June 7, 2015. Leg 8 to Lorient onboard Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing. Day 0.  Simon "SiFi" Fisher tries to guess what the wind will do next after slipping back from the leaders en route to Lorient. Matt Knighton / Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing / Volvo Ocean Race
June 7, 2015. Leg 8 to Lorient onboard Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing. Day 0. Simon "SiFi" Fisher tries to guess what the wind will do next after slipping back from the leaders en route to Lorient. Matt KnigShow more

Around the world in 255 days: Abu Dhabi’s Si-Fi recounts top Volvo Ocean Race moments



A million decisions go into the winning of a Volvo Ocean Race. Many are made beforehand and a whole lot are made during each leg – based on cloud formations, weather and wind conditions, the state of the boat and not least, other boats.

Azzam's victory, confirmed after the final leg on Monday, was guided in no small degree by their navigator, Simon Fisher – known by his crewmates as Si-Fi – and, although he stressed it was the small decisions that ultimately secured the triumph, he revealed to The National five big decisions that made a difference.

Begin as you mean to end (Leg 1)

There was one critical decision, the first of the race, to go inside or outside the Cape Verde Islands as we were going down the North Atlantic. That was the first big split of the race, probably the biggest split we had all race.

It was an important one because it was early and being right set the tone for the race. We made the decision to go north as it put us on pretty strong footing to get through the Doldrums in the first leg. That dictates where you get to the Doldrums and where you get there dictates how you get out, so that worked well for us.

Leg placing: Winner

Current, not wind (Leg 2)

This was in the South Indian Ocean, going north past Madagascar. We were going downwind and a schedule came in and we found ourselves more separated from the fleet than we planned.

We were on our own and as things developed it looked like we had an opportunity to jump on the fleet and get ahead. But, as it turned out, we did the right thing by being very thorough in calibrating the currents data we had, because currents are as important as wind.

We spent a period trying to make sure the data was correct and once we realised it was we made a decision to join the fleet. If we did something different based on wind and not current, the second leg would’ve been much more difficult.

Leg placing: 3

Conquering the Southern Ocean (Leg 5)

The toughest leg and most challenging weather-wise. A key part of the decision making was when to push hard, when to be a bit more conservative. When we came into Cape Horn, we set the 24-hour speed record and set ourselves up well, going from fifth to second.

Going up the Atlantic, we saw a big storm coming from South America and that was probably the windiest conditions we saw in the race. We took the decision to not push so hard. Although we had built up a good lead we decided we would give up some miles but come out of it in good shape, with no boat damage.

When we got to Itajai we realised the damage other boats had and our gear looked in good shape. That was quite important as one of our long-term strategies was to look after our sails and make sure we didn’t have any breakages.

Leg placing: Winner

Bounce-back ability (Leg 6)

In the beginning we were unlucky, as it is always difficult in the South Atlantic. You get lots of storm clouds and reading clouds involves luck: you might get a good one, get ahead, and then a bad one and fall back.

Unfortunately for us a line of clouds dumped us from second to sixth. From that point, we were playing catch-up. But some good decision making helped us cut the deficit and then the subtlety of sailing came in. We made sure we had the right sail, found the fastest angle, chased the best winds, all the small decisions that added up. That is what got us back. It was a very rewarding leg because we worked our way back, got past boats. It’s hard on competitors when they see us grinding them down.

Leg placing: 2nd

Know your enemy (Leg 8)

This leg was the turning point. We approached this by wanting to mark the closest challengers to us (Dongfeng Race Team and Team Brunel) and then try, even if we didn’t win, to beat them.

Decision making was based on keeping an eye on them, to stay in front of one or both. We knew if one boat went one way we had to cover the other. As we crossed the Bay of Biscay with a lot of wind, Dongfeng went straight and headed north and Brunel headed east. We had to make a decision and we chose Brunel, mainly because it was closest to us.

In the end it was the right thing to do, even though the fleet got shuffled, we managed to keep those guys covered.

Leg position: 3rd​

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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.”

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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE

When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.

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Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

Game Changer

Director: Shankar 

Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram

Rating: 2/5

The specs

AT4 Ultimate, as tested

Engine: 6.2-litre V8

Power: 420hp

Torque: 623Nm

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)

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Points classification after Stage 4

1. Arnaud Demare (France / FDJ) 124

2. Marcel Kittel (Germany / Quick-Step) 81

3. Michael Matthews (Australia / Sunweb) 66

4. Andre Greipel (Germany / Lotto) 63

5. Alexander Kristoff (Norway / Katusha) 43

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Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
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Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
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Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

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Where to buy and try:

Nutritional yeast

DesertCart

Organic Foods & Café

Bulletproof coffee

Wild & The Moon

Amasake

Comptoir 102

DesertCart

Organic Foods & Café

Charcoal drinks and dishes

Various juice bars, including Comptoir 102

Bridgewater Tavern

3 Fils

Jackfruit

Supermarkets across the UAE

How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

How to avoid crypto fraud
  • Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
  • Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
  • Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
  • Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
  • Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
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  • Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
MATCH INFO

Manchester United 1 (Fernandes pen 2') Tottenham Hotspur 6 (Ndombele 4', Son 7' & 37' Kane (30' & pen 79, Aurier 51')

Man of the match Son Heung-min (Tottenham)

Dubai Bling season three

Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed 

Rating: 1/5

Oscars in the UAE

The 90th Academy Awards will be aired in the UAE from 3.30am on Monday, March 5 on OSN, with the ceremony starting at 5am

How to apply for a drone permit
  • Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
  • Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
  • Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
  • Submit their request
What are the regulations?
  • Fly it within visual line of sight
  • Never over populated areas
  • Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
  • Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
  • Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
  • Should have a live feed of the drone flight
  • Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
Fifa Club World Cup quarter-final

Esperance de Tunis 0
Al Ain 3
(Ahmed 02’, El Shahat 17’, Al Ahbabi 60’)

Other ways to buy used products in the UAE

UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.

Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.

Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.

For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.

Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.

At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.

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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding