Arm wrestling is one of the most uncomplicated and easily gauged tests of strength. Theoretically, any two people can do it anywhere.
Once you put it in a competition format, the playing field is far and wide. So to be any good, you have to be better than almost everyone else.
Mazahir Saidu is definitely good. In fact, he is one of the best in the business.
The Sharjah-based arm wrestler is one of the leading 100kg+ arm wrestlers in the UAE and has been crowned champion in his division in India.
The Keralite, 29, has won various amateur and professional competitions in the UAE and overseas. In May this year, he won bronze at the Asian Armwrestling Championship, held in Ajman.
And after almost 10 years in the sport, which included significant breaks for his higher education studies, Mazahir has now reached the stage where he is ready to take the next step – the inaugural Pro Panja League arm wrestling competition in India at the end of the month.
The life of any professional athlete is intense. Mazahir has an intense one, too. And he manages it while working as a chartered accountant at Shurooq - Sharjah Investment and Development Authority.
An accountant and a professional arm wrestler? It is a unique journey that started a decade ago in India.
“I did not know this was a professional sport until I went to India for higher studies in 2012,” Mazahir tells The National.
“I went to a gym in Kochi and there I met Rahul Panicker [a well-known arm wrestler in India] in 2014. He got me into arm wrestling, and I realised my potential. After seven months, I won a national event in India.”
He came back to the UAE in 2016 and won a championship under the auspices of the Emirates Body Building Federation.
Mazahir took a break from 2016 to 2019 to complete his accountancy studies while also working as a consultant in Saudi Arabia.
He later joined Shurooq and has since gone to great lengths to maintain his levels in arm wrestling, while working as deputy manager, finance.
“Balancing work and professional sports is very difficult. It is all about passion. I work from 8-5 but since I am in finance, I routinely work past 6pm. Then I go home, have a pre-workout meal and begin training from 8.30pm until midnight. This routine never stops.”
It is a routine that has helped Mazahir make a name for himself in the UAE, that has hosted many top arm wrestling tournaments, including King of the Table in June.
“King of the Table and East v West are big tournaments in the sport. But the level of exposure and publicity Pro Panja is giving is at another level,” Mazahir, who is coached by European champion Maksym Polishchuk, said.
“This is going to be one of the biggest events the sport has seen. Being shown on Sony Sports is going to be a game changer. A lot of international players have been contacting us to be a part of the league.”
The Pro Panja League is the brainchild of Bollywood actors Parvin Dabas and Preeti Jhangiani. The league was formed in 2020 and has held various ranking tournaments and exhibition events in the build-up to the inaugural league season this year.
A total of 180 players have ben shortlisted into six teams for the league that will take place in New Delhi.
Mazahir made the cut after becoming the 100kg+ national champion during a ranking tournament in Gwalior in July last year.
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The hope is that since arm wrestling is a sport that can be understood and enjoyed by people from all walks of life, there should be significant interest. Just like it was for the traditional Indian sport of kabaddi which has become one of the fastest growing professional sports in the country following the rise of Pro Kabaddi League.
“In the arm wrestling community, I am already well known. But the sport has not reached the general public like other mainstream sports. But with Sony Sports, we are hoping common people will understand and accept it,” Mazahir says.
“In a few weeks, we will be on air and people will see us and hopefully love this sport. It’s something a common person can follow and it is very entertaining.”
The Pro Panja League will be held from July 28 to August 13. 'Panja' translates to arm wrestling in Hindi.
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
FULL%20FIGHT%20CARD
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MATCH INFO
Barcelona v Real Madrid, 11pm UAE
Match is on BeIN Sports
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
The Two Popes
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce
Four out of five stars
Difference between fractional ownership and timeshare
Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
MATCH INFO
Quarter-finals
Saturday (all times UAE)
England v Australia, 11.15am
New Zealand v Ireland, 2.15pm
Sunday
Wales v France, 11.15am
Japan v South Africa, 2.15pm
'Worse than a prison sentence'
Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.
“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”
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