Thiago Marquez retained his Masters-1 title in the 69-kilogram division at the 14th Abu Dhabi World Professional Championship.
The Brazilian, representing the Abu Dhabi based Commando Group, got the better of Brazil-born American Osvaldo Moizinho in the final by submission at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena on Wednesday.
Marquez, 38, drew a first-round bye and won his next two fights against Jordanian Abdelkarim Zaid and compatriot Victor Moraes, both by submission, to remain undefeated in the Abu Dhabi Masters since moving to the capital city to work as a jiu-jitsu instructor for the Commando Group in 2015.
“For me, aside from winning tonight, it’s been a long and beautiful journey to be able to work, train and compete in my favourite sport in Abu Dhabi,” the he said.
“I want to keep myself in good shape and be in jiu-jitsu for as long as possible. I put in the same amount of work when I first participated in the World Pro in 2012.”
Rodrigo Ribeiro stunned defending champion Igor Silva in an all-Brazilian final in the Masters-1 black belt 120kg.
Other winners were Emerson da Silva (56kg), Jose Barros (62kg) and Renato Cardoso (94kg). The remaining two golds in the Masters-1 black belt were claimed by Swede Alan do Nascimento (77kg) and Australian William Dias (85kg).
Mohammad Al Yami of Saudi Arabia travelled all the way from the United States to compete and took gold in the Masters-2 (62kg) blue belt division.
“The Abu Dhabi World Pro was a chance I couldn't pass,” he said. “Many of my family members and friends came to watch me fight and cheered me on. My gold medal achievement came as a happy surprise for them.”
Cinthya de Paula Oliveira bagged gold in the Master-1 (70kg) blue belt for women.
“Honestly speaking, Brazilian athletes like the Abu Dhabi World Pro,” she said. “Everybody was counting on this championship. It’s wonderful that I was able to win the medal, but more than that, it's a great event where we can reconnect with old friends and make new ones in the jiu-jitsu community.”
Briton Valmyr Neto returned with a gold in the Masters-2 (62kg) black belt men’s division is already planning to return in 2023.
“The UAE, especially Abu Dhabi, is the land of real opportunities,” he said. “All you need to do is prepare, show courage, and perform. If you do these three, you will get the desired outcomes. The tournament is fantastic in every way, and I want to return the next year.”
Meanwhile, the preliminaries for the main open championship for men and women got underway on Thursday and will continue on Friday with the finals slated for Saturday.
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
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.
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
At a glance - Zayed Sustainability Prize 2020
Launched: 2008
Categories: Health, energy, water, food, global high schools
Prize: Dh2.2 million (Dh360,000 for global high schools category)
Winners’ announcement: Monday, January 13
Impact in numbers
335 million people positively impacted by projects
430,000 jobs created
10 million people given access to clean and affordable drinking water
50 million homes powered by renewable energy
6.5 billion litres of water saved
26 million school children given solar lighting
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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UAE
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Norway
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Canada
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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
