As Dewald Human breezes through the airy lobby of the team hotel in Festival City, he appears not to have a care in the world.
No matter that he and his teammates are sleep deprived, and have yet to get into their rooms after their overnight flight from Cape Town.
Nor the fact they are carrying the burden of attempting to keep up the most extraordinary winning record in the long history of the Dubai Sevens.
The 29-year-old playmaker carries the sunny disposition of someone who is happy with where they are in life. After all, South African rugby players love Dubai.
Even though the Blitzboks ended seventh on the world sevens series last season, they started their season as they always do: by winning the Dubai title.
They have done exactly that every time the tournament has been played since 2019. That amounts to five in a row. Not even the all-conquering New Zealand side of the early years of the world series managed dominance like that.
And yet last year’s tournament was bittersweet. Human ended the closely fought final against Argentina with tears streaming down his face. Arriving in the city earlier this week ahead of their title defence, he said those same feelings came flooding back.
“I was thinking about when we came over, thinking about what happened last year and it was emotional again,” Human said ahead of the 2024 tournament.
“It was the same time last year that my sister passed away. It was my motivation last year.
“It is still lekker [good] to come to Dubai. There is a lot of pressure on us and people are asking if we are going to break the record going for six [in a row]. We just want to focus on our process this week, and start off well.”
Human dedicated last year’s Dubai win to his sister, Marelize, who had died in the lead up to the tournament. He said he would always be reminded of her every time he put on his green Blitzboks shirt, with “Human” written between the shoulders.
“It is still the same motivation,” he said. “Every time I put that jersey on, my surname is on the back. It reminds me of her and the legacy I want to put back.
“She was a big fan of the Blitzboks as well. I want to represent her in the national colours, and I am happy to be back representing my country. It is going to be a big part of who I am this weekend. I want to serve the team.”
Living near South Africa’s sevens training base in Cape Town means Human has not been able to see his sister’s young family as often as he would like.
They live around six hours away, but he stays in contact with her three young sons as best he can. And, he says, he wants to make them happy by performing on the field.
“That is quite a challenge,” he said. “Within our team we talk about making sacrifices and that is one of the sacrifices I have to make to play this wonderful game.
“I know why I am doing this. This is my dream. After Cape Town [Sevens, next week] I will get to see them for two weeks, then will have to be back into camp again.
“They understand. The middle one is a big fan of me, and I always get messages saying, ‘Boeta [elder brother], you must play well.’ They still don’t understand what is happening fully.
“This year has been about trying to build up their understanding and explain what the future holds, and how they are going to miss their mum. I miss them a lot.”
For now, all his focus is on more success at Dubai Sevens. South Africa’s record in the city is remarkable. Their haul of 11 titles since the advent of the world series in Dubai is nearly double the next best – that of New Zealand, who have won six times.
“When you come to Dubai, everyone is fresh,” said Human, whose side start their title defence against Australia on Pitch 1 at 10.50am on Saturday.
“Every side is putting their best team out on the circuit. For us, we are not thinking about the outcome, instead it is about following the process this week.
“Starting from Monday, we want to try to be perfect in everything we do so that by the weekend we are hitting form. It is not about preparing for the final, it is about preparing for the first game.
“This weekend for us, that mean Australia. We focus on Australia and try to take care of that, and the dynamic of our team is very good.
“We each understand what our role is in the bigger plan. If you understand that, we can move forward. We have been lucky that, for five years, we have been successful.
“Also, there is massive crowd in Dubai. We feel the love of the South Africans coming over and supporting us.
“We like being in Dubai, we know what to expect and we can focus on the process and not the outcome.”
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
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Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
If you go
Flight connections to Ulaanbaatar are available through a variety of hubs, including Seoul and Beijing, with airlines including Mongolian Airlines and Korean Air. While some nationalities, such as Americans, don’t need a tourist visa for Mongolia, others, including UAE citizens, can obtain a visa on arrival, while others including UK citizens, need to obtain a visa in advance. Contact the Mongolian Embassy in the UAE for more information.
Nomadic Road offers expedition-style trips to Mongolia in January and August, and other destinations during most other months. Its nine-day August 2020 Mongolia trip will cost from $5,250 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, two nights’ hotel accommodation in Ulaanbaatar, vehicle rental, fuel, third party vehicle liability insurance, the services of a guide and support team, accommodation, food and entrance fees; nomadicroad.com
A fully guided three-day, two-night itinerary at Three Camel Lodge costs from $2,420 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, accommodation, meals and excursions including the Yol Valley and Flaming Cliffs. A return internal flight from Ulaanbaatar to Dalanzadgad costs $300 per person and the flight takes 90 minutes each way; threecamellodge.com
'The Lost Daughter'
Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Starring: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
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How to register as a donor
1) Organ donors can register on the Hayat app, run by the Ministry of Health and Prevention
2) There are about 11,000 patients in the country in need of organ transplants
3) People must be over 21. Emiratis and residents can register.
4) The campaign uses the hashtag #donate_hope
