Adel Aref | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 2 March 1980 |
| Nationality | Tunisian, French |
| Education | Bachelor from Lycée Français La Marsa Tunis/ International Business School Dubai Knowledge Village |
Adel Aref (born 2 March 1980) is a French-Tunisian former international tennis umpire and sports executive. He has also served as Director of Cabinet of the President at Paris Saint Germain Football Club and PR Director for BeIN Sports. [1]
Adel Aref was born on March 2, 1980, in Tunis, Tunisia, to Mokhtar Aref and Fatma Dhouib Aref. The family moved to London when he was five, with his two brothers, Mehdi and Bechir Aref. He holds a bachelor's degree from Lycée Gustave-Flaubert (La Marsa) and a master's degree from International Business School Dubai Knowledge Village.[ citation needed ]
Upon returning to Tunisia at the age of 10, Aref joined the Tennis Club of Tunis and eventually became interested in refereeing. When he was 16, International Tennis Federation (ITF) executives spotted him on the tennis club courts, where an injury prevented him from playing, and offered him a scholarship.[ citation needed ]
Over the course of his career, Aref officiated over 2000 matches all over the world. ITF awarded him the Gold Badge for the highest level of refereeing at the age of 24, making him the youngest professional referee in the sport. A position was then offered to him at the Qatar Tennis Federation. [2] [3]
He umpired games at the world's most prestigious tennis tournaments, officiating 30 events per year on ATP and WTA Tours. Aref was responsible for training all of the tennis officials to Olympic standard in the lead-up to both the Athens and Beijing Olympic games. During his career, he officiated seven Grand Slam finals, including the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon, the US Open and three Olympic games (Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008). [4] [5]
At the 2006 Davis Cup, a heated encounter with a young Andy Murray made headlines after Murray insulted Aref during a doubles match against Serbia and Montenegro, protesting a decision he felt was unjust. Murray was fined $2,500. [6] [7] The two would eventually reconcile after an apology from Murray two years later. [8] That same year, he became Director of Officiating of Africa and the Middle East – overseeing over a hundred officials. [9]
Aref retired from umpiring in 2008 at the age of 28 following four years of officiating at the top level.[ citation needed ]
In 2008, Adel became the Director of Marketing, Branding, and Player Services at the Qatar Tennis Federation (QTF). [10] Aref worked on events for the ATP, WTA and ITF. He also led the marketing campaigns for Sony Ericsson Championships Doha 2008–2010, Qatar ExxonMobil Open and Qatar Ladies Open.[ citation needed ]
In 2011, Aref organized Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal's exhibition game in Doha in 2011. [11] As part of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open, he invited superstar players to hit tennis balls on a court laid in Doha Bay waters to launch the 2011 ATP World Tour season.[ citation needed ]
In 2022, Aref was selected by BeIN Sports to be their PR and Event director. He led PR campaigns for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which was hosted in Qatar. [12]
Aref served as chief of staff of the president of the PSG and was responsible for selecting who would be hosted at the Carré du Parc, [13] which has seen French national stars such as Patrick Bruel, Jamel Debbouze, Francis Huster, Gérard Darmon, Enrico Macias and Jean-Paul Belmondo invited.
In January 2023, Jabeur announced joining Naomi Osaka’s agency Evolve and bringing on Aref as her manager, who she described as a friend she known for a long time. [14] [15] Jabeur was the runner-up at Wimbledon in 2023.
Aref is the CEO of AASolutions, an agency specialized in personal branding, business networking, luxury events and artistic careers management. The company's client reportedly includes brands like Victoria’s Secret, Galerie Lafayette les Champs Elysées, Elie Saab, Cannes Festival, The Voice, Qatar Tennis Federation, UEFA Champions League, Paris Saint-Germain, BeIN Sports and the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. [16] [ non-primary source needed ]
Aref is an ambassador for the DARNA association, which supports orphans. [17]
Novak Djokovic defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the final, 4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 7–6(7–2) to win the men's singles tennis title at the 2008 Australian Open. It was his first major title, the first of a record ten Australian Open titles, and the first of an all-time record 24 major men's singles titles overall. Djokovic became the first Serbian man to win a major singles title. It was the first major final since the 2005 Australian Open not to feature either Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal, who were beaten by Djokovic and Tsonga, respectively, in the semifinals. Alongside second-seeded Nadal, Tsonga defeated three more seeds en route to the final, including ninth-seed Andy Murray.
In tennis, an official is a person who ensures that a match or tournament is conducted according to the International Tennis Federation Rules of Tennis and other competition regulations.
The 2006 Qatar Open, known as the 2006 Qatar ExxonMobil Open, for sponsorship reasons, was an ATP Tour men's tennis tournament held in Doha, Qatar from 2 January until 7 January 2006. First-seeded Roger Federer won his second consecutive singles title at the event.
