HARARE -- Reigning Zimbabwe Referee of the Year, Kenny Marange, will be among the 32 match officials to officiate at the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations to be hosted by Ghana from 20 January to 10 February.
The 43-year-old referee has been the dominant “man in the middle” in Zimbabwean soccer for the past four years. He was voted Zimbabwe Referee of the Year three times, in 2003, 2006 and 2007.
He has officiated at more than 30 international matches, including being the man in the middle for the first leg of the CAF Confederation Cup final between Tunisia’s CS Sfaxien and El-Merrikh of Sudan in November 2007.
He was also the only Zimbabwean invited to attend the CAF Elite Referees Course, held in Ghana between November 27 and December 3 2007 and widely believed to have laid the platform for his eventual nomination for the Africa Cup of Nations panel.
He recently told the state daily, The Herald, that Zimbabwean refereeing standards have improved over the years.
"Obviously, one will have wanted to have two or three colleagues from his home country making it to the AFCON, but all the same, I am excited that I have been accorded the chance to prove to the outside world that our refereeing standards are not that bad," Marange said.
A music enthusiast, Marange has played for a number of Zimbabwean bands and is also a qualified basketball umpire.
He is employed by the National Railways of Zimbabwe as a workshop foreman.
Profile of Kenny Marange: Date of Birth: 09 October 1964 Occupation: Technician Hobbies: Singing and basketball Place of residence: Mutare, Zimbabwe Languages: English and Shona
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