Ivan Bravo- ASPIRE Director General

Prior to joining Aspire Academy, Mr. Bravo was Director of Strategy at Real Madrid CF, one of the world’s most accomplished sports institutions. At Real Madrid, Mr. Bravo was in charge of heading the Club’s strategies and initiatives on both the business and sports fronts with two main goals: continue to lead the industry as the world’s highest revenue grossing football club and restructure Real Madrid’s sports practices to return to sports success. During this period, Real Madrid achieved impressive growth on the business side, solidifying its position as the world’s largest club in terms of revenues and won back- to-back LA LIGA championships in 2007 and 2008, after four seasons without trophies (the longest drought in club history in 50 years). As a member of the management committee, he was responsible for guiding the Club’s different departments and operating units towards the definition and implementation of ambitious objectives and common goals. Prior to joining Real Madrid, Ivan was a strategy consultant in the field of leadership, corporate and executive performance in Chicago and Washington DC with Hewitt Associates where he led projects with Fortune 500 companies. Mr. Bravo started his career working for The Gillette Company and Merrill Lynch in several roles in Finance. Mr. Bravo received his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in the United States. He is an avid fan of any sport and enjoys attending matches and live competitions. He still attempts to play football and basketball regularly. Mr. Bravo is proud to be joining the Aspire community and to lead the Academy into the next phase of growth.

Ali Salem Afifa- ASPIRE Director of Corporate Services

One of the original staff to join Aspire Academy, Ali Salam Afifa continues to be an integral part of the organization in his role as Corporate Services Manager. A graduate of Manchester University in the United Kingdom, Ali was a chemical engineer with Qatar Petroleum prior to being seconded to join the Qatar Football Association. Ali served as General Secretary of the Technical Committee before joining ASPIRE Academy as one of its early employees. Ali’s dedication to football in Qatar is well known and he continues to be a representative on the Technical Committee while also serving as the Sport Director and Assistant General Secretary of Al Rayyan Football Club - current Emir Cup champions. In addition to his contribution to Qatari football, Ali has also been involved in several Asian Football Confederation events.

Wayde Clews, M.S. – ASPIRE Director of Sport

ASPIRE’s newest director, Wayde Clews, joined the Academy in October 2009. Wayde brings an outstanding record of management experience as an elite athlete high performance manager. He also has a keen understanding of the importance of an integrated sports science approach, and strong philosophical beliefs about sport leader responsibility for student success in the educational sport environment. Wayde has a fantastic pedigree having previously served as Chief High Performance Group and the Director of the Athlete Development Division at the Singapore Sports Council, High Performance Manager and Sports Science and Sports Medicine Coordinator at Australian Water Polo. He is a proven relationshipbuilder with national sport federations which is very important to the Academy. Wayde is highly qualified academically having received his Masters of Applied Science from the University of Canberra, certificates in Elite Coaching, Sport Knowledge and Executive Sport Management from Australia and Sydney University and a Bachelor of Applied Science from the University of Canberra.

Badr Al Hay- ASPIRE Director of Education and Student Care

With a long and distinguished career in the education sector, Badr al Hay was appointed as the inaugural principal of Aspire Academy in September 2003. Recently he was promoted to the position of Director of Education and student care, overseeing responsibility for the academic, life skills and social development of the students. Badr’s love of sport was formed at a young age and he played football for eight years. After graduating from Qatar University with a B.A. in Geography / Planning, he worked as a school teacher within the Qatar Ministry of Education. He was recognized for his outstanding work and promoted to deputy principal before being allocated the position as ASPIRE’s first principal. Badr’s distinguished work and strong commitment to the development of youth has seen him honored by the Deputy Minister of Education.

Dr. Dennis Hatcher, Ph.D. – ASPIRE Director of Sport Science

Dennis Hatcher is internationally recognized as a Director of Sports Science and Sports Medicine having served as the Assistant Director for Sports Science and Sports Medicine for the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) since 2002 where he was responsible for the management of a broad range of Departments. He is highly experienced in developing collaborative service relationships with sport federations. He also served as the inaugural Director of the Northern Territory Institute of Sport. Dennis is highly respected for his ability to coordinate the efforts of large and diverse staff of expert scientists and Sports Medicine practitioners. A former athlete, he represented Australia in world championships as a rower. Dennis’ role at ASPIRE is a new one and with his extensive background and hands-on approach, ASPIRE can expect him to jump into putting together ASPIRE’s first Sport Science Department consisting of Performance Enhancement, the Health Center and new sections for Research and Further Education. Dennis received his Ph.D. in Physiology from Monash University. He also holds Bachelor of Science and Education degrees in Physiology and Advanced Education.