Alison Hughes

Alison Hughes
Alison Hughes umpiring during the 2012 Wimbledon Championships.
Born Alison Lang
1971/1972 (age 46–47)
Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Nationality British
Occupation Tennis umpire
Years active 1993–present

Alison Hughes (née Lang; born 1971/1972)[1] is a British tennis umpire who has umpired in multiple women's Grand Slam tennis finals, as well as in the Davis Cup, Fed Cup and at the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics. She attended Ponteland High School in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Personal life

Lang was born in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. She represented Northumberland in U-18s tennis competitions.[2] She currently lives in Warsash, Hampshire.[2]

Umpiring career

Lang began umpiring in 1991, when she began umpiring junior matches in North East England. In 1993, Lang made her umpiring debut at Wimbledon.[2] Lang has umpired the finals of all the Grand slam tournaments; in 2015, she umpired the women's singles finals at Wimbledon for the sixth time.[2][1] Lang was an umpire at the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics, and has also umpired Davis Cup and Fed Cup matches.[2][3] Lang has been awarded the International Tennis Federation Gold Badge status, the highest status for a tennis umpire, and in 2011, Lang was named the Lawn Tennis Association's Official of the Year.[2][4][5]

Whilst umpiring the 2015 Australian Open women's final between Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova, Hughes invoked the "hindrance rule" against Williams for shouting "C'mon" just as Sharapova was trying to return the ball.[6] In the same year, Hughes umpired the Fed Cup final between the Czech Republic and Russia. It was her twelfth Fed Cup final, and she was part of the first ever all-female officiating team at a Fed Cup final.[7] In 2016, Hughes umpired a US Open match between Marcos Baghdatis and Gaël Monfils, and gave Baghdatis a formal warning for using his mobile phone during the changeover time.[8][9]

References

  1. 1 2 "The Latest: Alison Hughes will serve as chair umpire for women's final at Wimbledon". Fox News. 11 July 2015. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Tennis umpire Alison Lang keeping Wimbledon stars in check". The Journal. 25 June 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  3. ↑ Vasavda, Mihir (20 September 2015). "Davis Cup: In doubles, India play with a hand tied". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  4. ↑ Bialik, Carl (14 November 2013). "Gender Disparity Remains in Tennis Officiating". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  5. ↑ Matijaca, Danni (14 September 2015). "Croatian Female Umpire was the Chair Umpire of the US Open 2015 Women's Finals". Total Croatian News. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  6. ↑ Pearce, LInda (31 January 2015). "Australian Open: Serena Williams wins sixth title". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  7. ↑ "Petra Kvitova to open Czech Republic challenge against Russia in Fed Cup final". Sky Sports. 13 November 2015. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  8. ↑ "U.S. Open player chastised by umpire for using cellphone during match". CBS News. 4 September 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  9. ↑ "Marcos Baghdatis handed warning at US Open for texting his wife during loss". The Daily Telegraph. 4 September 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
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