From Shanghai to Sharjah, the plumes of smoke and volcanic ash emanating from Iceland are causing chaos across the sporting world.
Airspace remains closed across much of Europe with analysts predicting the billowing cloud will not dissipate until, possibly, the end of the week. The result is a host of international sportsmen altering itineraries in a desperate attempt to reduce havoc.
Those affected most by the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano include Valentino Rossi and his fellow MotoGP riders, who were supposed to compete in the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday. The event was postponed yesterday following air travel problems in Motegi, north of Tokyo.
The race will now take place on October 3, with the next round of the championship scheduled for Jerez, Spain, on May 2.
Elsewhere, members of several Formula One teams the majority of whom live in Europe have been forced to extend their stays in Shanghai following Sunday's Chinese Grand Prix. Some staff have flown to Dubai and Singapore, but found their flights grounded.
Jaime Alguersuari, the Spanish driver for F1's Scuderia Toro Rosso, opted to take connections in Beijing and New York before finally arriving in Madrid in a bid to maximise his preparation ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona next month.
The Barcelona football team, in contrast, travelled by coach to Italy where they are scheduled to play Inter Milan in the semi-finals of the European Champions League tonight. In the other final-four pairing, Lyon are driving from France to Munich, Germany. And in the Europa League, both Fulham and Liverpool have been ordered to play their respective semi-finals, meaning the Merseyside team face a 900-mile journey to meet Atletico Madrid.
As reported in The National yesterday, the Afghanistan cricket team, following the closure of European airspace, have been forced to prepare for their World Twenty20 campaign at a makeshift training camp in Sharjah. The team are scheduled to face India on May 1 in St Lucia, but had planned to travel to the West Indies early in order to to acclimatise. However, the team's flight to the Caribbean involved a connection in the UK.
The Moroccan Golf Classic in El Jadida, which was due to start on Thursday, has been postponed, while the London and Boston marathons have been affected.
Abdellah Falil, the Moroccan runner, failed in several attempts to fly to Boston and is stranded in Paris.
In London, elite athletes such as Sammy Wanjiru, who won the capital's marathon last year, and Irina Mikitenko of Germany could be forced to miss the race on Sunday if airspace does not reopen.
gmeenaghan@thenational.ae
The%20specs
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Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
The%20specs
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Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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Match info
Liverpool 3
Hoedt (10' og), Matip (21'), Salah (45 3')
Southampton 0
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Hydrogen: Market potential
Hydrogen has an estimated $11 trillion market potential, according to Bank of America Securities and is expected to generate $2.5tn in direct revenues and $11tn of indirect infrastructure by 2050 as its production increases six-fold.
"We believe we are reaching the point of harnessing the element that comprises 90 per cent of the universe, effectively and economically,” the bank said in a recent report.
Falling costs of renewable energy and electrolysers used in green hydrogen production is one of the main catalysts for the increasingly bullish sentiment over the element.
The cost of electrolysers used in green hydrogen production has halved over the last five years and will fall to 60 to 90 per cent by the end of the decade, acceding to Haim Israel, equity strategist at Merrill Lynch. A global focus on decarbonisation and sustainability is also a big driver in its development.
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE