Hamilton wins F1 championship

Lewis Hamilton became the Formula One world champion after a thrilling finale in Brazil yesterday. The Briton finished fifth in the Brazilian Grand Prix which was enough to deny Ferrari's Felipe Massa, who won the race, the crown by a single point. It was agony for Massa as he had briefly looked as if he would take the title when Hamilton was passed by Sebastian Vettel's Toro Rosso on a wet track and dropped to sixth with only two laps to go.

But Hamilton passed the Toyota of Timo Glock at the final corner and that pass proved enough to ensure that he becomes the sport's youngest champion. Next season's finale is in Abu Dhabi, and the Yas Island officials will be hoping for another dramatic finish when the Grand Prix fraternity arrive next November. Massa, who needed to win or be second to remain in the hunt, dominated and was only headed during the pit stops.

Hamilton drove a conservative race in his McLaren-Mercedes and looked comfortable in fourth place. But a late rain shower forced a change on to intermediate tyres again and the championship looked to be lost when he ran wide at the final corner to allow Vettel through. However, he kept his composure and was rewarded as Glock, who had stayed on dry tyres, slowed as the conditions worsened to allow the Briton through.

Of little consolation to Ferrari and Massa was the fact the result earned them the constructors' title for the eighth time in 10 years. @Email:gcaygill@thenational.ae

Moon Music

Artist: Coldplay

Label: Parlophone/Atlantic

Number of tracks: 10

Rating: 3/5

'Panga'

Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari

Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta

Rating: 3.5/5

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg

Tottenham v Ajax, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE).

Second leg

Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm

Games on BeIN Sports

Notable salonnières of the Middle East through history

Al Khasan (Okaz, Saudi Arabia)

Tamadir bint Amr Al Harith, known simply as Al Khasan, was a poet from Najd famed for elegies, earning great renown for the eulogy of her brothers Mu’awiyah and Sakhr, both killed in tribal wars. Although not a salonnière, this prestigious 7th century poet fostered a culture of literary criticism and could be found standing in the souq of Okaz and reciting her poetry, publicly pronouncing her views and inviting others to join in the debate on scholarship. She later converted to Islam.

Maryana Marrash (Aleppo)

A poet and writer, Marrash helped revive the tradition of the salon and was an active part of the Nadha movement, or Arab Renaissance. Born to an established family in Aleppo in Ottoman Syria in 1848, Marrash was educated at missionary schools in Aleppo and Beirut at a time when many women did not receive an education. After touring Europe, she began to host salons where writers played chess and cards, competed in the art of poetry, and discussed literature and politics. An accomplished singer and canon player, music and dancing were a part of these evenings.

Princess Nazil Fadil (Cairo)

Princess Nazil Fadil gathered religious, literary and political elite together at her Cairo palace, although she stopped short of inviting women. The princess, a niece of Khedive Ismail, believed that Egypt’s situation could only be solved through education and she donated her own property to help fund the first modern Egyptian University in Cairo.

Mayy Ziyadah (Cairo)

Ziyadah was the first to entertain both men and women at her Cairo salon, founded in 1913. The writer, poet, public speaker and critic, her writing explored language, religious identity, language, nationalism and hierarchy. Born in Nazareth, Palestine, to a Lebanese father and Palestinian mother, her salon was open to different social classes and earned comparisons with souq of where Al Khansa herself once recited.