As part of our build-up to the Tokyo Olympics we will be profiling Arab athletes and para-athletes as well as those from the Mena region hoping to make it to this summer's Games
When young Syrian swimmer Ibrahim Al Hussein watched the 2004 Athens Olympics on television, he dreamt of being one of the athletes competing for gold.
Little did he know that years later, after surviving a bomb attack that left him disabled, he would train for the first time as a Paralympic athlete in the same stadium he was watching on TV as a child.
After being the flag bearer of the first ever refugee team to compete in the Paralympics in Rio in 2016, Al Hussein, now 32, had only one thing in mind: Tokyo.
"I think of Tokyo since that moment in 2016 when I stepped in the Maracana stadium in Rio," he told The National.
Today he trains hard every day in Athens for a chance to qualify and secure a spot in this year's Refugee Paralympic team. It’s not an easy task. Out of around 60 para athletes of all sports with the refugee status, only six will qualify.
“It’s not just those 60 athletes. There are thousands that would like to participate," he said.
"There are around 80 million people who are refugees all around the world as we speak. About 80 per cent of them left their homeland because of war and many are with disabilities. Everything I’ve been through all these years gave me strength. It’s not easy, but I know I can do it. Deep down I feel I can do it. I have the strength."
Al Hussein started swimming aged five in his hometown of Deir al-Zor in eastern Syria. “My father was a two-time Asia swimming champion in the seventies and was also my coach. He was a very harsh and strict coach."
He would normally train in the municipality’s natatorium, but when he had free time Al Hussein loved swimming in the Euphrates. “It was only 10 feet away from my home and I really enjoyed swimming there whenever I could."
October 2, 2012 is the day that marked his life forever. While trying to help an injured friend, during the first years of Syria's civil war, a bomb exploded next to him. The impact resulted in Al Hussein's right leg being amputated from the middle of the calf. His left leg was also badly injured. “It’s all iron. I don’t have a leg. I’m lucky I didn’t lose it completely and it was only broken,” he said.
Three months later he crossed the same river, but this time for good, on a wheelchair inside a small dingy. “We crossed with a friend of mine at four in the morning. There were soldiers all around the river banks. We thought that if God doesn’t want us to die that day, we won’t die. If I stayed in Syria, I would die anyway,” he recalls.
Arriving in Turkey he stayed for a year and a half, but life there was difficult, especially for people with disabilities. “I had no money and a friend helped me find some cash to cross to Europe,” Al Hussein said. On February 27, 2014, he went from Izmir to the Greek island of Samos along with 18 others having paid a people smuggler €800 ($965). “I wasn’t afraid on the dingy like the rest of the group” he said, “I had nothing left to lose."
After staying for a couple of weeks in Samos, he was sent to Athens. In the beginning he had nowhere to live and slept on the street. There ge met a fellow Syrian, who wanted to help.
This random meeting eventually took him to the office of Dr Angelos Chronopoulos of Rehabline, who created a new and functional leg for Al Hussein. "Doctor stood to me as a brother from the first moment. Everyone was telling me to leave Greece and go to northern Europe. But I didn't come here looking for money. I came looking for a family, legs and a new home. And I found all three of them here."
A year later he was granted asylum and was able to start building his life again. He found a job in a cafe and started looking for a team that would accept him and put him back in the swimming pool after nearly five years away from the water. And he finally found one.
I was the first ever refugee to hold the Olympic flame. This gave me so much strength.
“It’s not easy to go from swimming with both legs to swimming with only one of them. But my coaches helped me understand how to do it and find my balance. It’s like starting to learn swimming all over again.”
He started swimming every day, and he also joined a basketball team for people with disabilities. Success soon followed.
“A few months after I started training again I came first in a championship in Athens. Then first and second at the Panhellenic swimming championship in 50m and 100m freestyle.”
In 2016 ahead of the Games in Rio, his success caught the eye of the Hellenic Olympic Committee who approached him and asked if he would like to carry the Olympic flame inside the refugee camp of Eleonas in Athens.
“At the beginning I thought they were joking. I was the first ever refugee to hold the Olympic flame. This gave me so much strength. When I learnt I would be competing in the Games with the Refugee team, I was so excited that I couldn’t even sleep at night.”
He left Rio with the Whang Youn Dai Achievement Award, an “honour presented to the athlete who has performed at an outstanding level and overcome adversity”.
It motivated him to keep pushing. “My current coaches, Alexandros Tsoltos and Alekos Chatzigiannakis, are like a family to me now. They have improved me so much. It’s funny that when in 2004 I was watching Michael Phelps competing in the Athens Games, my coach Alexandros was there, right next to him. But I didn’t know him back then."
Al Hussein has competed in numerous championships and world cups, and continually improved. Last week he came third at the 15th CMAS Finswimming World Cup in Ligano in Italy at 50m freestyle, which gives him an advantage for getting the qualification for the Olympics when the announcement comes next month.
Currently he is also trying to create a basketball team of refugees. “I found a Greek name,” he said with pride. “I will call it Feat."
What Al Hussein wants most is to inspire more people like him to chase their dreams and achieve their goals. That is why he gives online inspirational talks on the Airbnb platform. “I don’t want people to cry with my story,” he said, “I want people to feel positive and that they can make happen whatever they want."
