Atanu Banerjee becomes first referee to officiate WC final

New Delhi: Atanu Banerjee became the first Indian basketball referee to appear in a World Championship

final when he officiated the summit-clash of the FIBA Under-17 women`s tournament in Toulouse, France on July 15. "This was a dream come true for me. I had officiated a final in an Asian Championship before, but the final of a World tournament is a whole different experience. This is a great honour for any referee," said Banerjee, who became an international referee in 2006. We used to watch the game tape and review the actions or the referees. It was good to see how we have performed and thus improve our job. This is normal in Europe and must be introduced to Asia, and in particular India as well," he added. In the match the USA eves beat France 92-62. Banerjee also officiated a number of Asian Championships, including the 2007 final in Bangkok. He was one of the officials who travelled to Russia for the Women`s Under-21 World Championship in 2007, a Basketball Federation of India release said today. PTI