While many Cairenes take the Nile for granted amid the daily grind of one of the busiest cities in the Middle East, the storied river is a vital lifeline for some Egyptians who have grown tired of the capital's infamously bad traffic, densely populated neighbourhoods and detachment from nature.
Dawn can be a magical time in Cairo, especially if you are fortunate enough to be looking at the Nile's banks at the time. Few know this as well as Cairo's rowers, for whom the river is a second home, one they visit routinely as an escape from the noise pollution normally emanating from either side of the river.
In the early hours of the morning, little can be seen or heard on the Nile but the enchanting rhythm of oars in the water. And as most of Cairo's residents sleep, a lucky few get to experience a side of the city seldom seen, a softer side.
"Rowing taught me lessons that people read about in books, but I learnt them first hand," professional Egyptian rower and triathlete Asmaa El Zohairy tells The National.
Ms El Zohairy, who won first place at the National Rowing Championship in 2016, owns and operates her own rowing academy, called ScullnBlades.
She says that she came to the sport late, having picked it up as a hobby when she was 26. She was told by many that she would not succeed because people do not make it in the world of athletics unless they start young.
She was happy to prove everyone wrong with her meteoric rise as one of Egypt's most proficient rowers.
Egyptians' fascination with the sport of rowing goes back more than 3,400 years to about 1430 BCE – the earliest recorded evidence of rowing as a leisure sport in Ancient Egypt. That interest today shows no signs of diminishing.
Cairo is an imposing mass of concrete buildings. With so much going on around them, Cairenes often forget about the Nile, its significance, beauty and accessibility.
“Rowing allows you to connect with nature. Cairo and nature are at odds with each other. Here, everyone’s always late, or in a hurry, or out of time. So [rowing is] getting a moment to slow down and do something for yourself to help you calm down and get your thoughts in order.
"Having a chance like that is something beautiful,” says Ms El Zohairy, 32.
Egypt endured a four-month lockdown starting in March 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The lockdown closed most public spaces and all sporting venues, rowing clubs included.
Ms El Zohairy said that in July 2020, when the lockdown was finally lifted and people were allowed to return to public spaces, there was an overwhelming demand for spots in her rowing classes.
“After the lockdown, many people were really enthusiastic to get out and do new things. We were delighted to find that so many people wanted to try out rowing for the first time,” Ms El Zohairy says.
“Newcomers who came once would keep coming back. I think it’s because it gives them a chance to be on the Nile, with the added benefit of exercise,” she says.
“That’s the thing they appreciate most about rowing, I think, being on the Nile.”
Teams
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
Scoreline
Al Wasl 1 (Caio Canedo 90 1')
Al Ain 2 (Ismail Ahmed 3', Marcus Berg 50')
Red cards: Ismail Ahmed (Al Ain) 77'
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GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group H
Juventus v Valencia, Tuesday, midnight (UAE)
Heavily-sugared soft drinks slip through the tax net
Some popular drinks with high levels of sugar and caffeine have slipped through the fizz drink tax loophole, as they are not carbonated or classed as an energy drink.
Arizona Iced Tea with lemon is one of those beverages, with one 240 millilitre serving offering up 23 grams of sugar - about six teaspoons.
A 680ml can of Arizona Iced Tea costs just Dh6.
Most sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, five teaspoons of sugar in a 500ml bottle.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Squad
Ali Kasheif, Salim Rashid, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Ali Mabkhout, Omar Abdulrahman, Mohammed Al Attas, Abdullah Ramadan, Zayed Al Ameri (Al Jazira), Mohammed Al Shamsi, Hamdan Al Kamali, Mohammed Barghash, Khalil Al Hammadi (Al Wahda), Khalid Essa, Mohammed Shaker, Ahmed Barman, Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Al Hassan Saleh, Majid Suroor (Sharjah) Walid Abbas, Ahmed Khalil (Shabab Al Ahli), Tariq Ahmed, Jasim Yaqoub (Al Nasr), Ali Saleh, Ali Salmeen (Al Wasl), Hassan Al Muharami (Baniyas)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
