Tunisian swimmer Mellouli named Arab sportsman of the year

The Tunisian Beijing Olympic swimmer, Oussama Mellouli, was named the best Arab sportsman of the year 2011 by the Egyptian magazine, Al Ahram al Arabi, the official press agency TAP reported on Friday. Mellouli, who recently won 15 gold medals at the Doha Arab Games, is also the 1500m world champion and the Arab world's unique Olympic gold medalist. Meanwhile, Tunisia's football team Esperance Sportive de Tunis, which won the African Champion's League, were also named as the best Arab club of the year along with Qatar's Al Sudd, the current Asian club champions. Esperance's coach, Nabil Maaloul received the best Arab coach award , while the club's president, Hamdi Meddeb was elected among the top six personalities having played an important role in Arab sports. Al Ahram el Arabi's awards are attributed each year following a referendum by leading Arab sports specialists and journalists.