The UAE enjoyed its finest day at the Asian Games as competitors in jiu-jitsu and show jumping racked up one gold, a silver and three bronze medals between them on Friday.
Asma Al Hosani, 19, emerged as the golden girl of the day for the nation, becoming the first Emirati female to win a jiu-jitsu gold, going one step further than Mahra Al Hanaei's heroics to clinch silver at the 2018 Jakarta Games.
Al Hosani overcame the more experienced Jie Miao, 36, by points 2-0 in the women’s 52-kilogram final to claim the second jiu-jitsu gold and third overall for the UAE at these games, taking the nation’s overall tally to three golds, five silvers and eight bronze.
“I have been preparing for this moment for four years, and I was confident of achieving it because when an Emirati girl gets the opportunity and the support, she achieves that goal, no matter how difficult it is,” an emotional Al Hashemi said.
“It was the happiest moment in my life when the UAE flag was raised in the backdrop of the national anthem today in China.
“We were very tired, and we continued day and night in training, camps and competitions in pursuit of this historic moment, and when I climbed to the podium, I forgot all the fatigue because I felt proud to share my happiness with our homeland.”
Shamsa Al Ameri bagged bronze with victory over Yasmin Alami of Jordan in the women’s 57kg weight and Mahdi Al Awlaqi got the better of his sibling Faraj in an all-UAE battle for the bronze in the men’s 77kg division.
“To win gold was the obvious target but returning with a bronze was also an good achievement and, above all, the experience and the lessons I learnt in my first appearance at the Asian Games was really valuable,” Al Ameri said.
Mahdi Al Awlaqi added: “The fights were tough. I was hoping to win gold, but I was not successful, losing the semi-final contest in the last seconds. We benefited a lot from the participation and hope to do better next time.”
While the jiu-jitsu fighters racked up a rich haul of medals, Omar Al Marzooqi and Abdulla Al Marri secured silver and bronze in the show jumping individual competition.
It also marked the first time UAE has won three equestrian medals at the Asian Games, following their bronze in the team event.
Al Marzooqi, 20, riding Dalida VD Zuuthoeve, a mare owned by Al Shira'aa Stables, rode two double clears to make it through to the jump-off. He rode a tremendous tactical round to finish clear in a time of 42.3s to take silver behind Saudi Arabian Abdullah Sharbatly atop Skorphults Baloutendro.
“It wasn’t an easy competition, but the mare jumped six amazing rounds and tried so hard for me,” said Al Marzooqi, who created history by winning silver at the Youth Olympics in Argentina in 2018.
“Coming home with three equestrian medals is a fantastic achievement.”
The line up
Friday: Giggs, Sho Madjozi and Masego
Saturday: Nas, Lion Bbae, Roxanne Shante and DaniLeigh
Sole DXB runs from December 6 to 8 at Dubai Design District. Weekend pass is Dh295 while a one day pass is Dh195. Tickets are available from www.soledxb.com
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Buckingham Murders
Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
Key fixtures from January 5-7
Watford v Bristol City
Liverpool v Everton
Brighton v Crystal Palace
Bournemouth v AFC Fylde or Wigan
Coventry v Stoke City
Nottingham Forest v Arsenal
Manchester United v Derby
Forest Green or Exeter v West Brom
Tottenham v AFC Wimbledon
Fleetwood or Hereford v Leicester City
Manchester City v Burnley
Shrewsbury v West Ham United
Wolves v Swansea City
Newcastle United v Luton Town
Fulham v Southampton
Norwich City v Chelsea
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
RESULT
Uruguay 3 Russia 0
Uruguay: Suárez (10'), Cheryshev (23' og), Cavani (90')
Russia: Smolnikov (Red card: 36')
Man of the match: Diego Godin (Uruguay)
ARGYLLE
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Matthew%20Vaughn%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Bryce%20Dallas%20Howard%2C%20Sam%20Rockwell%2C%20John%20Cena%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sanju
Produced: Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani
Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Vicky Kaushal, Paresh Rawal, Anushka Sharma, Manish’s Koirala, Dia Mirza, Sonam Kapoor, Jim Sarbh, Boman Irani
Rating: 3.5 stars
Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
More on Quran memorisation:
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
THE BIO:
Favourite holiday destination: Thailand. I go every year and I’m obsessed with the fitness camps there.
Favourite book: Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. It’s an amazing story about barefoot running.
Favourite film: A League of their Own. I used to love watching it in my granny’s house when I was seven.
Personal motto: Believe it and you can achieve it.
The%C2%A0specs%20
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E6-cylinder%2C%204.8-litre%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E5-speed%20automatic%20and%20manual%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E280%20brake%20horsepower%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E451Nm%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Efrom%20Dh153%2C00%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Enow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
