Omar Al Fadhli completed a memorable double gold and in the process was elevated to black belt on the podium on the penultimate day of the 13th Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
The 21-year-old Emirati, widely regarded as heir to the throne of the UAE’s most decorated jiu-jitsu fighter Faisal Al Ketbi, clinched his second gold in as many weeks with a 6-3 victory over Brazilian Leonardo Mario at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena at Zayed Sports City on Thursday.
Having clinched gold at the Jiu-Jitsu International Federation’s World Championship at the same venue last week, Al Fadhli produced another masterclass to take the brown belt 62-kilogram weight.
“I have been longing for this day ever since I started my journey in jiu-jitsu at the age of 12,” Al Fadhli told The National.
“It’s one of the most memorable days in my life. To receive the black belt is a milestone in my career but having achieved that tonight I have to take my game to the next level, which means more hard work ahead.
“I love this, though. I have fulfilled one part of my journey after deciding to pursue full time in jiu-jitsu. The federation has backed me all the way through.”
Al Fadhli has now become the youngest jiu-jitsu black belt in the Middle East and was also the first Emirati to receive a professional contract in December 2018.
“To win another gold medal in this remarkable championship is very special,” Al Fadhli added.
“The best feeling any athlete can have is carrying their country’s flag on the podium and I’m honoured to have been able to do that. And to then be awarded with the black belt, it really doesn’t get much better.
“I have trained exceptionally hard for this moment and gained a lot of experience during previous championships such as the Asian Championship and World Championship that brought me to this point.
“This gold is the pinnacle of my career to date as it is my first and as it turns out, the last with a brown belt.”
The UAE national team’s Brazilian head coach Ramon Lemos presented the black belt to Al Fadhli soon after he received the gold medal on the podium.
“I couldn’t be happier for Omar. He thoroughly deserves his black belt,” Lemos said.
“He has worked incredibly hard, has improved his technical ability and his dedication is there for all to see. The way he approached this week and studying his opponents is a great lesson to the youngsters coming through.”
Abdulmunam Al Hashemi, chairman of the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation, said Al Fadhli’s achievement was largely due to the school jiu-jitsu programme launched by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
“It is the best programme for the dissemination and development of the game, as the foundation for discovering, refining and creating heroes of UAE jiu-jitsu.
“We take this opportunity to thank our partners in schools, families, sponsors and supporters, because what Omar has achieved is an achievement for every Emirati citizen and a badge of pride that makes him a role model for all players from future generations.
“This achievement is a success for the school programme, which now has 180,000 male and female athletes.
“Undoubtedly, reaching the black belt stage in the sport of jiu-jitsu is the dream of every professional player, and this journey may take years, but Omar shortened the time thanks to his diligence to be one of the youngest players in the history of this sport.”
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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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.
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Results
Men's finals
45kg:Duc Le Hoang (VIE) beat Zolfi Amirhossein (IRI) points 29-28. 48kg: Naruephon Chittra (THA) beat Joseph Vanlalhruaia (IND) TKO round 2.
51kg: Sakchai Chamchit (THA) beat Salam Al Suwaid (IRQ) TKO round 1. 54kg: Veerasak Senanue (THA) beat Huynh Hoang Phi (VIE) 30-25.
57kg: Almaz Sarsembekov (KAZ) beat Tak Chuen Suen (MAC) RSC round 3. 60kg: Yerkanat Ospan (KAZ) beat Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) 30-27.
63.5kg: Abil Galiyev (KAZ) beat Nouredine Samir (UAE) 29-28. 67kg: Narin Wonglakhon (THA) beat Mohammed Mardi (UAE) 29-28.
71kg: Amine El Moatassime (UAE) w/o Shaker Al Tekreeti (IRQ). 75kg: Youssef Abboud (LBN) w/o Ayoob Saki (IRI).
81kg: Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Khaled Tarraf (LBN) 29-28. 86kg: Ali Takaloo (IRI) beat Emil Umayev (KAZ) 30-27.
91kg: Hamid Reza Kordabadi (IRI) beat Mohamad Osaily (LBN) RSC round 1. 91-plus kg: Mohammadrezapoor Shirmohammad (IRI) beat Abdulla Hasan (IRQ) 30-27.
Women's finals
45kg: Somruethai Siripathum (THA) beat Ha Huu Huynh (VIE) 30-27. 48kg: Thanawan Thongduang (THA) beat Colleen Saddi (PHI) 30-27.
51kg: Wansawang Srila Or (THA) beat Thuy Phuong Trieu (VIE) 29-28. 54kg: Ruchira Wongsriwo (THA) beat Zeinab Khatoun (LBN) 30-26.
57kg: Sara Idriss (LBN) beat Zahra Nasiri Bargh (IRI) 30-27. 60kg: Kaewrudee Kamtakrapoom (THA) beat Sedigheh Hajivand (IRI) TKO round 2.
63.5kg: Nadiya Moghaddam (IRI) w/o Reem Al Issa (JOR).
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