The Middle East franchise owners of the popular global obstacle race Spartan have cut ties with the parent company following comments by founder and chief executive Joe De Sena about the Israel-Gaza War.
Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
"For the past 10 years, we have represented the Spartan brand in the Middle East," Spartan Arabia posted on Instagram Tuesday evening. "Seeing that our core values do not align with the founder of Spartan Race, we have decided to not continue our relationship with the Spartan brand.
"To all our amazing racers, thank you for a decade filled with thrilling challenges, enduring friendships, and boundless love and respect. You'll for ever hold a special place in our hearts."
The post was preceded by an announcement cancelling a coming Spartan-branded event, scheduled to take place in Sharjah next month.
De Sena, who founded Spartan in 2009 and turned it into a global franchise, caused outrage last month when he posted an Instagram reel showing his support for Israel's attack on Gaza.
“We have to stand with our allies," De Sena said in the video, which has since been deleted. “When bad stuff happens, we have to respond. No one wants to see civilians hurt, but you have to respond when evil steps in.”
In the caption accompanying the post, De Sena added: “As Spartans, we stand with our fellow Spartans and brothers and sisters in Israel,” he said, ending his message with the Jewish affirmation phrase Yisrael Chai or “the people of Israel live”.
The video sparked widespread condemnation, especially from obstacle course racing communities in the Middle East.
Both Spartan Arabia and OCR Empire, which claims to be the largest community of its kind in the Middle East, slammed De Sena and his comments.
“As a community, we will not participate in or support Spartan races any more as the founder of this brand has shown support for the continuing genocide, which does not align with our morals,” OCR Empire said. “What we can do is speak up, be heard, and try to help the innocent people who have had their humanity taken from them.”
A day after the controversial post, De Sena deleted the video and posted an apology saying he's had a “clearer perspective" after “engaging in substantive conversations with our Middle East partners and stakeholders”.
“Reflecting on the recent video I shared, where I expressed solidarity with one side without a full understanding of the intricate political dynamics and the whole picture, I acknowledge the depth of my oversight and I sincerely apologise," he said.
His apology, however, prompted angry comments, with many still calling for the Spartan brand and event to be boycotted.
More than 200 Spartan races are held annually in over 40 countries around the world, including multiple events across the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
Spartan World Championship 2023, a three-day event set to bring together top athletes from around the world, is set to begin in Abu Dhabi’s Al Wathba on Friday.
More than 15,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed during eight weeks of war. The toll is likely to be much higher, with the Gaza Health Ministry reporting that thousands more are dead under the rubble of destroyed buildings.
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Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
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A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.
Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.
A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.
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Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.
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10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
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Starting at 10am:
Sara Sorribes Tormo v Nadia Podoroska
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Elise Mertens (7) v Alize Cornet
Tamara Zidansek v Jennifer Brady (11)
Heather Watson v Jodie Burrage
Vera Zvonareva v Amandine Hesse
Court 2
Starting at 10am:
Arantxa Rus v Xiyu Wang
Maria Kostyuk v Lucie Hradecka
Karolina Muchova v Danka Kovinic
Cori Gauff v Ulrikke Eikeri
Mona Barthel v Anastasia Gasanova
Court 3
Starting at 10am:
Kateryna Bondarenko v Yafan Wang
Aliaksandra Sasnovich v Anna Bondar
Bianca Turati v Yaroslava Shvedova
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July 29: OTA Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan
Sep 22-23: LA Convention Centre in Los Angeles, US
Nov 16-18: Carioca Arena Centre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Feb 7-9: Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi, UAE
Mar 9-10: Copper Box Arena in London, UK
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Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
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A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.