When war in Syria is over Al Hussein would like to return, but only for vacations. “I could never live there again. I have travelled all around the world and Greece is the only place I would like to live.”
Who is Mohammed Al Halbousi?
The new speaker of Iraq’s parliament Mohammed Al Halbousi is the youngest person ever to serve in the role.
The 37-year-old was born in Al Garmah in Anbar and studied civil engineering in Baghdad before going into business. His development company Al Hadeed undertook reconstruction contracts rebuilding parts of Fallujah’s infrastructure.
He entered parliament in 2014 and served as a member of the human rights and finance committees until 2017. In August last year he was appointed governor of Anbar, a role in which he has struggled to secure funding to provide services in the war-damaged province and to secure the withdrawal of Shia militias. He relinquished the post when he was sworn in as a member of parliament on September 3.
He is a member of the Al Hal Sunni-based political party and the Sunni-led Coalition of Iraqi Forces, which is Iraq’s largest Sunni alliance with 37 seats from the May 12 election.
He maintains good relations with former Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki’s State of Law Coaliton, Hadi Al Amiri’s Badr Organisation and Iranian officials.
Medicus AI
Started: 2016
Founder(s): Dr Baher Al Hakim, Dr Nadine Nehme and Makram Saleh
Based: Vienna, Austria; started in Dubai
Sector: Health Tech
Staff: 119
Funding: €7.7 million (Dh31m)
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.
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Ain Dubai in numbers
126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure
1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch
16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.
9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.
5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place
192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.
MATCH INFO
Burnley 0
Man City 3
Raheem Sterling 35', 49'
Ferran Torres 65'
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
6 UNDERGROUND
Director: Michael Bay
Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Adria Arjona, Dave Franco
2.5 / 5 stars
HOW TO WATCH
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THE SPECS
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch
Power: 710bhp
Torque: 770Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 2.9 seconds
Top Speed: 340km/h
Price: Dh1,000,885
On sale: now
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
if you go
The flights
Emirates offer flights to Buenos Aires from Dubai, via Rio De Janeiro from around Dh6,300. emirates.com
Seeing the games
Tangol sell experiences across South America and generally have good access to tickets for most of the big teams in Buenos Aires: Boca Juniors, River Plate, and Independiente. Prices from Dh550 and include pick up and drop off from your hotel in the city. tangol.com
Staying there
Tangol will pick up tourists from any hotel in Buenos Aires, but after the intensity of the game, the Faena makes for tranquil, upmarket accommodation. Doubles from Dh1,110. faena.com
Points about the fast fashion industry Celine Hajjar wants everyone to know
- Fast fashion is responsible for up to 10 per cent of global carbon emissions
- Fast fashion is responsible for 24 per cent of the world's insecticides
- Synthetic fibres that make up the average garment can take hundreds of years to biodegrade
- Fast fashion labour workers make 80 per cent less than the required salary to live
- 27 million fast fashion workers worldwide suffer from work-related illnesses and diseases
- Hundreds of thousands of fast fashion labourers work without rights or protection and 80 per cent of them are women
The specs
Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder
Power: 220 and 280 horsepower
Torque: 350 and 360Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: from Dh136,521 VAT and Dh166,464 VAT
On sale: now
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
Fight card
1. Featherweight 66kg: Ben Lucas (AUS) v Ibrahim Kendil (EGY)
2. Lightweight 70kg: Mohammed Kareem Aljnan (SYR) v Alphonse Besala (CMR)
3. Welterweight 77kg:Marcos Costa (BRA) v Abdelhakim Wahid (MAR)
4. Lightweight 70kg: Omar Ramadan (EGY) v Abdimitalipov Atabek (KGZ)
5. Featherweight 66kg: Ahmed Al Darmaki (UAE) v Kagimu Kigga (UGA)
6. Catchweight 85kg: Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) v Iuri Fraga (BRA)
7. Featherweight 66kg: Yousef Al Husani (UAE) v Mohamed Allam (EGY)
8. Catchweight 73kg: Mostafa Radi (PAL) v Ahmed Abdelraouf of Egypt (EGY)
9. Featherweight 66kg: Jaures Dea (CMR) v Andre Pinheiro (BRA)
10. Catchweight 90kg: Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Employment lawyer Meriel Schindler of Withers Worldwide shares her tips on achieving equal pay
Do your homework
Make sure that you are being offered a fair salary. There is lots of industry data available, and you can always talk to people who have come out of the organisation. Where I see people coming a cropper is where they haven’t done their homework.
Don’t be afraid to negotiate
It’s quite standard to negotiate if you think an offer is on the low side. The job is unlikely to be withdrawn if you ask for money, and if that did happen I’d question whether you want to work for an employer who is so hypersensitive.
Know your worth
Women tend to be a bit more reticent to talk about their achievements. In my experience they need to have more confidence in their own abilities – men will big up what they’ve done to get a pay rise, and to compete women need to turn up the volume.
Work together
If you suspect men in your organisation are being paid more, look your boss in the eye and say, “I want you to assure me that I’m paid equivalent to my peers”. If you’re not getting a straight answer, talk to your peer group and consider taking direct action to fix inequality.
