Kenyan referee Aden Range Marwa is the only Kenyan and one of only two East Africans selected by world football governing body FIFA to serve as match officials at the 2018 World Cup to be held in Russia.
At the highly anticipated tournament which kicks off on June 14 with a match between the hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia, Marwa will be part of a 16-man contingent of African referees who will officiate a number of matches.
Six African officials will serve as match referees while the other 10 will be assistant referees.
The match referees are; Mehdi Abid Charef (Algeria), Malang Diedhiou (Senegal), Bakary Papa Gassama (Gambia), Gehad Grisha (Egypt), Janny Sikazwe (Zambia) and Bamlak Tessema Weyesa (Ethiopia).
The assistant referees are; Achik Redouane, (Morocco), Ahmed Waleed (Sudan), Birumushahu Jean-Claude (Burundi), Camara Djibril (Senegal), Dos Santos Jerson Emiliano (Angola), Etchiali Abdelhak (Algeria), Hmila Anouar (Tunisia), Range Marwa (Kenya), Samba El Hadji Malick (Senegal) and Siwela Zakhele Thusi (South Africa).
[caption caption="Aden Range Marwa"]
[/caption]
For the past three years, FIFA has organized preparatory seminars for the officials focused on fair play, protecting players and the image of the game.
A second seminar will be held for two weeks in the second half of April at the Italian Football Association's Technical Centre in Coverciano, Italy.
Here, the officials will be divided into two groups; one of which will be made up of those tasked with handling the newly introduced Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system.
A final preparatory seminar for the officials will be held 10 days to the tournament at the FIFA Match Officials HQ in Moscow, Russia.
While Kenya's national team Harambee Stars failed to qualify for the tournament, Africa will be represented by Senegal, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria and Tunisia.
[caption caption="Aden Range Marwa"]
[/caption]
