Italian Assunta Scutto celebrates after striking gold at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena on Friday. Photo: IJF
Italian Assunta Scutto celebrates after striking gold at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena on Friday. Photo: IJF
Italian Assunta Scutto celebrates after striking gold at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena on Friday. Photo: IJF
Italian Assunta Scutto celebrates after striking gold at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena on Friday. Photo: IJF

Emirati judokas suffer first-round defeats at Abu Dhabi Grand Slam


Amith Passela
  • English
  • Arabic

The first taste of competition at an IJF Grand Slam for a trio of young Emiratis ended in first-round defeats but the experience gained is sure to benefit in their development, according to Khalifa Al Hosani.

Al Hosani, 22, the 21-year-old Ali Al Yamahi and Jasem Al Thunairi, 18, made their debuts in the 11th Abu Dhabi Grand Slam at Zayed Sports City’s Jiu-Jitsu Arena on Friday.

Al Hosani, the most experienced of the trio having won a silver and two bronze medals at the Continental Cup, went down to Oscar Pertelson of Estonia in the 73-kilogram weight.

Al Yamahi and Al Thumairi suffered defeats to Denis Vieru of Moldova in the 66kg and Ukrainian Oleh Veredbya in the 60kg class, respectively, on the opening day of the three-day event.

"It indeed was a great opportunity and a massive learning curve for us," Al Hosani said. "All three of us can take this experience forward. We knew the task of competing at this level and to experience that was another thing."

There were five gold medals on offer on Friday (three for women and two for men) at the year-ending Grand Slam, which has drawn 223 entries from 41 countries.

Assunta Scutto (48kg) of Italy, Amandine Buchard (52kg) and Portuguese Telma Monteiro (57kg) came out top in the women’s division the Tokyo silver medallist Yung Wei Yang (60kg) of Taipei and Vieru snapped up the golds for men.

“My will to win helps me to be strong and win these big events,” said Scutto, 19.

“Gold at the Junior World Championships and here is a good ending to the year. Now I have to rest and prepare for the Italian National Championships.”

Buchard, a silver medallist at the Tokyo Olympics, is already preparing for the 2024 Games in Paris. She overcame Olympic bronze medallist Chelsie Giles in the final to take her head-to-head record over the Briton to 3-0.

“I asked my coaches to let me be here,” Buchard said. “It is my first event after the Olympic Games. I wanted to feel how I would fight and this event is a part of the preparation for the 2022 Paris Grand Slam.

“I enjoyed this competition. I won gold and now my next event is the European Golden League and then Paris.”

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
Grand Slam Los Angeles results

Men:
56kg – Jorge Nakamura
62kg – Joao Gabriel de Sousa
69kg – Gianni Grippo
77kg – Caio Soares
85kg – Manuel Ribamar
94kg – Gustavo Batista
110kg – Erberth Santos

Women:
49kg – Mayssa Bastos
55kg – Nathalie Ribeiro
62kg – Gabrielle McComb
70kg – Thamara Silva
90kg – Gabrieli Pessanha

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UNpaid bills:

Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN budget in 2019

USA – $1.055 billion

Brazil – $143 million

Argentina – $52 million

Mexico – $36 million

Iran – $27 million

Israel – $18 million

Venezuela – $17 million

Korea – $10 million

Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN peacekeeping operations in 2019

USA – $2.38 billion

Brazil – $287 million

Spain – $110 million

France – $103 million

Ukraine – $100 million

 

RESULTS

Manchester United 2

Anthony Martial 30'

Scott McTominay 90 6' 

