By Mohamed Farah
Sombrit Youth
Twenty boys and girls between the ages of 7 and 18 drawn from all corners of UK participated in a special Somali youth tennis tournament held at Southwark City Tennis Club, London on Sunday the 8th May 2011.The one-day tournament organized by Sombrit Youth in partnership with Somali Tennis Association and Somali Olympic committee was the first of its kind and attracted many people from the Somali Diaspora in UK. This was a historic and epic moment for Somali Youth in London. It was a great atmosphere with some competitive but fun tennis played throughout the afternoon.
The Tournament, which kept the club's 3 courts busy from 2.00pm to 8.00pm, was split into two different age groups, the under 12s and the under 18s. The first to compete were the under 12’s. The standard of tennis was remarkably high, and the boys kept going through a long day that had some players playing as many as 6 sets of hard-fought singles. The tournament was eventually won by 11 yr-old Abdirizak Abdulle of West London, who beat his twin brother Hanad Abdulle. Abdirizak’s victories on the way to the final included a win over hard hitting 12 yr-old Abdulahi Daoud of South London.
The under 18’s was equally competitive; the boys rose to the occasion and entertained the ever enthusiastic crowd with some brilliant tennis. The darling of the crowd was Omar Daud aged 16 who thrilled the crowd with his shots and moves. On his way to the final he easily dispatched his opponents with ease. Like the under 12’s the final match was also a family affair. Two brothers Omar Daud aged 16 and Abdulahi Daud aged 12 battled for the top honors.
Having lost to the eventual winner in the semi final at his age group, Abdulahi Daoud steadied himself and came back to compete in the under 18’s Daoud impressed many with his hard hitting and tenacity against much older boys. On the way to the final he thrilled the crowd by beating two older (and much larger) boys He eventually lost against the eventual winner, Omar (on the right) who was much stronger.
Mr.Duraan Farah the vice president of Somali National Olympic committee and the guest of honour said the competition was a positive response to his vision and commitment to ensure the development of the lesser-known sports in Somalia. He said that he was also happy that tennis was being revived in the community and was hopeful that well-meaning citizens, especially those with the love for sports would come together in developing various sporting disciplines. Other dignitaries who attended included Mr Abdullah Mohamed Saneey the vice president of Somalia Athletics federation, Mr Shino Guhad former Somalia National basket ball player and coach and many more community leaders.
The Tournament was a great success, and thanks go to the community leaders and all the parents and who gave up large chunks of their weekend to bring their boys - and to all the boys for their efforts. Special thanks also goes to Hassan Mohamud Hassan the chief coordinator of the tournament. When asked about the events Mr Hassan stated that apart from using the competition to encourage the youth and rekindle their interest in the game of tennis, it was also aimed using the medium of sports to instil the spirit of discipline and respect among the youth at all times. Mr Hassan stated that The Club will be staging more events like this over the coming months, so if anyone is interested in competing to keep an eye on the Club's website at sombrityouth.org.
At the end of the tournament, an exhibition match that pitted the champion of the under 18s category against one of the highly ranked Somali Tennis player in UK Liban Xasan aged 18 was hosted. A large crowd was on hand to cheer on both players and was treated to excellent tennis. The match went the distance and eventually won by the favorite Liiban. (Standing on the left).
Anisa Daud began playing tennis at age of three and now at seven, Anisa’s tennis game has it all! Forehands, backhands, volleys, and serves! Anisa also routinely trains with both her older and younger brothers Omar and Abdulahi in the Youth club ...and here she is posing for the camera during the Tournament. Anisa put on a great show and amazed the crowd at the tournament.
