Forging a glittering reputation as the top exponent of any sport, whether through an individual pursuit or becoming a vital part of an all-conquering team, can take a lifetime to achieve.
Destroying that reputation can be done in a matter of seconds.
Whatever happens to John Higgins in the wake of distressing allegations of match-fixing which are being investigated by leading snooker administrators, his position as an esteemed figurehead of a profession which badly needs untarnished personalities has been lost forever.
At the moment the world No 1, and the reigning world champion until late last night, is facing only allegations that he freely discussed the mechanics of arranging how certain frames could be lost to enable gambling syndicates to clean up by betting heavily on the outcome of those rigged matches.
In return for arranging those easy-pickings for the East European underworld, Higgins, again allegedly, was due to pocket £261,000 (Dh1.46m) to supplement the vast fortune he has earned during a hitherto exemplary career which has brought three world titles and 21 tournament victories.
He has vowed to do everything possible to clear his name and may indeed be exonerated. But the one question which will not go away is why was he in Ukraine talking to undercover reporters from the News of the World when the battle to succeed him as world champion at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre was drawing to a climax?
That key "no smoke without fire" issue threatens to undo all the hard work snooker has done over the years to clean up its image from the days of the dingy billiard halls when "hustlers" preyed on unsuspecting victims, missing the simplest of shots before "doing the business" when it really mattered.
The ease with which an apparently innocent mistake can be made on the snooker table has always left that sport vulnerable to suggestions of malpractice and Higgins repeatedly rammed home that very point during the taped interview with his Kiev hosts that was made available to television news channels.
Other sports have been in the firing line, too, particularly boxing where fighters taking a dive at a prearranged moment from the most inoffensive of sucker punches brought that noble art into disrepute.
Rarely has that been better illustrated than on a shameful night in the United States in May 1965 when Sonny Liston, a fearsome ex-convict who had been deposed as world heavyweight champion by a young upstart called Cassius Clay (soon to become Muhammad Ali), fell in the first round of their eagerly anticipated rematch.
Slow motion replays were still to be introduced to television audiences at that time but even at full speed the inescapable conclusion was that the Ali punch that floored a once-great champion would hardly have ruffled the composure of a schoolgirl.
That was my earliest memory of possible match-fixing but a couple that were witnessed with the naked eye involved high-profile goalkeepers plying their trade in the English Premier League reputedly the most competitive and straightest league in the world.
On one amazing night in Newcastle in 1993, Liverpool's Bruce Grobbelaar conceded three almost identical goals to opposing striker Andrew Cole, now a columnist for The National a bizarre performance which led to accusations of fixing and became the subject of a long and bitter libel action involving The Sun newspaper.
The dispute took nearly a decade to resolve at the end of which House of Lords law lords overturned an appeal verdict against Grobbelaar and ruled in favour of the eccentric goalkeeper on a legal technicality.
In doing so, however, they pointed the finger firmly at Grobbelaar by reducing his original libel damages of £85,000 to a token payment of £1.
I was also in attendance at the extraordinary final match of that 1993-4 season when Everton needed to defeat Wimbledon to retain Premier League status. Two goals down in next to no time, that task looked hopeless but a nightmare goalkeeping performance by Hans Segers brought about a stunning 3-2 transformation.
The Dutchman was eventually cleared of any accusations alongside his Wimbledon teammate John Fashanu and Grobbelaar, plus a Malaysian businessman.
There had been no reprieve, though, in the 1960s for the Sheffield Wednesday trio of Peter Swan, David "Bronco" Layne and Tony Kay.
They were all imprisoned after being convicted of accepting bribes to lose a 1962 fixture against Ipswich Town.
Match officials are universally accepted to be whiter than white when it comes to avoiding areas of scandal but that assumption was blown out of the water when Robert Hoyzer, a young German referee, admitted fixing or trying to fix nine matches. The judge who sent Hoyzer to prison in 2005 declared that he had violated his duty of neutrality.
Cricket, which is currently embroiled in the Lalat Modi Indian Premier League affair, has had the finger of suspicion pointed in its direction too frequently for comfort.
