Sultan Al Kitbe, managing director of Titan Sports Academy, the technical arm of the UAE Wrestling, Judo and Kick Boxing Federation. On Monday, July 10th, 2017, in Abu Dhabi. Chris Whiteoak for The National
Sultan Al Kitbe, managing director of Titan Sports Academy, the technical arm of the UAE Wrestling, Judo and Kick Boxing Federation. On Monday, July 10th, 2017, in Abu Dhabi. Chris Whiteoak for The National
Sultan Al Kitbe, managing director of Titan Sports Academy, the technical arm of the UAE Wrestling, Judo and Kick Boxing Federation. On Monday, July 10th, 2017, in Abu Dhabi. Chris Whiteoak for The National
Sultan Al Kitbe, managing director of Titan Sports Academy, the technical arm of the UAE Wrestling, Judo and Kick Boxing Federation. On Monday, July 10th, 2017, in Abu Dhabi. Chris Whiteoak for The Na

Abu Dhabi academy providing a pathway for future generations of titans


Amith Passela
  • English
  • Arabic

Titan Sports Academy:

Programmes: Judo, wrestling, kick-boxing, muay thai, taekwondo and various summer camps

Location: Inside Abu Dhabi City Golf Club, Al Mushrif, Abu Dhabi, UAE

Telephone:  971 50 220 0326

 

Watching Majlinda Kelmendi of Kosovo win a judo gold at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro proved to be a turning point for Sultan Al Kitbe. The Emirati judoka who won gold in both the Gulf and West Asian Championships in 2006 and 2007 respectively was left to wonder how a smaller country less populated than the UAE could be successful on the world’s biggest stage.

Those images replayed in Al Kitbe’s mind and the more he thought about it the more serious he became. He started working on a plan to create a pathway to nurture the country’s youth.

The Titan Sports Academy is his brainchild. With the backing of the UAE Wrestling, Kick Boxing and Judo Federation, the academy was inaugurated in May under the same roof of the federation’s headquarters located at the premises of the Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club.

“We have taken the first step of walking a million miles,” Al Kitbe said when asked of his ambitious project.

“Firstly, to establish an academy in collaboration with a government organisation is a massive responsibility. We want to encourage kids to get involved in as many sports as possible. Our experts will be at hand to advise and guide them if they have the potential to reach a good level in whatever sport they choose.”

Children at the Titan Sports Academy.
Children at the Titan Sports Academy.

The indoor arena is geared to accommodate multiple sports and provide athletes with the opportunity to participate in more than one sport under the same roof. The academy enrolls both Emiratis and expatriate children from ages five onwards and already has 170 children registered.

“The curriculums are based on structured programmes to evaluate the progress of the athletes once in every three months,” Al Kitbe said.

“We have started with 10 different sports and plan to increase it to around 20 to 25 different disciplines, including track and field, as well as team sports in the coming years.”

The majority of the pupils are beginners but there are several Emirati children under the academy's tutelage with proven track records, particularly in wrestling and judo.

Faris Al Eriffe, 16, is a member of the UAE junior judo national team and is preparing for the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires from October 1 to 6.

“I joined the academy to do a fitness course over the summer,” he said. “Judo is my main sport but I also practice wrestling for flexibility and jiu-jitsu to improve ground fighting.

“It definitely is a good move to have a variety of sporting activities at every level under one roof.”

Emirati judokas Khalifa Al Hosani, 17, and Maitha Al Neyadi, 16, are both under the guidance of Al Kitbe and have already been earmarked as potential future champions.

“They can reach a good level in the international circuit,” he said. “The federation has 12 training centres around the country and they will all come under the Titan curriculum soon.”

Al Kitbe, the managing director of the academy, is well aware of the high standards and the commitment required from the youngsters to reach the level to compete against the best in the world.

“Of course, we are realistic of our objectives,” he said. “Not everybody can make it to the top flight. Our programmes are based on benchmarks and we are hopeful of achieving our objectives over a period of time.”

Some of the early enrollments are beginners to sports and there are those with ambitions of pursuing careers in sports.

Iris Hollsworth, 8, is from Essex, England. She joined the academy’s summer camp two weeks ago to improve her running skills.

“I started as a swimmer but I wanted to try something else during the summer,” she said. “I’m enjoying doing a lot of different sports here but when I grow up I would like to be a long-distance runner.”

