Saeed Al Dharif, 50, an Emirati from Abu Dhabi, and Mateo Vieujot, 14, a schoolboy from Dubai, share the same passion of competing in kite surfing.
They have each spent almost the same number of years in the sport and are competing in the kite surfing competitions at the Al Gharbia Watersports Festival.
Al Dharif has not only used his zest to become one of the leading Emirati kite surfers, but he has become an ambassador to the sport, promoting Abu Dhabi across Europe as an exciting venue for the sport, with the year-round sunshine.
"I was into falconry and fishing, but they have both lost the appeal among my friends, so I decided to take up kite surfing, which was closest to my hobbies," Al Dhafir said.
"It didn't take me much time to learn and I was hooked. It is great fun and now four years on, I have wide network of members to go surfing every weekend.
"Apart from my work at Adnoc and the time I spend with my family, it is kite surfing for me."
He will be travelling to Egypt next week and has a few other trips set for later in the year.
"I have a good network of membership and it is great fun travelling to different parts of the world," he said. "It is a very healthy sport where you need only the winds and the equipment, which is easy to carry around.
"I take a lot of pleasure teaching youngsters as well as adults. There is no age limit for this sport, and anyone from eight to 70 can be enrolled for lessons."
Al Dharif has taken the sport to the next level. He became the first Emirati to receive an International Kiteboarding Organization Level 2 certificate.
As an instructor, he has drawn students from Europe, offering them optimum weather conditions in Abu Dhabi. Some of them have flown in to participate in the Al Gharbia Festival, which ends on Saturday.
"Kite surfing is one of the fast-growing sports not only in the UAE, but around the world," he said. "It is a great sporting event for those who love the beach and sea.
"There are not many competitions in the UAE, and the Al Gharbia Water Sports Festival is fast becoming an excellent venue for the kite-surfing enthusiasts to look forward as a regular venue."
Vieujot has big ambitions as he prepares to participate in the world championship junior category for the second time in two years.
"It was a real good experience for me to participate in the highest level of the competition," said Vieujot, who is from France and has lived in Dubai for more than 10 years.
"Hopefully, I can do better this time. I started to love the sport after a few lessons when we were holidaying in the Dominican Republic.
"My father was a watersports enthusiast and he supported me when I wanted to continue.
"Now, I want to spend as much time as possible. I still don't know where it will take me."
He took part in the hydrofoil world championship junior category in France last year.
Osama Shihab, a 29-year-old Jordanian, has combined his business with the sport.
"I am involved in the sale and distribution of sport equipment and it certainly would help me broaden my networking through the various competitions," he said.
Shihab has been in the sport for five years, but spends a significant amount of his time training with more competitions lined up.
"It brings the community together," the Dubai-based Shihab said of the annual festival in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi.
"I look at this as an important event with the cream of the local kite surfers competing. There are only around two competitions around the country in a year. We can look forward to Al Gharbia as a permanent venue."
Shihab participated in international events in South America last year. He plans to go a step further this year by taking part in the African, North American, and the South American championships, and the world championship in China.
The kite surfing on Saturday was called off due to a lack of wind.
"We are quite used to this," Al Dhafir said. "We got into the water to have a few tries and we will be back next weekend."
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Poacher
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SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20S23%20ULTRA
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Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
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
