Five U.S. officials invited to participate in 2012 London Olympics

Five U.S. Soccer officials have been invited to participate in the 2012 Summer Olympics, which take place July 27 to Aug. 12 in London. Mark Geiger and Sean Hurd have been called in to officiate the men’s side and Marlene Duffy, Veronica Perez and Kari Seitz for the women’s side.

Geiger has been a member of the FIFA International Panel of Referees since 2008 and has officiated Major League Soccer matches, the CONCACAF Champions League and international friendly games. The New Jersey native began officiating in 1988 and became a National Referee in 2003. Geiger and Hurd participated in the 2011 FIFA U-20 Men’s World Cup in Colombia.

Hurd became a referee in 1986 and joined the FIFA ranks in 2009. He has refereed MLS, international and CONCACAF Champions League matches.

Seitz, Duffy and Perez officiated at the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Germany, making the U.S. one of only five countries to have three representatives on FIFA’s list of 51 officials. Earlier this year, Seitz and Duffy officiated the CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying tournament this past January in Vancouver, Canada, where the U.S. Women’s National Team defeated the host side to win the competition.

Seitz was appointed to the FIFA Women’s Panel of Referees in 1999 and has officiated in four Women’s World Cups. The London Games will mark Seitz’s third Olympiad, having previously worked during the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Duffy has been an international referee since 2008, and her first significant international involvement included the 2008 CONCACAF U-17 Championship and the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Perez officiated the 2012 CONCACAF U-20 Women’s Championship in Panama City, Panama. She joined the FIFA Women’s Panel of Assistant Referees in 2008 and has officiated at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and the CONCACAF Women’s World Cup Qualifying tournament in Mexico.