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Basketball WA would like to congratulate referees Damian Lyons and Ryan White for their recent achievements in officiating over the last couple of months.

NBL/WNBL regular and FIBA referee Damian Lyons recently participated in the FIBA U20 European Championship for Men- Division A last month. This was on the back of his selection to officiate in the recent Australian Boomers/China Mens basketball series in Perth.

The reigning WNBL Referee of the Year is also currently officiating in SBL finals during the month of August.

Along with his on-court achievements, Lyons also co-ordinates Basketball WA’s National Referee Development Program with fellow official David Bull.

Education and Training Officer Vlad Alava praised Lyons not only for his elite level achievements but also for his continued commitment to referee development despite the high demands on his time and other commitments.

“Damian is obviously very highly regarded not just in the state, country but also overseas. He has had a particularly busy period of elite level refereeing which has taken him to the other side of the world but that has not stopped him from sharing his skills and experiences with our next crop of talented referees with his work alongside David and the NRDP referees.”

Also in line for acknowledgement is Ryan White. Despite being in the early stages of his elite referee career, early recognition of his talents came with him being awarded the Bronze medal game at the Under 16 Australian Junior Championships in Adelaide recently.

White was selected in his first AJC tournament and impressed enough to be given a medal game.

“Ryan has been around the referee scene for a while but his move down to Perth recently has allowed him to focus on his officiating and really begin to climb that elite pathway. This year he was a regular in the SBL during the season and also medalled in his first Nationals at Under 16s. That is a fair achievement. He is one that we hope can continue to progress up the ranks in the coming future.”

Congratulations to both Lyons and White on your respective achievements.