It's a year late and the Olympic Games open on Friday today amid turmoil, distrust and the ever-present threat of Covid-19.
The Tokyo Olympics were originally billed to the Japanese people as the "recovery Games" as it comes 10 years after the devastating earthquake, tsunami, and subsequent Fukushima power plant explosion. This notion has been somewhat lost, as the Games, which were delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, are largely unpopular among the Japanese public. They fear the risk of further infection, so much so it has spurred rare scenes of protests in the capital.
As the Olympic torch relay completes its 121-day journey around the country, it is headed towards the new Olympic Stadium in Tokyo. Rebuilt on the site that hosted the 1964 summer games, it now has the capacity to hold 68,000 people. On Friday night, however, it will host just 950 for a grand opening ceremony, as most fans and spectators have been barred from events to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
As well as potentially feeling like a dress-rehearsal, the ceremony itself, which is often a celebration of hope and national identity and pride, will no doubt be overshadowed by the news that its show director, Kentaro Kobayashi was just dismissed from his role, as videos emerged of him making jokes about the Holocaust in the 1990s.
The composer for the music of both the opening and closing ceremonies has also stepped down after old interviews of bullying behaviour resurfaced.
But amid the gloom, the many sporting events could still find a way to thrill, excite and inspire. With organisers nervously watching the number of infected athletes, the world’s greatest athletes have endured multiple PCR tests and made it through the tightly regulated entry processes into the Olympic village.
With some sports already underway there have been exciting and unexpected results. On Wednesday, the Swedish women’s football team ended the USA’s 44-game unbeaten run with a confident 3-0 victory. Mexico’s men then beat World Cup champions France a resounding 4-1 on Thursday.
The Japanese softball team has given the host nation something to celebrate, winning both of their opening games against Australia and Mexico. The host nation has an array of talent to support, and will no doubt be looking to tennis world No 2 Naomi Osaka to bring home a medal, as well as legendary wrestler Kaori Icho, who is the first female in any sport to win individual gold medals in four consecutive Olympic Games.
Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic is another aiming to create history at these Games. With a gold medal in Tokyo, the world No 1 will keep alive his bid to become the first man to win the golden Grand Slam having won the first major tennis titles - Australian Open, Roland Garros, and Wimbledon - of the season with just the US Open to come.
Among the big names from other sports to look out for include the sensational US gymnast Simone Biles, hoping to build on her success from the 2016 Rio Games where she collected four gold medals. Keep an eye out too for men’s 400m world-record holder Wayde van Niekerk from South Africa.
Jamaican ‘Pocket Rocket’ Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce will be looking to rubber stamp her name into the history books. The fastest woman alive is aiming to be the first woman to medal in the 100m for four consecutive Olympic Games. Having run her personal best only last month she might just do it.
With Usain Bolt out of the picture, many are wondering who are the leading contenders for the 100m and 200m titles. Eyes are on Americans Trayvon Bromell and Ronnie Baker, and Canadian Andre De Grasse for the 100m gold medal, while Noah Lyles is the favourite for the 200m.
With recent losses against Nigeria and Australia, could Team USA's men’s basketball stars be about to relinquish the gold medal for the first time since 2004 or can they bounce back?
We can also expect a fierce rivalry in the pool between the US and Australia. Five-time Olympic gold medalist Katie Ledecky will have tough opposition in Ariarne Titmus, who swam the second fastest women’s 400m freestyle in history at the Australian swimming trials in June. Meanwhile in the men’s events, many will be wondering if Caeleb Dressel can fill the shoes of retired Michael Phelps.
There will be five new sports on this year's rota: surfing, skateboarding, karate, softball, and sport climbing all make their debuts, with baseball making a return for the first time since the Beijing Games in 2008.
The Tokyo Olympics will face a number of unprecedented challenges over the next few weeks but hopefully it will be a Games to remember for the right reasons.
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
What is Genes in Space?
Genes in Space is an annual competition first launched by the UAE Space Agency, The National and Boeing in 2015.
It challenges school pupils to design experiments to be conducted in space and it aims to encourage future talent for the UAE’s fledgling space industry. It is the first of its kind in the UAE and, as well as encouraging talent, it also aims to raise interest and awareness among the general population about space exploration.
Director: Paul Weitz
Stars: Kevin Hart
3/5 stars
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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Company profile
Date started: December 24, 2018
Founders: Omer Gurel, chief executive and co-founder and Edebali Sener, co-founder and chief technology officer
Based: Dubai Media City
Number of employees: 42 (34 in Dubai and a tech team of eight in Ankara, Turkey)
Sector: ConsumerTech and FinTech
Cashflow: Almost $1 million a year
Funding: Series A funding of $2.5m with Series B plans for May 2020
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
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: Macan Turbo
Engine: Dual synchronous electric motors
Power: 639hp
Torque: 1,130Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Touring range: 591km
Price: From Dh412,500
On sale: Deliveries start in October
The specs
BMW M8 Competition Coupe
Engine 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8
Power 625hp at 6,000rpm
Torque 750Nm from 1,800-5,800rpm
Gearbox Eight-speed paddleshift auto
Acceleration 0-100kph in 3.2 sec
Top speed 305kph
Fuel economy, combined 10.6L / 100km
Price from Dh700,000 (estimate)
On sale Jan/Feb 2020
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
Sheer grandeur
The Owo building is 14 storeys high, seven of which are below ground, with the 30,000 square feet of amenities located subterranean, including a 16-seat private cinema, seven lounges, a gym, games room, treatment suites and bicycle storage.
A clear distinction between the residences and the Raffles hotel with the amenities operated separately.
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