Ali Tanrıyar (14 March 1914 – 25 May 2017) was a Turkish internist, politician, Interior Minister of Turkey, chairman of the sports club Galatasaray S.K.. and centenarian, having lived to 103.

Family

Ali Tanrıyar was born in

Ottoman Greece The vast majority of the territory of present-day Greece was at some point incorporated within the Ottoman Empire. The period of Ottoman rule in Greece, lasting from the mid-15th century until the successful Greek War of Independence broke out ...

in 1914. He emigrated with his family, and settled in

Kırkağaç Kırkağaç () is a municipality and district of Manisa Province, Turkey. Its area is 541 km2, and its population is 37,645 (2022). The town lies at an elevation of . Features Kırkağaç is an agricultural district and known for its vari ...

district of

Manisa Province Manisa Province () is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality in western Turkey. Its area is 13,339 km2, and its population is 1,468,279 (2022). Its neighboring provinces are İzmi ...

, Turkey. He was married with one child, two grandchildren, and celebrated his 100th birthday in 2014. Tanrıyar was the brother-in-law of former Turkish prime minister and president

Turgut Özal Halil Turgut Özal (13 October 192717 April 1993) was a Turkish politician, bureaucrat, engineer and statesman who served as the eighth president of Turkey from 1989 to 1993. He previously served as the 26th prime minister of Turkey from 1983 ...

Physician

He was educated in medicine at

Istanbul University Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a Public university, public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after Fall of Constantinople, the conquest of Constantinop ...

. Between 1944 and 1976, he specialized under Prof. Erich Frank (1884–1957) at the same university. In 1972, he was appointed internist at the Taksim Beyoğlu Emergency Hospital in Istanbul, where he served as clinic chief and

chief physician A chief physician, also called a head physician, physician in chief, senior consultant, or chief of medicine, is a physician in a senior management position at a hospital or other institution. In many institutions, it is the title of the most sen ...

until 1979. He also served free of charge 41 years as the club physician of Galatasaray S.K. from 1942 to 1983.

Politician

On May 20, 1983, he joined the founders of the Motherland Party (ANAP). He was elected a deputy of

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

into the

parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

following the 1983 general elections. Tanrıyar was appointed

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

in the

cabinet serving from December 13, 1983 to October 26, 1984. He was re-elected in the 1987 general elections.

Sports administrator

Tanrıyar served as a board member of the major sports club

Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray and familiarly as Cimbom, is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul including basketball, wheelchair ...

. In 1986, he became president of Galatasaray S.K., and served two terms at this position until 1990. The club enjoyed success in sportive and economic matters during his presidency. In the 1986-87 season, Galatasaray football team became league champion after 14 years again. In addition, the club won titles in 16 different sports branches in his term. The football team played semifinals at the

1988–89 European Cup The 1988–89 European Cup was the 34th season of the European Cup football club tournament. The competition was won by Milan, the first time since 1969 and third time overall, comfortably defeated former winners Steaua București in the final. ...

as being the first ever Turkish club.

Death

Tanrıyar died on 25 May 2017, aged 103. He was buried at

Zincirlikuyu Cemetery The Zincirlikuyu Cemetery () is a modern burial ground in the European part of Istanbul, Turkey. It is administered by the Metropolitan Municipality. Many prominent figures from the world of politics, business, sports and arts rest here. The ce ...

following a memorial ceremony in the Türk Telekom Arena, the home ground of Galatasaray S.K., and the religious funeral at

Teşvikiye Mosque The Teşvikiye Mosque () is a neo-baroque structure located in the Teşvikiye neighbourhood of Şişli district in Istanbul, Turkey. History The mosque was originally commissioned in 1794 by Sultan Selim III, but most of the current mosque t ...

on 27 May 2017.

References