Appearing at an Olympic Games is supposed to represent the realisation of a lifetime of aspiration and endeavour.
Of the 17,000 or so competitors who are in London to take part over the course of the next two weeks, the vast majority would list being here as the climax of achievement, rather than a means to an end.
Not so for Humaid Al Derei, the 21-year-old judoka from Abu Dhabi. It is entirely possible that the Emirati's competitive involvement in the Games could last for just five minutes – or possibly even less, if his first-round opponent from Egypt can execute the perfect ippon tomorrow morning.
Such are the risks of taking part in international judo competitions. The possibility of such a brief involvement seems totally out of kilter with the depth of sacrifice made to get here in the first place.
Happily for Al Derei, judo is for life, not just the Olympics. "I am looking far away," he said.
"The Olympics in London is not my final step. I have many ideas for what to do in the future, even if I don't continue in judo as a player.
"I will stay in judo. Maybe I will be a manager of a player, maybe I will be a coach, we don't know. But I will always remain in judo, with my friends."
With such a sanguine attitude to competition, Al Derei is more likely to be literally dazzled by the bright lights of celebrity at the London showpiece than he is metaphorically.
He is happy at the prospect of competing at the same event as some of the world's most famous athletes, not to mention being part of the same tour party as his nation's leading footballers.
He is not picky about which star he wants to get his picture taken with first. "All of them," he said. "So long as it is without flash."
For the past year, Al Derei has been battling a condition with his eyesight which is affected by bright light, the sun and flashing camera bulbs.
He wears wraparound sunglasses – not for fashion but necessity – even indoors, until the moment he changes in to his judogi.
On first impression, he seems timid, and surely too diminutive for such a rough and tumble sport. However, he is clearly lacking in fear.
His idol in the sport is Keiji Suzuki, a Japanese master who is known for punching way above his weight in the top division of the sport.
The idea of the little guy overcoming substantial obstacles neatly fits the challenge facing Al Derei at the Excel Arena. He qualified for this event by finishing seventh on the basis of one victory at a competition in France last year.
He know he is up against it, but he does not care. "You are competing with the best players in judo, against people who have been to world championships," Al Derei said.
"When I am competing against my opponent, I will not think of him as a world champion or anything like that. For now, he is like me.
"By the time the Brazil Olympics comes around, they will not talk about that. They will have forgotten about the London Olympics."
In a neat quirk of symmetry, it was also Ramadan when Al Derei qualified for the Games via the competition in France last year. He opted not to fast then, and has chosen the same approach this time around, on account of the physical exertion required for a five-minute judo match.
He does not appear to be overawed by the task facing him this morning, and neither should he be, according to his coach, Timur Mokhamed Khanov, who says he is impressed by the work his charge has put in to reach this point.
"This is the Olympics and it is so much bigger than any other competition for judo because it is part of such a big event," said Khanov, who coached the Kuwait national team for three years before arriving in Abu Dhabi last year.
"Humaid has worked very hard to be able to get here. He has trained every morning and every afternoon."
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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.”
Suggested picnic spots
Abu Dhabi
Umm Al Emarat Park
Yas Gateway Park
Delma Park
Al Bateen beach
Saadiyaat beach
The Corniche
Zayed Sports City
Dubai
Kite Beach
Zabeel Park
Al Nahda Pond Park
Mushrif Park
Safa Park
Al Mamzar Beach Park
Al Qudrah Lakes
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
