LONDON // British yachtsman Ben Ainslie, who will bid for his fourth consecutive gold medal this summer, set off yesterday morning as the first of 8,000 torchbearers that will carry the Olympic torch around the country in the lead-up to the summer Games.
As he jauntily walked past, hundreds of spectators held up mobile phones and banged on plastic tambourines handed out by sponsors, creating a roar that shook the hillsides of Land's End - the farthest point west in England.
People got up as early as 4am to watch the flame rise with the sun. "It's iconic, isn't it," said Beverly Wills, 47, who came with her husband and her son. "It's not going to happen again in our lifetime. It brings everyone together." Sir Keith Mills, the deputy chairman of the London 2012 organising committee who has been a key player in the nine-year effort to bring the Games to Britain, said: "This has been an amazing journey. For me, this is the start of the Games, when the whole country starts to get excited."
Later in the day, the torch was handed to 88-year-old Michael Lapage, who won a rowing silver medal when the Olympics were last staged in London, back in 1948.
"The arrival of the Olympic flame on home soil is a magical moment for any host country," said Lord Sebastian Coe, the chairman of the organising committee.
Lord Coe accompanied Princess Anne as she brought the flame back from Greece on a special British Airways flight on Friday night. The footballer David Beckham and the London Mayor Boris Johnson were also on the flight to a naval air station in Cornwall.
The torch's path takes it across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland before its arrival at the main Olympic stadium in the east of London where it will light the cauldron to signal the start of the Games on July 27.
For 35-year-old Ainslie, the prospect of being the first to carry the torch was more nerve-wracking than competing in the Olympics themselves, he said.
"It's something I'll never forget," he said after his 300-metre leg, which he walked to enable as many people as possible to touch the torch. "It was an amazing atmosphere. But it's back to reality tomorrow and training for the Olympics."
So many thousands of people crowded the route as the torch wove its way through Cornwall - a journey that included a brief ride in a helium balloon - that its progress was soon behind schedule.
By last night, though, it had completed its first, 219-kilometre leg to Plymouth Hoe where it stole the show at a music festival headlined by the hip-hop artist Labrinth.
[ dsapsted@thenational.ae ]
* With additional reporting by the Associated Press
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Company name: Cargoz
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ENGLAND SQUAD
Goalkeepers Henderson, Pickford, Pope.
Defenders Alexander-Arnold, Chilwell, Coady, Dier, Gomez, Keane, Maguire, Maitland-Niles, Mings, Saka, Trippier, Walker.
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Aayan’s records
Youngest UAE men’s cricketer
When he debuted against Bangladesh aged 16 years and 314 days, he became the youngest ever to play for the men’s senior team. He broke the record set by his World Cup squad-mate, Alishan Sharafu, of 17 years and 44 days.
Youngest wicket-taker
After taking the wicket of Bangladesh’s Litton Das on debut in Dubai, Aayan became the youngest male cricketer to take a wicket against a Full Member nation in a T20 international.
Youngest in T20 World Cup history?
Aayan does not turn 17 until November 15 – which is two days after the T20 World Cup final at the MCG. If he does play in the competition, he will be its youngest ever player. Pakistan’s Mohammed Amir, who was 17 years and 55 days when he played in 2009, currently holds the record.
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
The biog
Nickname: Mama Nadia to children, staff and parents
Education: Bachelors degree in English Literature with Social work from UAE University
As a child: Kept sweets on the window sill for workers, set aside money to pay for education of needy families
Holidays: Spends most of her days off at Senses often with her family who describe the centre as part of their life too
Yuki Means Happiness
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John Murray
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The bio
Favourite vegetable: Broccoli
Favourite food: Seafood
Favourite thing to cook: Duck l'orange
Favourite book: Give and Take by Adam Grant, one of his professors at University of Pennsylvania
Favourite place to travel: Home in Kuwait.
Favourite place in the UAE: Al Qudra lakes
Plan to boost public schools
A major shake-up of government-run schools was rolled out across the country in 2017. Known as the Emirati School Model, it placed more emphasis on maths and science while also adding practical skills to the curriculum.
It was accompanied by the promise of a Dh5 billion investment, over six years, to pay for state-of-the-art infrastructure improvements.
Aspects of the school model will be extended to international private schools, the education minister has previously suggested.
Recent developments have also included the introduction of moral education - which public and private schools both must teach - along with reform of the exams system and tougher teacher licensing requirements.
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