ABU DHABI // Regardless of how much one excels in sport, an academic qualification remains the top priority in the Al Kaabi household.
Humaid Al Kaabi, 17, has excelled in jiu-jitsu. He represents the UAE national age-group teams, where he has enjoyed great success, and has been earmarked as a potential future medal winner when he graduates to the senior national team.
However, life for him is a balancing act between jiu-jitsu with his studies, a pre-requisite and trend in the household.
Humaid’s father Yasir, a colonel in the army, and mother Shaikha Al Nuaimi are both civil engineers, his two older sisters are medical doctors, and his two older brothers are studying for engineering degrees.
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“I will be out of school next summer and plan to do my degree in mechanical engineering in California,” Humaid says.
“I want to balance my studies with jiu-jitsu. I have already discussed with my parents and jiu-jitsu coach [Ramon Lemos]. There are some good jiu-jitsu academies in California which my coach is going to help me in enrol in.”
“These plans are fluid, though. I may have to join the National Service once I’m out of school but I prefer to continue with my university education without a break in between. I can do the national services when I’m done with my degree. This is the plan for now.”
Humaid is the fifth child in a family of six girls and three boys. He says sports is encouraged in the family if it does not hamper their academics.
“My sisters and brothers did sport but they didn’t pursue full time,” he says. “I started with judo and rose to the blue belt rank from 2009 to 2014. I took up jiu-jitsu when it was introduced in the school curriculum.
“My judo helped me to pick up jiu-jitsu faster than the others. I love this sport and want to continue as long as possible.”
Humaid’s immediate goal is to win a gold medal in Monday’s Abu Dhabi World Jiu-Jitsu Youth Championship; the next is to represent the senior national team in the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, when the sport makes its debut.
“I won many competitions in judo,” he says. “The last time I competed in the sport was in December 2014 and since then my focus has only been on jiu-jitsu with the long-term objective to reach black belt and be a world champion.”
Humaid has been in top form this season. He returned with a gold and bronze from the World Youth Championship in Madrid earlier this year and gold in the Jiu-Jitsu International Federation’s World Championship for Juniors and Aspirants in Athens last month.
Two weeks after returning from Athens, Humaid was on the podium again, winning another gold and helping his teammates at the Al Ain Club win the inaugural President’s Cup.
“It has been a good season for me so far, and the objective has always been the season-ending World Youth,” he says.
“I feel confident. The first four months of the season has been good for me. This will be my last chance to win gold in the World Youth as I have to move on to the adult division next year.
“I had to settle for a bronze last year after suffering an injury in the semi-finals. I must compete in one of the strongest divisions [blue belt 66kg]. I have seen the entries and it has more competitors and from Brazil, the USA, Canada and Australia.
“I have completed four-week camp. The preparation has been good. I have won three golds in the Abu Dhabi World Jiu-Jitsu Festival, in the 58kg yellow, 62kg yellow and orange 65kg. It was bronze last year in the World Youth.
“The competition in Athens was good. I had to go through five fights and all of them were opponents I never seen. The World Youth is going to be tougher but I’ll do my best to get gold.”
SCHEDULE
Sunday:
11am to 5pm: Abu Dhabi World Youth Championship (girls)
Monday:
11am to 5pm: Abu Dhabi World Youth Championship (boys)
Tuesday to Saturday:
11am to 6pm: Ninth Abu Dhabi World Professional Championship
apassela@thenational.ae
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Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
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.”
Going grey? A stylist's advice
If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
Best Referee: Stephanie Frappart
Best Revelation Player: Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid and Portugal)
Best Sporting Director: Andrea Berta (Atletico Madrid)
Best Women's Player: Lucy Bronze
Best Young Arab Player: Achraf Hakimi
Kooora – Best Arab Club: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia)
Kooora – Best Arab Player: Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Nassr FC, Saudi Arabia)
Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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EA Sports FC 25
Developer: EA Vancouver, EA Romania
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4&5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
Madrid Open schedule
Men's semi-finals
Novak Djokovic (1) v Dominic Thiem (5) from 6pm
Stefanos Tsitsipas (8) v Rafael Nadal (2) from 11pm
Women's final
Simona Halep (3) v Kiki Bertens (7) from 8.30pm
Results
1. Mathieu van der Poel (NED) Alpecin-Fenix - 3:45:47
2. David Dekker (NED) Jumbo-Visma - same time
3. Michael Morkov (DEN) Deceuninck-QuickStep
4. Emils Liepins (LAT) Trek-Segafredo
5. Elia Viviani (ITA) Cofidis
6. Tadej Pogacar (SLO UAE Team Emirates
7. Anthony Roux (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
8. Chris Harper (AUS) Jumbo-Visma - 0:00:03
9. Joao Almeida (POR) Deceuninck-QuickStep
10. Fausto Masnada (ITA) Deceuninck-QuickStep
