Simone Biles claimed her 20th world title as she continued her return from a two-year break to lead the US to a seventh straight women's team gold at the world gymnastics championships in Antwerp on Wednesday.
The USA extended their domination going back to 2011, in the absence of Russia, the last team to beat them in a major competition.
“It's crazy, we still pulled it out, I'm really proud of the team,” said Biles.
“It's the seventh title in a row for the United States. For some girls, it's their first World Championship, I'm excited to share that with them.”
The Americans scored 167.729 points to take gold ahead of Brazil (165.530), with Olympic hosts France winning bronze (164.064).
“She's the leader, having someone so inspiring and so encouraging … Team USA came together and we did what we needed to do tonight,” said Biles's teammate, Shilese Jones.
The team victory gives Biles her 26th world medal and a record-extending 20th world title.
And she could extend that tally as she is still in the running for five other podiums in Antwerp.
The Texan has made an impressive comeback, two years after the Tokyo Olympics.
Arriving in Japan as the big favourite thanks to her four gold medals won five years earlier in Rio de Janeiro, Biles broke down in full view of a global audience, withdrawing from four of the five finals.
She explained that she was fighting against the “twisties”, a temporary mental block whereby gymnasts lose their sense of where they are in the air, with the risk of injury when they land.
Despite a slight imbalance on the beam, Biles's overall performance, highlighted by scoring 15.166 on the floor, was again strong, like on Sunday during the qualifications.
Biles, Jones, Leanne Wong and Skye Blakely resisted a comeback from the Brazilians, who won the first team medal in their history.
The other member of the American team, Joscelyn Roberson, was injured in the vault warm-up and did not compete.
Reigning all-around world champion Rebeca Andrade impressed for Brazil, delivering a classy performance on the floor, scoring 14.666.
The surprise came from France who snatched bronze largely thanks to Melanie De Jesus Dos Santos, Biles's training partner in the US.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The winners
Fiction
- ‘Amreekiya’ by Lena Mahmoud
- ‘As Good As True’ by Cheryl Reid
The Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award
- ‘Syrian and Lebanese Patricios in Sao Paulo’ by Oswaldo Truzzi; translated by Ramon J Stern
- ‘The Sound of Listening’ by Philip Metres
The George Ellenbogen Poetry Award
- ‘Footnotes in the Order of Disappearance’ by Fady Joudah
Children/Young Adult
- ‘I’ve Loved You Since Forever’ by Hoda Kotb