Manchester City 0

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%3Cp%3E1984%20-%20Apple%20unveiled%20the%20Macintosh%20on%20January%2024%3Cbr%3E1985%20-%20Steve%20Jobs%20departed%20from%20Apple%20and%20established%20NeXT%3Cbr%3E1986%20-%20Apple%20introduced%20the%20Macintosh%20Plus%2C%20featuring%20enhanced%20memory%3Cbr%3E1987%20-%20Apple%20launched%20the%20Macintosh%20II%2C%20equipped%20with%20colour%20capabilities%3Cbr%3E1989%20-%20The%20widely%20acclaimed%20Macintosh%20SE%2F30%20made%20its%20debut%3Cbr%3E1994%20-%20Apple%20presented%20the%20Power%20Macintosh%3Cbr%3E1996%20-%20The%20Macintosh%20System%20Software%20OS%20underwent%20a%20rebranding%20as%20Mac%20OS%3Cbr%3E2001%20-%20Apple%20introduced%20Mac%20OS%20X%2C%20marrying%20Unix%20stability%20with%20a%20user-friendly%20interface%3Cbr%3E2006%20-%20Apple%20adopted%20Intel%20processors%20in%20MacBook%20Pro%20laptops%3Cbr%3E2008%20-%20Apple%20introduced%20the%20MacBook%20Air%2C%20a%20lightweight%20laptop%3Cbr%3E2012%20-%20Apple%20launched%20the%20MacBook%20Pro%20with%20a%20retina%20display%3Cbr%3E2016%20-%20The%20Mac%20operating%20system%20underwent%20rebranding%20as%20macOS%3Cbr%3E2020%20-%20Apple%20introduced%20the%20M1%20chip%20for%20Macs%2C%20combining%20high%20performance%20and%20energy%20efficiency%3Cbr%3E2022%20-%20The%20M2%20chip%20was%20announced%3Cbr%3E2023%20-The%20M3%20line-up%20of%20chip%20was%20announced%20to%20improve%20performance%20and%20add%20new%20capabilities%20for%20Mac.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How being social media savvy can improve your well being

Next time when procastinating online remember that you can save thousands on paying for a personal trainer and a gym membership simply by watching YouTube videos and keeping up with the latest health tips and trends.

As social media apps are becoming more and more consumed by health experts and nutritionists who are using it to awareness and encourage patients to engage in physical activity.

Elizabeth Watson, a personal trainer from Stay Fit gym in Abu Dhabi suggests that “individuals can use social media as a means of keeping fit, there are a lot of great exercises you can do and train from experts at home just by watching videos on YouTube”.

Norlyn Torrena, a clinical nutritionist from Burjeel Hospital advises her clients to be more technologically active “most of my clients are so engaged with their phones that I advise them to download applications that offer health related services”.

Torrena said that “most people believe that dieting and keeping fit is boring”.

However, by using social media apps keeping fit means that people are “modern and are kept up to date with the latest heath tips and trends”.

“It can be a guide to a healthy lifestyle and exercise if used in the correct way, so I really encourage my clients to download health applications” said Mrs Torrena.

People can also connect with each other and exchange “tips and notes, it’s extremely healthy and fun”.

The biog:

From: Wimbledon, London, UK

Education: Medical doctor

Hobbies: Travelling, meeting new people and cultures 

Favourite animals: All of them 

Financial considerations before buying a property

Buyers should try to pay as much in cash as possible for a property, limiting the mortgage value to as little as they can afford. This means they not only pay less in interest but their monthly costs are also reduced. Ideally, the monthly mortgage payment should not exceed 20 per cent of the purchaser’s total household income, says Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching.

“If it’s a rental property, plan for the property to have periods when it does not have a tenant. Ensure you have enough cash set aside to pay the mortgage and other costs during these periods, ideally at least six months,” she says. 

Also, shop around for the best mortgage interest rate. Understand the terms and conditions, especially what happens after any introductory periods, Ms Glynn adds.

Using a good mortgage broker is worth the investment to obtain the best rate available for a buyer’s needs and circumstances. A good mortgage broker will help the buyer understand the terms and conditions of the mortgage and make the purchasing process efficient and easier. 

Updated: November 27, 2021, 8:36 AM