Hassan secures historic win for Lebanon in Olympic tennis

PARIS: In a landmark victory on Sunday, Benjamin Hassan made history by becoming the first player from Lebanon to win a match in an Olympic tennis event, defeating American Christopher Eubanks. Germany-born Hassan, ranked 170th in the world, secured the win with a commanding 6-4, 6-2 performance, one of the finest victories of his career. This triumph fully justified his Universality place granted by the ITF.

“I am unbelievably happy. We just enjoy it from the whole team. We are really proud and I’m also proud of myself,” the 29-year-old said. “It was an unbelievable atmosphere. I was just trying to be calm because I didn’t want to waste too much energy. When I won I could let it all out.”

Hassan’s journey to professional tennis is unconventional; he didn’t pursue the sport professionally until he was 22, initially playing just for fun. Now, as an Olympian, he looks forward to a second-round match against Argentina’s Sebastian Baez.

Embracing life in the athletes village, Hassan has also been collecting pins, a popular Olympic tradition. “I think the most special one is Japan because I’m a huge fan of Japan. I like watching a lot of animated mangas,” he shared.(Reuters)