Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, has done it. Will Smith and Tom Cruise have done it. And now Sam Sunderland has joined that elite group of people who have been to the very tip of Burj Khalifa.
The British motorcycle racer, who is competing in the Dakar Rally 2022, stood on top of the world's tallest building for a new video in association with Dubai Tourism and Red Bull that was released on Friday.
Sunderland, 32, who made history as the first British rider to win the Dakar Rally with KTM in 2017, can be seen in the video racing through Dubai, driving a motorbike through areas that have never been ridden in before.
He rides through new and old Dubai, navigating mountain bike trails of Hatta, over the dunes of Al Faqa desert and hitting fairways in golf courses across the city. He hits the heart-shaped Al Qudra lakes, Souk Madinat Jumeirah, La Mer and The Dubai Mall aquarium, before handing over his bike and heading to the top of Burj Khalifa. The final shot is of Sunderland stood on top of the tip, arms outstretched.
"It was really the scariest thing I've ever done," he says in the nearly seven-minute clip, which also gives viewers a nausea-inducing glimpse of the ground from Sunderland's sky-high perspective.
Sam Sunderland's move to Dubai
Born in the south of England in 1989, Sunderland visited Dubai in 2009. He was recovering from an accident that had left him with two broken legs, but he immediately spotted potential in the UAE and returned permanently soon after.
Within a few months he was racing motocross and endurance raids across the Middle East and won the 2010 UAE National Baja Championship. He made his Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge debut shortly after and entered the Cross Country World Championships, winning three stages and beating out competition from riders of far higher profile, including serial champion Marc Coma.
He won Dakar in 2017, also coming in third in 2019 and 2021. He also took the 2019 FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship title.
“I lived in Dubai for just over 10 years, and it’s a place that enabled me to realise my dream of becoming a Dakar competitor," said Sunderland. "Without this experience it’s hard to say whether I would have ever become world champion.
“It means a lot to be able to come back here and be given the opportunity to ride in places no one else has, and to be able to say that I’ve stood right at the top of the tallest building in the world is all a bit surreal. I’d like to thank Red Bull and the city of Dubai for making this once-in-a-life time experience possible."
Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Cricket World Cup League Two
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Fixtures
Wednesday January 8 –Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 – Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 – UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
UAE v Ireland
1st ODI, UAE win by 6 wickets
2nd ODI, January 12
3rd ODI, January 14
4th ODI, January 16
Petrarch: Everywhere a Wanderer
Christopher Celenza,
Reaktion Books
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE squad
Esha Oza (captain), Al Maseera Jahangir, Emily Thomas, Heena Hotchandani, Indhuja Nandakumar, Katie Thompson, Lavanya Keny, Mehak Thakur, Michelle Botha, Rinitha Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Siya Gokhale, Sashikala Silva, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish (wicketkeeper) Udeni Kuruppuarachchige, Vaishnave Mahesh.
UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – First ODI
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 2.2-litre, turbodiesel
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Power: 160hp
Torque: 385Nm
Price: Dh116,900
On sale: now
The%20specs
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Racecard
6.35pm: American Business Council – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
7.10pm: British Business Group – Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,200m
7.45pm: CCI France UAE – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,400m
8.20pm: Czech Business Council – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh105,000 (D) 1,400m
8.55pm: Netherlands Business Council – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 1,600m
9.30pm: Indian Business and Professional Council – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 1,200m
The years Ramadan fell in May
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Prop idols
Girls full-contact rugby may be in its infancy in the Middle East, but there are already a number of role models for players to look up to.
Sophie Shams (Dubai Exiles mini, England sevens international)
An Emirati student who is blazing a trail in rugby. She first learnt the game at Dubai Exiles and captained her JESS Primary school team. After going to study geophysics at university in the UK, she scored a sensational try in a cup final at Twickenham. She has played for England sevens, and is now contracted to top Premiership club Saracens.
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Seren Gough-Walters (Sharjah Wanderers mini, Wales rugby league international)
Few players anywhere will have taken a more circuitous route to playing rugby on Sky Sports. Gough-Walters was born in Al Wasl Hospital in Dubai, raised in Sharjah, did not take up rugby seriously till she was 15, has a master’s in global governance and ethics, and once worked as an immigration officer at the British Embassy in Abu Dhabi. In the summer of 2021 she played for Wales against England in rugby league, in a match that was broadcast live on TV.
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Erin King (Dubai Hurricanes mini, Ireland sevens international)
Aged five, Australia-born King went to Dubai Hurricanes training at The Sevens with her brothers. She immediately struck up a deep affection for rugby. She returned to the city at the end of last year to play at the Dubai Rugby Sevens in the colours of Ireland in the Women’s World Series tournament on Pitch 1.
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