LEADING female referee Michaela Tabb will officiate this year’s World Championship final, it has been announced.

This year’s final taking place on May 6 and 7, will be Tabb’s second grand final appearance after refereeing the sport’s showpiece event for the first time in 2009 when John Higgins was crowned World Champion beating Shaun Murphy 18-9.

The 44-year-old Scot told World Snooker she was delighted to have been chosen to take charge of the final once again.

“I was absolutely elated when I found out I was doing it again this year,” she said. “I loved it when I did the final in 2009. It went really well for me without any mistakes so I just hope it will be the same this time.

“It’s such a huge tournament with a lot of history and potentially hundreds of millions of people watching on television. And there’s no venue like the Crucible in terms of the atmosphere. When it falls silent it is so intense.”

The World Championships begin on Saturday, April 21 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.