FULL NAME: Dushan Deo
GENDRE: Male
BORN: 1943 in Keonjhar
DIED: June 23, 2016 at Bhubaneswar
PRESENT HOME ADDRESS: Jayadav Vihar, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India.
ROLE IN SPORT: Tennis umpire and official

MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS:
*     Supervised in two Wimbledon, three French Open and two Australian Open tournaments.
*     He could not supervise in the US Open as he could not afford the air fare.
*     He also officiated in a number of Davis Cup and Challenger matches.
*     He was an ITF White Badge official.
*     1993 was his last appearance at a Grand Slam (Australian Open) tournament.
*     Continued to officiat at domestic circuit in India for more than two decades.
*     Time was when no tennis event in India was complete without the presence of chief referee Dushan Deo.
*     He was known as `Mr Tennis’ of India.
*     Functioned as the secretary of Orissa Tennis Association and president of District Tennis Association, Keonjhar for many decades.
*     He was also the founder of Odisha Handball Association
.

OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
*     Began his sports career as an athlete and footballer.
*     Represented university and the state in athletics and football.
*     His playing career came to an abrupt end when he injured his right knee while playing in the Senior Division Football League at Cuttack.
*     Knee injury forced him to take to sports administration and supervision in 1962.
*     Started playing tennis as a hobby, and also took to football refereeing.
*     His career took a dramatic turn when George Patnaik, elder brother of former Union Minister Biju Patnaik, asked him to assume the secretaryship of the Orissa Tennis Association (OTA), after being impressed with his organisational skills.
*     George Patnaik was then the president of the OTA and Dushan Deo continued as the OTA secretary till 2000.
*     He was the headmaster of the Municipal High School at Kandujhar when he left it all to devote full time to sports.
*     He was a starter for athletics in the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi.
*     Qualified as a tennis umpire from the Men’s International Professional Tennis Council (MIPTC) in Australia after passing the theoretical and practical tests in 1983.
*     Peter Malik was the only other Indian who passed out from that exam.
*     When R K Khanna returned to the All-India Tennis Association (AITA) as its secretary, he made Dudhan Dao the Chairman of the Umpires and Technical Committee.
*     When Deo took over his new assignment, there was no muster of umpires in the country.
*     He compiled a list of qualified umpires, and started giving them tournament assignments to create a pool of knowledgeable officials in the country.
*     He helped many youngsters make a living as qualified umpires.
*     In his own admission, drinking a few litres of milk everyday was the secret of his longevity.
*     His son Ashok Deo is a SAI tennis coach.

PROFILE FIRST UPLOADED: March 18, 2014
PROFILE LAST UPDATED: June 24, 2016