We would like to congratulate both of these fine officials for their selection by the IIHF to work assignments in the Winter Olympics to be held in Salt Lake City, Utah. We will be rooting for both and following all of their assignments with great interest. See USA Hockey news release below for more information.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 30, 2001
USA Hockey Officiating Program Announces Selection Of U.S. Officials For
2002 Olympic Winter Games
Six Referees And Linesmen To Work Men's And Women's Tournaments
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The USA Hockey Officiating Program today announced
the selection of six American referees and linesmen to the ice hockey
officiating crew for the XIX Olympic Winter Games, to be held Feb. 8-24, 2002 in
Salt Lake City, Utah. The officials were recently selected by the International
Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).
"The USA Hockey Officiating Program is proud to announce these members
being assigned to the 2002 Olympic Winter Games officiating crew," said
Matt Leaf (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Director, Officiating Education Program.
"Over the course of their careers, these individuals have distinguished
themselves through hard work and dedication to their craft, all motivated by a
desire to reach the Olympics. I am confident that they will represent our
program in the highest standards."
Each of the selected officials has significant experience in international ice
hockey and currently officiates in either college or minor league hockey. Early
in their careers all six participated in the USA Hockey Elite Summer Development
Programs. The camps are designed to assist younger officials improve the quality
of their officiating and advance to higher levels within the sport.
Referee Scott Hansen (Monroe, Conn.) and linesman
James Garofalo (Allen Park, Mich.) were both selected to the Olympic Men's Ice
Hockey Tournament officiating crew. Hansen, a veteran of
more than 15 years of officiating, worked in the 1999 and 2001 IIHF World Junior
Championships, and the 2000 IIHF Men's World Championship in St. Petersburg,
Russia. He currently works in both the American Hockey League (AHL) -- the top
minor league affiliate of the National Hockey League (NHL) -- and the Eastern Collegiate Athletic
Conference (ECAC). Garofalo, a linesman with over 15 years of experience,
has worked three IIHF Men's World Championships, appearing in 1998, 1999 and
2001. He is currently serving as a linesman in both the AHL and the Ontario
Hockey League (OHL), a Tier I Major Junior hockey league based in Canada.
Four American women were also named to the officiating crew for the Women's Ice
Hockey Tournament, including two referees: Krista Knight (Madison, Wis.) and Stacey
Livingston (Bangor, Maine). Knight, in her 10th year as a referee,
officiated at the 1999, 2000 and 2001 IIHF Women's World Championships, and
currently works in the Western Collegiate Hockey
Association (WCHA) Women's Conference. Livingston, a
referee for more than 12 seasons, worked the 2001 IIHF Women's World
Championship and serves as an official in the ECAC Women's Conference.
Two American linesmen, Julie Piacentini (Hyde Park, Mass.) and Megan MacKenzie
(Rochester, N.Y.), will also help oversee the action during the Women's
Tournament. MacKenzie, a veteran linesman of over 15 years, and Piacentini, a
linesman for nine years, both worked the 2000 and 2001 IIHF Women's World
Championships and currently officiate in the ECAC Women's Conference. Piacentini
served as a linesman in the gold-medal game of the 2001 IIHF Women's World
Championship in Minneapolis, Minn.