World Snooker Championship final referee retires from Crucible as she sends message

Trailblazing referee Michaela Tabb has retired from traditional after taking charge of her last match at the . The 57-year-old said her farewells after refereeing the first five frames of the World Seniors Snooker Tour final between Alfie Burden and Aaron Canavan on Sunday.

Tabb was the first woman to referee at a world ranking tournament and made history by becoming the first female to officiate a final at the Crucible in 2009. She handed over the reins to fellow female ref Proletina Velichkova after the opening five frames of the WSST final. And while Tabb will still referee the Snooker Legends 900, she revealed she was "excited" to call time on her career. She said before her last final in Sheffield: "I'm excited to hang up my gloves if I'm being honest, for traditional snooker. I think I've done my time.

"I'm getting to an age where it would be nice to watch other people doing that, especially after seeing another female coming up now and refereeing the final at the main World Championships. It's been like 15 years that we've been waiting for that to sort of happen. So I'm happy now to let the young guns do it.

"I will still work with Snooker Legends and I'll still do the 900 but for traditional snooker, my day will be finished. I feel emotional even just talking about it to be honest. Honestly, it could make me cry, and I was so lucky to have two finals and so many other matches as well."

Tabb was fast-tracked by the snooker authorities, making her debut on the ranking circuit in 2002. The Somerset-born Scot went on to officiate the 2009 and 2012 Crucible finals. She left the World Snooker Tour (WST) in March 2015 following 14 years of service.

Her high-level of refereeing and longevity paved the way for a new generation of female referees. That was evident as Desislava Bozhilova, 32, officiated the recent World Snooker Championship final between Zhao Xintong and Mark Williams.

During Tabb's last competitive frame, commentator Dennis Taylor praised her impact by saying: "She's been a wonderful referee and she's encouraged so many ladies to come forward. There's now up to 10 from around the world and it's all down to Michaela."

Tatiana Woollaston, who officiated the 2024 UK Championship final, took to X after the announcement of Tabb's retirement. She wrote: "For all women, which now have an opportunity to get involved in the sport they love, there had to be THE FIRST and that was Michaela Tabb. Inspiration, history maker and an amazing person! Thank you and enjoy the retirement!"