Marta Bastianelli promised her UAE Team ADQ are aiming to put on a show for home fans in the inaugural UAE Tour Women starting in Dubai on Thursday.
The first and only UCI World Tour race in the Middle East, the four-stage event will open with a 109 kilometre ride from Port Rashid to Dubai Harbour.
Italian Bastianelli, 35, is one of the most experienced riders among the 13 UCI World and seven UCI Continental teams battling to become the first holders of the title.
“We are a fully professional unit and we have arrived well prepared, and want to do our best to challenge for the title,” the former world champion said at the pre-race conference at the Abu Dhabi Cycling Club on Hudayriat Island on Wednesday.
“It’s very important for us to be here and represent the host nation in this inaugural race for women. We have a strong team [of six riders] and we believe in ourselves. Of course, we will face strong challenges, but we are ready for it.”
The rest of the UAE Team ADQ include Silvia Persico, a revelation at the Tour de France Femmes, their lead-out Chiara Consonni and Eleonora Camilla Gasparrini, alongside Laura Tomasi and Anna Trevisi.
The 20 teams will tackle the three sprint and the penultimate mountain stage that finishes at the summit of Jebel Hafeet in Al Ain.
Marta Cavalli (FDJ-Suez) arrives at the event following some excellent results last year, including second place in the Giro d'Italia Donne and triumphs at the Amstel Gold Race and La Fleche Wallonne.
Cavalli’s team also includes Australian Grace Brown, runner-up at the 2022 Women's Tour, at the World Championships ITT and at Liege-Bastogne-Liege Femmes (both in 2022 and 2020). This year, she won the Santos Tour Down Under.
“As a team we have spent a lot of time together and let’s see how far we can go in this inaugural race,” Cavalli said.
Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek-Segafredo) has amassed an impressive 35 victories since the start of her career, as well as bronze medals in the 2016 and 2020 Olympic road races.
“For us, it’s a very important race. We have a strong roster and we are very happy to be racing here,” Borghini said.
“Finally, we have got the opportunity to race in the Middle East, something that has been missing in the Tour Women.”
Dunki
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
Graduated from the American University of Sharjah
She is the eldest of three brothers and two sisters
Has helped solve 15 cases of electric shocks
Enjoys travelling, reading and horse riding
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
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BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
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Available: Now
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
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Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
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Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
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Ipaf in numbers
Established: 2008
Prize money: $50,000 (Dh183,650) for winners and $10,000 for those on the shortlist.
Winning novels: 13
Shortlisted novels: 66
Longlisted novels: 111
Total number of novels submitted: 1,780
Novels translated internationally: 66
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
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8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
'Downton Abbey: A New Era'
Director: Simon Curtis
Cast: Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter and Phyllis Logan
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What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre, six-cylinder
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 395bhp
Torque: 420Nm
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Aston martin DBX specs
Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 542bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Top speed: 291kph
Price: Dh848,000
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Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
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Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
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Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
