Sophie, Hossam claim juniors tennis titles

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Sophie De Boer from the Netherlands and Ahmed Hossam from Egypt were yesterday crowned champions of their respective categories in the 26th BBK Juniors Open Tennis Championship, which came to a close at Bahrain Tennis Club (BTC) in Juffair.

The final matches and closing ceremony of the tournament were held yesterday, attended by BBK CEO Dr Abdulrahman Ali Saif, His Majesty the King’s Youth and Sports Affairs advisor Saleh Isa bin Hindi Al Mannai, Egyptian Ambassador to Bahrain Yasser Shaban, Philippine Embassy Charge d’Affaires Maria Paz Cortes, Bahrain Triathlon Association president Abdulla Abdulrahim Abdulsalam, BTC president Khamis Al Muqla and BTC member Dr Faisal Al Mosawi.

Sophie claimed the title in the under-18 girls’ singles category following a 6-2, 6-3 win over Eira Corral from the Philippines. Hossam followed suit in claiming the under-18 boys’ singles crown after beating Ali Darion of Bahrain 6-3, 6-4. The pair headlined the long list of champions in the competition.

The others included Alanna Cifra in the under-12 girls’ singles, Leanne Sinocruz in the under-14 girls’ singles, Redha Abdulnabi in the under-12 boys’ singles, Zayn Siddiqi in the under-14 boys’ singles, Redha once again teamed up with Ahmed Al Sayed in the under-14 boys’ doubles, Shadi Mounir and Hossam in the under-18 boys’ doubles, Abdullah Khalfan in the under-8 open singles, and Sebastian Mathis in the under-10 open singles.

All the winners were presented their respective trophies by the officials on hand in an awarding ceremony that followed play. Al Muqla also presented Dr Saif with a memento.

The competition was held under the patronage of Dr Saif and as part of celebrations marking BBK’s 50th anniversary. This year’s event marked its 26th edition as it has been held at BTC since 1996.