The Australian touring squad of 1981 still have to deny vehemently accusations that they took advantage of the massive odds of 500-to-1 against England at a pivotal moment of that year's Ashes series when Ian Botham rescued the home side from seemingly certain defeat and steered them to one of the most glorious victories in Test history.
Then there was the infamous Hansie Cronje affair when the former South African cricket captain, who died in a plane crash in 2002, admitted "forecasting" results to bookmakers in offering a defence to a charge of match-fixing.
Cronje was once memorably but naively praised at a Test presentation ceremony by his victorious England counterpart Nasser Hussain for doing so much to turn what was developing into a tame draw into a thrilling finish.
Hussain was unaware that Cronje had guaranteed a definitive result that day. Cronje later told an inquiry that his passion for the game of cricket was at least matched by his love for money.
Bob Woolmer is, sadly, another big name cricketer who can no longer talk about betting irregularities.
The former England batsman was found dead in a Jamaican hotel room the day after the Pakistan team he was coaching at the time had suffered a humiliating 2007 World Cup defeat by unheralded Ireland.
Rumours were circulating at the time that Woolmer, 58, was on the verge of exposing match fixing in a game he had served with distinction.
Horse racing, a business that is inextricably linked to the betting industry, will always be under the microscope and its cleanliness was most famously called into question when Kieren Fallon, the top Irish rider who was the six-time champion jockey in Britain, was one of a group of six accused of plotting to throw races.
They were all acquitted by an Old Bailey jury in 2007 on the directions of the trial judge.
Fallon discovered then what Higgins is learning now: to accuse top sportsmen or women of impropriety can be just as damaging as convicting them.
@Email:wjohnson@thenational.ae
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
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
57%20Seconds
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rusty%20Cundieff%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJosh%20Hutcherson%2C%20Morgan%20Freeman%2C%20Greg%20Germann%2C%20Lovie%20Simone%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: BorrowMe (BorrowMe.com)
Date started: August 2021
Founder: Nour Sabri
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce / Marketplace
Size: Two employees
Funding stage: Seed investment
Initial investment: $200,000
Investors: Amr Manaa (director, PwC Middle East)
Primera Liga fixtures (all times UAE: 4 GMT)
Friday
Real Sociedad v Villarreal (10.15pm)
Real Betis v Celta Vigo (midnight)
Saturday
Alaves v Barcelona (8.15pm)
Levante v Deportivo La Coruna (10.15pm)
Girona v Malaga (10.15pm)
Las Palmas v Atletico Madrid (12.15am)
Sunday
Espanyol v Leganes (8.15pm)
Eibar v Athletic Bilbao (8.15pm)
Getafe v Sevilla (10.15pm)
Real Madrid v Valencia (10.15pm)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKinetic%207%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202018%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rick%20Parish%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Clean%20cooking%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Self-funded%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre, four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch automatic
Power: 169bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh54,500
On sale: now
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Fight card
Bantamweight
Siyovush Gulmamadov (TJK) v Rey Nacionales (PHI)
Lightweight
Alexandru Chitoran (ROM) v Hussein Fakhir Abed (SYR)
Catch 74kg
Tohir Zhuraev (TJK) v Omar Hussein (JOR)
Strawweight (Female)
Weronika Zygmunt (POL) v Seo Ye-dam (KOR)
Featherweight
Kaan Ofli (TUR) v Walid Laidi (ALG)
Lightweight
Leandro Martins (BRA) v Abdulla Al Bousheiri (KUW)
Welterweight
Ahmad Labban (LEB) v Sofiane Benchohra (ALG)
Bantamweight
Jaures Dea (CAM) v Nawras Abzakh (JOR)
Lightweight
Mohammed Yahya (UAE) v Glen Ranillo (PHI)
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) v Aidan Aguilera (AUS)
Welterweight
Mounir Lazzez (TUN) Sasha Palatnikov (HKG)
Featherweight title bout
Romando Dy (PHI) v Lee Do-gyeom (KOR)
CHATGPT%20ENTERPRISE%20FEATURES
%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Enterprise-grade%20security%20and%20privacy%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Unlimited%20higher-speed%20GPT-4%20access%20with%20no%20caps%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Longer%20context%20windows%20for%20processing%20longer%20inputs%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Advanced%20data%20analysis%20capabilities%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Customisation%20options%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Shareable%20chat%20templates%20that%20companies%20can%20use%20to%20collaborate%20and%20build%20common%20workflows%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Analytics%20dashboard%20for%20usage%20insights%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Free%20credits%20to%20use%20OpenAI%20APIs%20to%20extend%20OpenAI%20into%20a%20fully-custom%20solution%20for%20enterprises%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sinopharm vaccine explained
The Sinopharm vaccine was created using techniques that have been around for decades.
