SIXTEEN awards will be up for grabs at the Suva Rugby Union Referees Association Awards Night at the Defence Club next Friday.
The event, titled the 'Whistle Awards', is the first of its kind for the association since its inception in the 1980s.
The association has produced young referees for the past few years and it has been their ultimatum to identify, recruit, train and develop rugby union referees and match officials around Fiji and internationally.
Fiji's top whistle man James Bolabiu is one of the organisers of the event.
Kuini Vuli, the first Pacific Islander appointed to officiate at the upcoming Women's International Rugby Board Dubai 7s tournament is one of the top contenders for the top prize.
Bolabiu said the main aim of the awards night was to acknowledge the contribution of rugby match officials. He said they were expecting 200 guests at the event.
"We also want to highlight at the awards night, increasing involvement of women in our association such as Kuini Vuli who is the first female Pacific Islander appointed to officiate at the Women's IRB 7s in Dubai," Bolabiu stated in a press statement.
Some awards include the Youngest Active Member, Oldest Active Member, Discipline Award, Best Committee Member, Best Committee, Most Improved Performance, Special Referee Award, Best Supportive Member, Best Team Leader, Best Assistant Referee of the Year, Best Referee Coach of the Year, Junior Referee of the Year Award, Best Female Referee Award, Best Referee of the Year Award, Referee Personality of the Year Award.