Malaysian Widiya Shamsuri has been appointed as an assistant referee to officiate In the Women’s World Cup to be held in Germany from June 26 to July 17, 2011.
Widiya, 34, from Seremban, is among three Asian referees and six assistants appointed by the Federation of International Football (FIFA) to officiate in the tournament.
According to Asian Football Confederation (AFC) website, besides Widiya, the other assistant referees are Allyson Flynn (Australia), Sarah Ho (Australia), Kim Kyoung Min (North Korea), Saori Takahashi (Japan) and Zhang Lingling (China).
The referees are South Korean's Cha Sung-mi, Japan's Etsuko Fukano and Australian Jacqui Melksham.
Australia, North Korea and Japan are representing Asia in the 16-team event.
Widiya had previously been on the line in the FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup in Russia in 2006 and the same tournament in Beijing in 2008.
The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) referees committee chairman Datuk Astaman Abdul Aziz said the selection of Widiya as an assistant referee was indeed a recognition for women's football in the country.