Farewell to Sports Journalism Pioneer Youssef Berjawi

Today, Saturday, the Arab sports journalism community mourns the passing of Youssef Berjawi, known as "Abu Firas," who was the dean of Arab sports journalists and the honorary president of the Lebanese Sports Media Association, after a struggle with illness. Berjawi passed away at the age of 75, having been born on March 21, 1948. He entered the sports field as a player in football and volleyball and worked in sports journalism alongside its early pioneers, including Nasif Majdalani, Khalil Nahas, Ghazi Al-Miqati, and Baheej Hamdan. His journalistic activity began in 1965, after which he established the sports section of the "As-Safir" newspaper in 1974, from which he launched his career. He referred to himself as "the black box of sports journalism." He served on the executive committee of the Lebanese Football Association for several terms and was a member of various committees in the Asian Football Confederation. In 2000, he was awarded the Asian Football Confederation's annual award for best sports journalist by former AFC president Sultan Ahmad Shah. Berjawi attended 10 Olympic Games and 10 FIFA World Cup tournaments, making him the Arab media figure with the most participation in international sporting events.