Ons Jabeur Shares Heartwarming Story of Palestinian Swimmer Farah Fares Who’s ‘Learning to Hold Pride and Peace at the Same Time’
Former World No.2 Ons Jabeur last played a match in the first round of the 2025 Wimbledon.
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In background: Ons Jabeur; In circle: Farah Fares (Image via X/SuperTennis TV, YouTube/Ons Jabeur)
- Ons Jabeur is currently on maternity leave and has not competed since last year's Wimbledon.
- She recently launched a YouTube channel featuring a collaboration with Palestinian swimmer Farah Fares.
- Fares aims to represent Palestine at the Olympics and emphasizes swimming for those without opportunities in her homeland.
Ons Jabeur is not competing on the tour. She, in fact, hasn’t played a tournament since giving the walkover to Viktoriya Tomova in the first round of last year’s Wimbledon.
Jabeur is pregnant, but has made it clear that after childbirth, she will be back on tour. Earlier this month, the Tunisian ace started her YouTube channel and posted her first video with her best friend, Paula Badosa, in the first episode of Her Games, Her Rules. In the second episode, Jabeur spent a day with Farah Fares, an 18-year-old swimmer who is representing the Palestinian National Team and is based in Doha, Qatar.
Two athletes chasing something bigger than themselves, both learning how to hold pride and peace at the same time. We talked about what it means to represent more than just yourself, about being young, being Arab, about the weight and the beauty of carrying a flag that means everything.
Ons Jabeur said in the video
Fares did not always compete for Palestine. When she was a child, her coach at a swimming club saw potential in her and suggested she join the Palestinian national team. Fares, who wishes to play at the Olympics, said most of her relatives from her dad’s side live in Palestine.
I feel like the deepest sense of pride when I represent Palestine, like when I like my goal and my aim is to raise the Palestinian flag across all competitions around the world. And I know that I don’t like only swim for myself. I swim for everyone back home who can’t train, who wants to become a swimmer, and who doesn’t have the opportunities or the facilities to be able to do that.
Farah Fares told Ons Jabeur
Jabeur said the kids in Palestine have nothing to do with the situation (the conflict between Israel and Palestine) and thinks the best way to get them out of the situation is to make them play sports.
Ons Jabeur on her tennis comeback
Tennis players are always on the move thanks to the 11-month calendar. But Ons Jabeur, thanks to her pregnancy, has no longer been following a fixed schedule.
In spite of her maternity leave, she sometimes questions herself why she’s exhausted before remembering that she’s “growing a kidney” inside her. After motherhood, Jabeur wants to return to the tour stronger than ever and compete for at least a couple more years.
I want to give myself the time to see how my body will react. I don’t want to rush into it. But I definitely would want to go back on tour and compete for a couple of more years.
Ons Jabeur told Vogue Arabia
Kim Clijsters, a former World No.1, sent Jabeur a cooker, advising her to take it with her on the tour because it will be helpful, especially after late-night matches. Clijsters won three of her four Grand Slam titles after giving birth to her daughter Jada. She was one of the three women in the Open Era to win a Major singles title after motherhood (following Margaret Court and Evonne Goolagong Cawley).
Naomi Osaka, Belinda Bencic, and Elina Svitolina have been competing at the highest level since becoming mothers. Svitolina, a former World No.3, in fact, is back in the top 10 of the rankings thanks to her ASB Classic win, her run to the Australian Open semifinal, and to the final of the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Jabeur, a three-time Grand Slam finalist, last lifted a title at the 2023 Ningbo Open. She has yet to reach another final since that win.
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