The idea that the spirit of athletic competition can help make the world a fairer place – and people more tolerant and accepting – was present at the beginning of many of the great modern sporting concepts, such as the Olympic Games and the football World Cup.
It has also been challenged and tested over the past century as corporations, governments and the wealthy have jostled to associate themselves with the remarkable and inspiring stories that these competitions have given us over the years.
Lately, I have found it difficult to not be caught up in the wave of cynicism about the current state of sport. At times this has spoiled my own enjoyment as the biggest sports seem to be consuming themselves, in a rush to prioritise satiating the global audiences they attract through digital media and television at the cost of what it means to compete.
At its best, sport is tough and unpredictable, and the victor usually has a will to endure that outlasts his or her rival. Sport is suffering for glory, but suffering doesn’t make for good TV.
What it is becoming these days is entertainment for the sake of it. And I see little difference these days between the English Premier League (and its 100-minute matches and Video Assistant Referees) and the scripted drama of World Wrestling Entertainment.
Give me a tight nil-nil draw any day over the nonsense of teams scoring more frequently after the regulation 90 minutes have ended. Of course, you will get more entertainment if you make footballers play longer – and the more tired they get, the more likely someone is to make a mistake. Is that sport or a kind of Hunger Games?
That’s why I was delighted by The Beautiful Game, a film out on Netflix that is inspired by the real Homeless World Cup.
In the Middle East, it often feels as if the trend of homelessness has been normalised
In the movie, a football manager takes a small group of homeless players to Rome to compete in a tournament against other teams from around the world. Each person who takes part has an inspiring story to tell, and to paraphrase the moral of the story, we may be unable to save ourselves when disaster strikes but we can save one another when motivated to do so.
That is what makes sport such an important part of civilisation and our journey to a more equitable society.
However, the idea of a world cup for the homeless also shows us how far we still have to go until we accomplish such a goal. Yet it is possible, according to Mel Young, president of the Homeless World Cup.
Writing for the World Economic Forum last month, he said: “While economic inequality is decreasing on a global scale, many countries are seeing increasing internal economic disparity, and globally, the gulf between rich and poor is growing fast.”
“In this context, homelessness is a key challenge,” he added. “Too often, homelessness is thought of … almost inevitable. This is not the case.”
Mr Young cited examples of success, such as in Finland, where people are given homes first, rather than being expected to find work as a starting point. This makes sense. In the world’s biggest economy, the US, about half a million people are homeless – the largest number recorded in nearly 20 years. Many of them already have jobs but cannot afford a permanent residence.
However, any solutions to people being deprived of a roof over their heads must be capable of working at the largest possible scale. The world’s largest refugee camps are in Kenya, Jordan, South Sudan, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Bangladesh, emphasising the global nature of the problem.
In the Middle East, in particular, it often feels as if the trend has been normalised – homelessness is visibly present as a direct result of conflict, climate change and natural disasters, as well as the Covid-19 pandemic. More than seven million people are internally displaced in Syria because of war. In Gaza, we know the reason why millions of people have been displaced in recent months.
According to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, as of March 30, up to 1.7 million people (more than 75 per cent of the population) have been displaced across the Gaza Strip, most of them more than once.
“Families are forced to move repeatedly in search of safety. Following intense Israeli bombardments and fighting in Khan Younis and the Middle Area in recent weeks, a significant number of displaced people have moved further south,” UNRWA said this week. This includes one million individuals residing in or near emergency shelters or informal shelters, it added.
We will never be able to fully prevent or put a stop to the triggers that can lead to people losing their homes. Yet we can act once their lives have changed. Providing greater access to homes – whether in terms of making them more affordable or physically helping people to reach them safely – should be the ultimate goal.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
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)
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Biography
Favourite book: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Holiday choice: Anything Disney-related
Proudest achievement: Receiving a presidential award for foreign services.
Family: Wife and three children.
Like motto: You always get what you ask for, the universe listens.
Pros%20and%20cons%20of%20BNPL
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CHINESE GRAND PRIX STARTING GRID
1st row
Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
2nd row
Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes-GP)
Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
3rd row
Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull Racing)
4th row
Nico Hulkenberg (Renault)
Sergio Perez (Force India)
5th row
Carlos Sainz Jr (Renault)
Romain Grosjean (Haas)
6th row
Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
Esteban Ocon (Force India)
7th row
Fernando Alonso (McLaren)
Stoffel Vandoorne (McLaren)
8th row
Brendon Hartley (Toro Rosso)
Sergey Sirotkin (Williams)
9th row
Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso)
Lance Stroll (Williams)
10th row
Charles Leclerc (Sauber)
arcus Ericsson (Sauber)
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Tips for used car buyers
- Choose cars with GCC specifications
- Get a service history for cars less than five years old
- Don’t go cheap on the inspection
- Check for oil leaks
- Do a Google search on the standard problems for your car model
- Do your due diligence. Get a transfer of ownership done at an official RTA centre
- Check the vehicle’s condition. You don’t want to buy a car that’s a good deal but ends up costing you Dh10,000 in repairs every month
- Validate warranty and service contracts with the relevant agency and and make sure they are valid when ownership is transferred
- If you are planning to sell the car soon, buy one with a good resale value. The two most popular cars in the UAE are black or white in colour and other colours are harder to sell
Tarek Kabrit, chief executive of Seez, and Imad Hammad, chief executive and co-founder of CarSwitch.com
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Results
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m; Winner: Mcmanaman, Sam Hitchcock (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
6.05pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Bawaasil, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (Dirt) 1,400m; Winner: Bochart, Fabrice Veron, Satish Seemar
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Mutaraffa, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
7.50pm: Longines Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,00 (D) 1,900m; Winner: Rare Ninja, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
8.25pm: Zabeel Trophy – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Alfareeq, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
9pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 2,410m; Winner: Good Tidings, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
9.35pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 2,000m; Winner: Zorion, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi, Helal Al Alawi
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Brief scoreline:
Wales 1
James 5'
Slovakia 0
Man of the Match: Dan James (Wales)
Scoreline
Arsenal 3
Aubameyang (28'), Welbeck (38', 81')
Red cards: El Neny (90' 3)
Southampton 2
Long (17'), Austin (73')
Red cards: Stephens (90' 2)
Ain Dubai in numbers
126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure
1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch
16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.
9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.
5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place
192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.
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Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate
2.0
Director: S Shankar
Producer: Lyca Productions; presented by Dharma Films
Cast: Rajnikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson, Sudhanshu Pandey
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
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