DUBAI // UAE Rugby League will host its first official international fixture when Lebanon and South Africa vie for World Cup qualification at Dubai Sports City in October.
The governing body for the sport in the UAE on Friday announced ambitious plans to submit a bid to stage the 2021 World Cup.
The UAERF had also hoped to enter a side in a three-team, Middle East and Africa (MEA) qualifying competition for the right to take the eight berth at the 2017 tournament in Australia and New Zealand.
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However, given the embryonic status of the 13-man sport in this country, the UAE side was overlooked, and a straight play-off between Lebanon and South Africa will take place instead.
The fixture will be played at the end of October, at the rugby centre at Sports City, which staged the opening round of the UAE Nissan Rugby League Cup at the weekend.
“Dubai Sports City is delighted to welcome rugby league to Dubai,” Maqbul Dudhia, Sports City’s general manager of sports business, was quoted as saying on the Rugby League International Federation website.
“It is an exciting global sport and will sit well alongside the other major sports that are already played across our venues.”
Remond Safi, the European Federation’s MEA director, believes Dubai is an ideal venue for the fixture.
“It’s great that the first ever Middle East Africa World Cup berth will be decided in one of the region’s most established event hubs,” said Safi, who attended Friday’s league fixtures at Sports City.
“There are a lot of opportunities for rugby league in the UAE and the region and I am sure that this will be the first step in a long and fruitful relationship.”
pradley@thenational.ae
Follow our sports coverage on Twitter @NatSportUAE
How to get there
Emirates (www.emirates.com) flies directly to Hanoi, Vietnam, with fares starting from around Dh2,725 return, while Etihad (www.etihad.com) fares cost about Dh2,213 return with a stop. Chuong is 25 kilometres south of Hanoi.
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
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Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
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