Portia Woodman-Wickliffe says Dubai is the first step of a journey she hopes will end with another Olympic gold medal with New Zealand at the end of this season.
The flying wing was part of the Black Ferns Sevens side who won the event in Tokyo back in 2021. Growing up, Woodman-Wickliffe had always aspired to be an Olympian, initially as a sprinter.
She says playing at the first Olympic sevens event in Rio in 2016 felt like the “pinnacle” of sport, even if they had to settle for silver behind Australia.
However, the next Games did not pan out quite how she had envisaged it, even if they did win gold, because of the effects of the pandemic.
“Because of Covid, with no spectators, it kind of felt like we were ripped off,” said Woodman-Wickliffe, who was named women’s sevens player of the decade in 2020.
“We had done all this work for five years to get to this competition and we win, but there is no one there to celebrate with.
“We had to go straight home, then we were in quarantine, then we were in lockdown. It is amazing to have that gold medal, but it felt like we had missed this the first time round, then we did it this time, but next time we will have our family there, and it will be all about celebrating with our whanau.
“That is how Rio 2016 was supposed to be, but we didn’t quite get that. Hopefully 2024 [in Paris next summer] can be that.
“We have a lot of jobs to do between now and then, starting with Dubai.”
The Olympics was far from the only sports event that Covid set out of kilter. Until then, New Zealand and Australia seemed to have settled into a weird ritual of winning alternate Dubai Sevens.
Since the onset of the coronavirus, though, Australia have won three times in Dubai, including twice in the space of a week when New Zealand were absent two years ago.
New Zealand, though, are focused on regaining their title. The Dubai leg was the only world series tournament they failed to win last season, as they won the remaining six legs.
Sarah Hirini, their captain, said they are happy to be back in the city.
“If someone asks what tournament do you like the best, it is Dubai, No 1,” said Hirini, as her side won the first Abu Dhabi Sevens festival in the capital last weekend.
“You come to Dubai and it is completely different to anywhere else in the world. You don’t get this anywhere else.
“Yes, all the tournaments are well run, but here there are thousands of people and the atmosphere around the tournament is always amazing.”
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
The Freedom Artist
By Ben Okri (Head of Zeus)
What is a Ponzi scheme?
A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.
Company profile
Name: Dukkantek
Started: January 2021
Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani
Based: UAE
Number of employees: 140
Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service)
Investment: $5.2 million
Funding stage: Seed round
Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office
MATCH INFO
Tottenham Hotspur 3 (Son 1', Kane 8' & 16') West Ham United 3 (Balbuena 82', Sanchez og 85', Lanzini 90' 4)
Man of the match Harry Kane
The specs: 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk
Price, base: Dh399,999
Engine: Supercharged 6.2-litre V8
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 707hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 875Nm @ 4,800rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 16.8L / 100km (estimate)
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
