Robert Abdesselam
| Country |
 France |
|---|---|
| Born |
27 January 1920 El-Biar, France |
| Died |
26 July 2006 (aged 86) Paris, France |
| Height | 1.70 m (5.6 ft) |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| Singles | |
| Grand Slam Singles results | |
| French Open | QF (1949) |
| Wimbledon | 4R (1947) |
| Doubles | |
| Grand Slam Doubles results | |
| Wimbledon | 3R (1949) |
| Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results | |
| Wimbledon | 4R (1946) |
Robert 'Bobby' Abdesselam (27 January 1920 – 26 July 2006)[1] was a noted French international tennis player. He competed in the Davis Cup a number of times, from 1947 to 1953.[2]
Biography
Robert Abdesselam was born of a father Kabyle Muslim Mehana Abdesselam, attorney at the Paris Court of Appeal, and a Catholic mother, Marguerite Tedeschi 1, 2, after a famous painter of the Parisian bourgeoisie 3 . He grew up in El-Biar and discovers that the tennis would become his passion. He attended secondary school at Algiers and at Lycée Janson de Sailly in Paris. He then follows courses at Sciences Po and obtained a law degree at the Law Faculty of Paris. He continued along with tennis and became one of the best French players. He is junior champion of France twice in 1937 and 1938, then world champion University in 1939. During the Second World War, when he reached his best, he joined Algiers in 1942 after the Allied landings in North Africa. He participated in the Italian campaign in the French Expeditionary Corps Marshal in June. It is mentioned several times and obtained the Cross of War 1939–1945 and the Bronze Star Medal U.S..
When the war ended, his international career as player can resume. It is long and the second best French player is selected fourteen times in Davis Cup from 1947 to 1953 . He reached the knockout stages in 1938 and 1947 and the quarterfinals in 1949 of the Internationaux de France (Roland Garros). In 1947 he was finalist at the eighth Wimbledon . From 1946 to 1963 he was also counsel to the Court of Appeals of Algiers.
In 1956, he decided to end his sporting career and devote himself to politics. He was elected MNA in Algiers in 1958. He then argues for the maintenance of French Algeria, which cuts of Gaullism, and integration, which cuts the OAS. Considered by Algerian independence fighters as a traitor, he was riddled with bullets in Paris by an activist of FLN on 4 May 1960 . On 8 November 1961, Robert Abdesselam is one of 80 parliamentarians who vote "amendment Salan." In March 1962 he called the Evian agreements of "inhumane, disgraceful and unworthy of our country." The same year he was called as a witness at trial of Edmond Jouhaud and Raoul Salan.
After the independence of Algeria in 1962, Robert Abdesselam abandoned politics to devote himself to his profession internationally. He took part in the development of society Lacoste abroad. From 1968 to 1974, he was vice-president of the French Tennis Federation and, from 1975 to 1976, the International Tennis Federation . He was also Chairman of the Racing Club de France from 1959 to 1992 and president of the International Lawn Tennis Club from 1993 to 2004. In 1998, he testified at the trial of Maurice Papon he had met in Morocco in 1948 during a tournament. He died in Paris on 26 July 2006 and his funeral is held in the chapel of the Military School. In his biography of Robert Abdesselam, Michel Dreyfus describes his life as "more exciting than a novel".
Distinctions
- Commander of the Legion of Honor
- War Cross 1939–1945 (3 citations)
- Bronze Star Medal, the fourth highest award for bravery American, heroism and merit
- Foundation Robert Abdesselam [ edit ]
In memory of Robert Abdesselam, the Fondation Robert Abdesselam was created under the aegis of the Fondation de France, 22 January 2007. In particular, it aims to help former tennis champions in their retraining project and award prize "Robert Abdesselam" rewarding research on the defense of trademark law and international organizations in favor of maintaining peace.
Michel Dreyfus and Eric Belouet, Robert Abdesselam, a life riddled with bullets, Four Roads, 2009, preface by Michel Lacoste Rene Mayer, Biographical Dictionary of French North Africa, Edition 1 st October 2006, foreword by Claude Cohen-Tannoudji Delpard Raphael, The forgotten war in Algeria, M. Lafon, 2003, p. 289
References
- ↑ Robert Abdesselam at foundationrobertabdesselam.org (French)
- ↑ Robert Abdesselam at daviscup.com
- Michel Dreyfus and Eric Belouet, Robert Abdesselam, a life riddled with bullets, Four Roads, 2009, preface by Michel Lacoste
- Rene Mayer, Biographical Dictionary of French North Africa, Edition 1 st October 2006, foreword by Claude Cohen-Tannoudji
- Delpard Raphael, The forgotten war in Algeria, M. Lafon, 2003, p. 289