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Ali Humaid Al Yaarbi, 11, an Emirati, wants to excel in judo. “I practice judo, wrestling, kick boxing, gymnastic, jiu-jitsu and love to play football, he says. “However, judo is my favourite and that’s the sport I want to pursue on. I want to make it to the UAE national judo team.”

In his younger days Al Kitbe also harboured ambitions to represent his country at the Olympic Games. However, his dream ended when he was forced to give up competing on medical advice. He suffered a shoulder injury that required surgery, but continued to train and compete until he was told to stop or risk permanent damage.

“It has been four years since I stopped competing. I still train to keep myself in shape, though,” he said.

Al Kitbe, 27, was nine when he made his first foray into sports. He started with swimming before moving on to athletics and horse riding. However, it was in martial arts that he excelled. He practiced kick boxing, wrestling, muay thai, jiu-jitsu, mixed martial arts and, of course, judo.

His enthusiasm wasn’t confined to the ring, mat or pool though. Al Kitbe has played an active role at the UAE Wrestling, Kick Boxing and Judo Federation in administration and event management from a young age.

That experience has come in handy for Al Kitbe to pursue on his new-found passion and project to shape up future Olympians.

What is graphene?

Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.

It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.

Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.

By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.

At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.

It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.

But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.

In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties. 

 

UK-EU trade at a glance

EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years

Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products

Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries

Smoother border management with use of e-gates

Cutting red tape on import and export of food

Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

'Morbius'

Director: Daniel Espinosa 

Stars: Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona

Rating: 2/5

IF YOU GO
 
The flights: FlyDubai offers direct flights to Catania Airport from Dubai International Terminal 2 daily with return fares starting from Dh1,895.
 
The details: Access to the 2,900-metre elevation point at Mount Etna by cable car and 4x4 transport vehicle cost around €57.50 (Dh248) per adult. Entry into Teatro Greco costs €10 (Dh43). For more go to www.visitsicily.info

 Where to stay: Hilton Giardini Naxos offers beachfront access and accessible to Taormina and Mount Etna. Rooms start from around €130 (Dh561) per night, including taxes.

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES

SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities

Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails

Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies

Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments

Scores

Wales 74-24 Tonga
England 35-15 Japan
Italy 7-26 Australia

The biog

Favourite book: Men are from Mars Women are from Venus

Favourite travel destination: Ooty, a hill station in South India

Hobbies: Cooking. Biryani, pepper crab are her signature dishes

Favourite place in UAE: Marjan Island

Mrs%20Chatterjee%20Vs%20Norway
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ashima%20Chibber%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rani%20Mukerji%2C%20Anirban%20Bhattacharya%20and%20Jim%20Sarbh%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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.

The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.3-litre%20turbo%204-cyl%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E10-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E298hp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E452Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETowing%20capacity%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3.4-tonne%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPayload%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4WD%20%E2%80%93%20776kg%3B%20Rear-wheel%20drive%20819kg%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPrice%3A%20Dh138%2C945%20(XLT)%20Dh193%2C095%20(Wildtrak)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDelivery%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20from%20August%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
From Zero

Artist: Linkin Park

Label: Warner Records

Number of tracks: 11

Rating: 4/5

Zombieland: Double Tap

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Stars: Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone

Four out of five stars 

SERIE A FIXTURES

Saturday (All UAE kick-off times)

Lecce v SPAL (6pm)

Bologna v Genoa (9pm)

Atlanta v Roma (11.45pm)

Sunday

Udinese v Hellas Verona (3.30pm)

Juventus v Brescia (6pm)

Sampdoria v Fiorentina (6pm)

Sassuolo v Parma (6pm)

Cagliari v Napoli (9pm)

Lazio v Inter Milan (11.45pm)

Monday

AC Milan v Torino (11.45pm)

 

Engine: 5.6-litre V8

Transmission: seven-speed automatic

Power: 400hp

Torque: 560Nm

Price: Dh234,000 - Dh329,000

On sale: now

Titan Sports Academy:

Programmes: Judo, wrestling, kick-boxing, muay thai, taekwondo and various summer camps

Location: Inside Abu Dhabi City Golf Club, Al Mushrif, Abu Dhabi, UAE

Telephone:  971 50 220 0326