“This is an inactivated vaccine. Simply what it means is that the virus is taken, cultured and inactivated," said Dr Nawal Al Kaabi, chair of the UAE's National Covid-19 Clinical Management Committee.
"What is left is a skeleton of the virus so it looks like a virus, but it is not live."
This is then injected into the body.
"The body will recognise it and form antibodies but because it is inactive, we will need more than one dose. The body will not develop immunity with one dose," she said.
"You have to be exposed more than one time to what we call the antigen."
The vaccine should offer protection for at least months, but no one knows how long beyond that.
Dr Al Kaabi said early vaccine volunteers in China were given shots last spring and still have antibodies today.
“Since it is inactivated, it will not last forever," she said.
WITHIN%20SAND
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Moe%20Alatawi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Ra%E2%80%99ed%20Alshammari%2C%20Adwa%20Fahd%2C%20Muhand%20Alsaleh%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Shooting Ghosts: A U.S. Marine, a Combat Photographer, and Their Journey Back from War by Thomas J. Brennan and Finbarr O’Reilly
Confirmed%20bouts%20(more%20to%20be%20added)
%3Cp%3ECory%20Sandhagen%20v%20Umar%20Nurmagomedov%0D%3Cbr%3ENick%20Diaz%20v%20Vicente%20Luque%0D%3Cbr%3EMichael%20Chiesa%20v%20Tony%20Ferguson%0D%3Cbr%3EDeiveson%20Figueiredo%20v%20Marlon%20Vera%0D%3Cbr%3EMackenzie%20Dern%20v%20Loopy%20Godinez%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ETickets%20for%20the%20August%203%20Fight%20Night%2C%20held%20in%20partnership%20with%20the%20Department%20of%20Culture%20and%20Tourism%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20went%20on%20sale%20earlier%20this%20month%2C%20through%20www.etihadarena.ae%20and%20www.ticketmaster.ae.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
RESULT
Manchester United 2 Burnley 2
Man United: Lingard (53', 90' 1)
Burnley: Barnes (3'), Defour (36')
Man of the Match: Jesse Lingard (Manchester United)
South Africa's T20 squad
Duminy (c), Behardien, Dala, De Villiers, Hendricks, Jonker, Klaasen (wkt), Miller, Morris, Paterson, Phangiso, Phehlukwayo, Shamsi, Smuts.
Du Plessis plans his retirement
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis said on Friday the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia in two years' time will be his last.
Du Plessis, 34, who has led his country in two World T20 campaigns, in 2014 and 2016, is keen to play a third but will then step aside.
"The T20 World Cup in 2020 is something I'm really looking forward to. I think right now that will probably be the last tournament for me," he said in Brisbane ahead of a one-off T20 against Australia on Saturday.
The biog
Favourite food: Fish and seafood
Favourite hobby: Socialising with friends
Favourite quote: You only get out what you put in!
Favourite country to visit: Italy
Favourite film: Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
Family: We all have one!
FIGHT INFO
Men’s 60kg Round 1:
Ahmad Shuja Jamal (AFG) beat Krisada Takhiankliang (THA) - points
Hyan Aljmyah (SYR) beat Akram Alyminee (YEM) - retired Round 1
Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) beat Bhanu Pratap Pandit (IND) - TKO Round 1
Men’s 71kg Round 1:
Seyed Kaveh Soleyman (IRI) beat Abedel Rahman (JOR) - RSC round 3.
Amine Al Moatassime (UAE) walk over Ritiz Puri (NEP)