The 2005 Qatar Open, known as the 2005 Qatar ExxonMobil Open, for sponsorship reasons, was a men's ATP tournament held in Doha, Qatar. It was the 13th edition of the tournament and was held from 3 January through 10 January 2005. First-seeded Roger Federer won the singles title.
The 2009 ATP World Tour Finals (also known as the 2009 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for sponsorship reasons) was held in London, United Kingdom between 22 November and 29 November 2009. It was the first time the O2 arena hosted the ATP World Tour Year-End Singles and Doubles Championships. The event was renamed from Tennis Masters Cup to ATP World Tour Finals following the rearrangement of the ATP Tour.
The 2009 Qatar Open, known as the 2009 Qatar ExxonMobil Open for sponsorship reasons, was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 17th edition of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open, and part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the 2009 ATP World Tour. It took place at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in Doha, Qatar, from January 5 through January 10, 2009. The event offered prize money of US$183,000 for the winner, as well as 250 ranking points.
This page covers all the important events in the sport of tennis in 2009. Primarily, it provides the results of notable tournaments throughout the year on both the ATP and WTA Tours, the Davis Cup, and the Fed Cup.
Roger Federer’s 2006 season was dominant, finishing the year with a 92–5 record. The world No. 1 maintained his ranking for the full calendar year and reached all four major finals in 2006, winning three of them. His only loss at the majors came against Rafael Nadal in the French Open final in four sets, 6–1, 1–6, 4–6, 6–7(4–7). This was the first time they had met in a major final. In the other three majors of the season, Federer defeated Nadal in the final of Wimbledon, 6–0, 7–6(7–5), 6–7(2–7), 6–3. He defeated Marcos Baghdatis, 5–7, 7–5, 6–0, 6–2, at the Australian Open and Andy Roddick, 6–2, 4–6, 7–5, 6–1, at the US Open.
The 2011 Qatar Open, known as the 2011 Qatar ExxonMobil Open for sponsorship reasons, was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 19th edition of the Qatar Open, and part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the 2011 ATP World Tour. It took place at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in Doha, Qatar, from 3 January through 8 January 2011. Roger Federer won the singles title.
Qatar Tennis Federation (QTF) is the governing body for professional and amateur Tennis in Qatar. The mission of QTF is to provide young Qatari tennis players the best resources and opportunities available to reach their maximum potential and compete in renowned tennis tournaments locally, regionally and internationally. In addition the Qatar Tennis Federation (QTF) is fully committed to elevate the level of tennis in the country and to turn tennis into the preferred sport among the community of Qatar.
Malek Jaziri is a Tunisian former professional tennis player. Jaziri reached his highest singles ranking on the ATP Tour of World No. 42 in January 2019. He primarily played on the Futures circuit and the Challenger circuit.
The 2012 Qatar Open was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 20th edition of the Qatar Open, and part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the 2012 ATP World Tour. It took place at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha, Qatar, from January 2 through January 7, 2012. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga won the singles title.
Nasser bin Ghanim Al-Khelaifi is a Qatari businessman and the chairman of beIN Media Group, chairman of Qatar Sports Investments, president of Paris Saint-Germain and the Qatar Tennis Federation, and vice president of the Asian Tennis Federation for West Asia.
This page covers all the important events in the sport of tennis in 2012. Primarily, it provides the results of notable tournaments throughout the year on both the ATP and WTA Tours, the Davis Cup, and the Fed Cup.
Roger Federer defeated Andy Murray in the final, 4–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–4 to win the gentlemen's singles tennis title at the 2012 Wimbledon Championships. It was his seventh Wimbledon title and 17th major title overall. With the win, Federer also regained the world No. 1 ranking. Federer thus equalled both William Renshaw and Pete Sampras' all-time record of seven Wimbledon titles, as well as Sampras' record of 286 weeks as world No. 1. Novak Djokovic was the defending champion, but lost in the semifinals to Federer.
Rafael Nadal defeated Novak Djokovic in the final, 6–2, 3–6, 6–4, 6–1 to win the men's singles tennis title at the 2013 US Open. It was his second US Open title and 13th major title overall, moving him to third place on the all time men's singles major titles list, past Roy Emerson. This marked the third time in four years that Nadal and Djokovic contested the final.
Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) is a closed shareholding organization founded in 2005 and based in Doha, Qatar. Revenues generated from ventures of QSi are reinvested into Qatar's sport, leisure and entertainment sectors. QSi is led by Chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Vice Chairman Adel Mohammed Tayyeb Mustafawi, and its board of directors has three additional members. According to Una Galani, QSi "is thought to be owned by the [Qatar] finance ministry and the Qatar Olympic Committee." QSi is subsidiary of Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the state-run sovereign-wealth fund in Qatar.
Ali Nili is an Iranian-American tennis official who has a gold badge chair umpire certified by the International Tennis Federation.