Debbie Jevans

Deborah Jevans CBE (born 20 May 1960) is a British former tennis player and current sports executive.

Debbie Jevans
CBE
Full nameDeborah Jevans
Country (sports) Great Britain
Born (1960-05-20) 20 May 1960
London, England
Turned pro1976
Retired1983
Singles
Career record17–31
Grand Slam singles results
French Open2R (1981)
Wimbledon4R (1979)
US Open2R (1982)
Doubles
Career record16–42
Grand Slam doubles results
French Open3R (1981)
Wimbledon3R (1979)
US Open3R (1980)

Career

Jevans is a former junior Wimbledon champion and played in ten Grand Slam singles draws between 1979 and 1983, with her best result being the fourth round of Wimbledon, losing to fifth-seeded Virginia Wade. In 1978 she reached the quarter finals of the mixed doubles event at Wimbledon with her future husband and Wimbledon referee Andrew Jarrett.[1]

In 1987, at the age of 27, Jevans took up a role of director of the Women's Game at the International Tennis Federation and in 1991 became general secretary.[1] In 2003 she was appointed as director of sports for London 2012. After the London Olympic and Paralympic Games, she took over the post of chief executive for the 2015 Rugby World Cup.[2][3] In 2014 she topped the list of the 50 most influential women in British sport created by the Guardian.[4] Jevans stepped down from her Rugby World Cup role in March 2015 citing personal reasons.[5] She had reportedly fallen out with members of the RFU and received a £150,000 payoff when she left.[6] She is a member of the board of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC).[1][7] Jevans is also a non-executive director of the English Football League having been appointed this role in 2014.[8][9][10] When Ian Lenagan resigned as chairman of the organisation, Jevans was appointed interim chair in September 2018 until a new chairperson was elected in 2019.[11][12]

Jevans was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours "for services to Sport and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games", in her role as Director of Sport at LOCOG.[13]

In July 2023, Jevans became the first chairwoman of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club Board who succeeded Ian Hewitt after the conclusion of the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.

References
  1. Slater, Matt (30 October 2014). "Sport & gender: Breaking the glass ceiling in sport administration". BBC Sport.
  2. Mairs, Gavin (5 September 2012). "Rugby World Cup 2015 team hire Debbie Jevans, London Olympics director of sport". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  3. "Debbie Jevans new boss of 2015 World Cup organisers". BBC Sport. 5 September 2012.
  4. Kessel, Anna (7 March 2014). "Debbie Jevans tops Guardian list of most influential women in UK sport". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  5. "Rugby World Cup: Debbie Jevans resigns as boss of 2015 organisers". BBC Sport. 28 March 2015.
  6. Mairs, Gavin (30 March 2015). "Why Debbie Jevans quit – the truth behind fall-out with RFU that led to shock exit before Rugby World Cup starts" – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
  7. "The AELTC". www.wimbledon.com. AELTC.
  8. "International Women's Day: Debbie Jevans - "Confidence is key"". English Football League. 8 March 2018.
  9. "London 2012's Debbie Jevans joins Football League board". 5 June 2014 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  10. "Debbie Jevans appointed to Football League board". Press Association. 5 June 2014 – via www.theguardian.com.
  11. "Ian Lenagan steps down as EFL chairman". Sky Sports. 6 September 2018.
  12. Ziegler, Martyn (7 September 2018). "Football League appoints first woman to lead role". The Times.
  13. The United Kingdom:"No. 60367". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 28 December 2012. p. 8.
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