federation Tahitienne de Football (FTF) and subsequently with the CFA before final submission to FIFA. Referee nominations for Futsal and Beach Soccer are carried out similarly but with fitness tests tailored to specific nuances of each form of football.
Averii Jacques has previously officiated in O-League, OFC U-20 Championship, 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Oceanian Qualifiers as well as OFC U-17 Championships and the 2005 and 2006 OFC Club Championship. Jacques refereed at the XIII South Pacific Games Men’s Football Tournament in Apia, Samoa, in 2007.
Hauata has a similar experience and handled the recent 2009 O-League match between Waitakere United and Port Vila Sharks.