When Sun Yang won the gold medal in the men's 800-metre freestyle at the world championships last week in Shanghai, he did something unusual for the normally reserved Chinese swimming team.
He celebrated with boyish delight.
After the medal ceremony, the 19 year old climbed into the stands to high-five Chinese fans and give away the stuffed animal the medallists receive on the podium.
He then draped himself with a Chinese flag and flashed a giant grin for photographers.
China's swimmers have had a surprisingly strong meeting, winning four golds and 12 medals overall up to yesterday afternoon — putting them just behind the United States on the swimming medal table although they lead the overall table after dominating the diving competition.
But while the team has a number of gold-medal contenders for the London Olympics — the 100m women's backstroke winner, Zhao Jing, and the 200m women's individual medley winner, Ye Shiwen - China does not yet have a superstar, someone on par with Italy's Frederica Pellegrini or Michael Phelps of America.
The charismatic Sun may be on his way there.
He has been the dominant distance swimmer at the worlds, winning the 800m freestyle in a time of 7mins 38.57secs, more than three seconds ahead of Ryan Cochrane of Canada.
The time was also faster than the Australian Grant Hackett's former world record of 7:38.65, which had stood for four years before being eclipsed by Sun's teammate, Zhang Lin, at the 2009 worlds in Rome in a now-banned hi-tech bodysuit.
"Before the competition, I was already looking forward to getting the gold medal," Sun said. "When I touched the final wall, I was so excited, but I still know there are a lot of competitions in the future."
Sun also won a silver in the 400m free and a bronze in the 4x200m relay, and he qualified first yesterday for today's 1,500m freestyle final with a preliminary time of 14:48.13.
Not only is Sun the favourite to win the 1,500m, he could also break Hackett's long-standing world record in that event.
Under the tutelage of Hackett's former coach, Dennis Cotterell, Sun shocked the world at the Asian Games in Guangzhou in China last year by winning the 1,500m in a time of 14:35.43, just under a second off Hackett's 14:34.56 from the Fukuoka, Japan world championships in 2001.
Sun may need to break the record to step out from behind the shadow of his own teammate, Zhang, who became the leader of the men's team after he surprisingly won a silver at the 2008 Olympics and a gold at the 2009 worlds. Even at Sun's news conference following his 800m victory on Wednesday, he was asked as much about Zhang as he was his own race. One Chinese reporter even mistakenly called him Zhang.
"I think I am myself, and Zhang Lin is himself. I don't need to compare myself with others," he said.
"Yes, Zhang Lin won the gold medal before me, but I'm still young. I still have a lot of opportunities in the future."
Sun is beginning to endear himself to the Chinese media after he was criticised for being in tears after nearly all of his races at the Asian Games, which some saw as a sign of immaturity.
But Terry Rhoads, the managing director of Zou Marketing, a Shanghai-based sports consultancy focused on the China market, said Sun still has a long way to go before he supplants the likes of Yao Ming, the recently retired NBA player; Li Na, the French Open tennis championship winner; or Liu Xiang, the gold-medal-winning hurdler.
"Sun needs to first win Olympic gold, set a world record or two, and generally dominate his sport for two Olympics to have a hope of slipping into the A-list," Rhoads said.
"He also needs to show off some English skills with the foreign media and project some of his personality into interviews. Just giving cliches to the media won't satisfy China's sports fans, who are attracted to the rare superstar Chinese athletes who can be colourful and confident, and be among the world's best in their respective sport."
Sun's competitors definitely believe he is a future star of the sport.
Chad La Tourette, the American, said yesterday that he thinks the young Chinese swimmer has a good chance of breaking Hackett's 10-year-old 1,500m record in today's final.
"It was 10 years ago that Hackett got that record. And he's the all-time great," he said.
"We could be turning a new stone with Sun Yang."
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases
A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.
One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait, Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.
In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.
The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.
And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
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
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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.
Company Profile
Company name: Fine Diner
Started: March, 2020
Co-founders: Sami Elayan, Saed Elayan and Zaid Azzouka
Based: Dubai
Industry: Technology and food delivery
Initial investment: Dh75,000
Investor: Dtec Startupbootcamp
Future plan: Looking to raise $400,000
Total sales: Over 1,000 deliveries in three months
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
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UFC%20FIGHT%20NIGHT%3A%20SAUDI%20ARABIA%20RESULTS
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
