The National looks at some of the unlikely success stories going on in the world of sport. Whether it is a team flourishing where you would not expect it, or an athlete overcoming great challenges to become a notable player, we will be telling their stories.
Trivia question: Two people competed in both the Paralympic and Olympic Games at London 2012. Name them.
The first could hardly be more obvious. Oscar Pistorius is perhaps the most infamous track-and-field athlete in the world, disabled or otherwise.
Even before the events that have taken place since in the courtroom, rather than on the track, the double-amputee was a sportsman of great renown, status and wealth.
And the other? Perhaps it is because her sport is one of the less-celebrated Olympic events that Poland’s Natalia Partyka was not quite the household name Pistorius was.
Or maybe it is simply because she has been doing it for so long, it felt as though she has always been there.
While the South African sprinter was battling preconceptions, breaking down barriers and trying to prove his blades did not give him an unfair advantage, Partyka had already been there, done that, gotten the participant number.
She first became a Paralympian at age 11, in Sydney. Sandwiched between golds at the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Paralympics, she also became an Olympian in Beijing.
Her list of achievements in disabled table tennis are unparalleled. She is 54th in the world rankings for able-bodied players, and has aspirations to go higher.
Partyka, 24, has 15 years of experience competing internationally. She wants to better her effort of reaching the round of 32 in London when the Rio Olympics take place in two years.
Which is not bad, given that for years, her sole driving force in sport was merely to beat Sandra, her big sister.
“She started playing first,” Partyka said. “One day, I decided I would try to play table tennis, as well. We were practising for a long time together, and because she was older than me, she was always much better than me.
“At the beginning, I had no chance when we were playing matches together. I had the motivation to work hard because my goal was always to beat her.
“That was my dream. I had to work many years for that, but one day I beat her and my life changed.”
Even though beating sister Sandra was her greatest incentive during her formative years in the sport, it has been surpassed since among her favourite memories.
Her career highlights are all centred on her gold-medal successes at Paralympic Games, even if they led to awkwardness on the podium.
“The best memories are when you are the winner of a competition,” she said. “At the medal ceremony at a Paralympic Games, and the national anthems are playing, that is a very good moment.
“I was not crying, I was singing. But I am not a very good singer, so I was just moving my mouth, really.”
Despite the fact that Poland can arguably boast the most successful disabled athlete of the past 14 years, Partyka says her field is still struggling for recognition in her homeland.
“Paralympic sports in Poland are good, but not like Olympic sports,” she said.
“They think it is good that disabled people are doing something, and if they win, that is also fine. But they don’t consider it serious sport.
“We are trying to change that, because Paralympic sports are more professional. It will never be exactly the same as the Olympics, but it is almost the same level now.
“London was amazing, I was surprised. There were so many supporters enjoying the Paralympics. In my opinion, that was the best.”
Partyka was born without a right hand and forearm. This causes little impediment to her game, though, with only the service motion being affected. She cradles the ball in the crook of her right elbow and tosses it up to serve.
She won her first international table tennis title at 10, at the world championship for disabled players. Having won everything there is to win in that field since, though, she prefers to compete against able-bodied players, other than at the Paralympics and other major championships.
“When I first started playing, I played on a normal table at home with my father but just for fun,” she said.
“In my hometown, we have many, many clubs. I had really good conditions to play straight from the beginning, and right when I started to play, that was with able-bodied players. Then I started playing with disabled players, so I always played both.”
Partyka trains approximately six hours per day during the season. She has her eye on a third Olympics, in 2016, when she will be 26.
“It will not be so easy. Everything depends on me, but I still have time and I am working hard every day,” she said.
“I would like to win again, for the fourth time at the Paralympic Games, but still I have many things to achieve in the Olympic sport, too.”
Successful disabled athletes are not just examples to fellow Paralympians. When Pistorius finished last in his 400m semi-final at the London Olympics, Kirani James sought him out to trade numbers and name tags, in the same fashion as footballers do with shirts after matches.
The Grenadan sprinter went on to win gold in the final, but he pointed out that his own celebrity was dwarfed by the man who finished last in the semi-final.
“Oscar is special,” James said after their semi-final race. “It is a memorable moment for me to be out there competing with him.”
The same goes for Partyka in her sport. When she came to the UAE earlier this summer to take part in a promotional event run by the International Table Tennis Federation, it was not just disabled players who wanted to be in her presence.
Majd Al Balooshi, the UAE’s No 1 female player, maintained a lengthy rally with the Polish player, and she was impressed by what she was up against.
“It is really inspiring having Natalia here,” said the Sharjah-based student. “She is an inspiration to the disabled players, but she is also inspiring to me, because she is one of the leading players in our sport.
“I played a game against her and she is very good. She is a dangerous player.”
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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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.”
The design
The protective shell is covered in solar panels to make use of light and produce energy. This will drastically reduce energy loss.
More than 80 per cent of the energy consumed by the French pavilion will be produced by the sun.
The architecture will control light sources to provide a highly insulated and airtight building.
The forecourt is protected from the sun and the plants will refresh the inner spaces.
A micro water treatment plant will recycle used water to supply the irrigation for the plants and to flush the toilets. This will reduce the pavilion’s need for fresh water by 30 per cent.
Energy-saving equipment will be used for all lighting and projections.
Beyond its use for the expo, the pavilion will be easy to dismantle and reuse the material.
Some elements of the metal frame can be prefabricated in a factory.
From architects to sound technicians and construction companies, a group of experts from 10 companies have created the pavilion.
Work will begin in May; the first stone will be laid in Dubai in the second quarter of 2019.
Construction of the pavilion will take 17 months from May 2019 to September 2020.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
WISH
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
The five pillars of Islam
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Juliet, Naked
Dir: Jesse Peretz
Starring: Chris O'Dowd, Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke
Two stars
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
more from Janine di Giovanni
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 Energy Research Centre
Founded 50 years ago as a nuclear research institute, scientists at the centre believed nuclear would be the “solution for everything”.
Although they still do, they discovered in 1955 that the Netherlands had a lot of natural gas. “We still had the idea that, by 2000, it would all be nuclear,” said Harm Jeeninga, director of business and programme development at the centre.
"In the 1990s, we found out about global warming so we focused on energy savings and tackling the greenhouse gas effect.”
The energy centre’s research focuses on biomass, energy efficiency, the environment, wind and solar, as well as energy engineering and socio-economic research.
The stats
Ship name: MSC Bellissima
Ship class: Meraviglia Class
Delivery date: February 27, 2019
Gross tonnage: 171,598 GT
Passenger capacity: 5,686
Crew members: 1,536
Number of cabins: 2,217
Length: 315.3 metres
Maximum speed: 22.7 knots (42kph)
THE%20SPECS
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What is an FTO Designation?
FTO designations impose immigration restrictions on members of the organisation simply by virtue of their membership and triggers a criminal prohibition on knowingly providing material support or resources to the designated organisation as well as asset freezes.
It is a crime for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to knowingly provide “material support or resources” to or receive military-type training from or on behalf of a designated FTO.
Representatives and members of a designated FTO, if they are aliens, are inadmissible to and, in certain circumstances removable from, the United States.
Except as authorised by the Secretary of the Treasury, any US financial institution that becomes aware that it has possession of or control over funds in which an FTO or its agent has an interest must retain possession of or control over the funds and report the funds to the Treasury Department.
Source: US Department of State
'Panga'
Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta
Rating: 3.5/5
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz E 300 Cabriolet
Price, base / as tested: Dh275,250 / Dh328,465
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder
Power: 245hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm @ 1,300rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.0L / 100km
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
