Shortly after winning the Cincinnati Open title, Jannik Sinner was cleared of wrongdoing having failed two drug tests in March. AFP
Shortly after winning the Cincinnati Open title, Jannik Sinner was cleared of wrongdoing having failed two drug tests in March. AFP
Shortly after winning the Cincinnati Open title, Jannik Sinner was cleared of wrongdoing having failed two drug tests in March. AFP
Shortly after winning the Cincinnati Open title, Jannik Sinner was cleared of wrongdoing having failed two drug tests in March. AFP

Jannik Sinner's failed test saga splits opinion and dominates build-up to US Open


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Jannik Sinner will arrive in New York on Monday as the men's top seed and one of the leading contenders to win his second Grand Slam title at the US Open. He also does so at the centre of a doping storm that has split the opinion of the tennis world and is now dominating the build-up to the season's fourth and final major tournament.

It was announced on Tuesday that world No 1 Sinner tested positive during Indian Wells in March for low levels of the banned substance clostebol, a steroid that can be used to aid in building muscle mass. A second test was administered eight days later that also tested positive for the same substance.

The 23-year-old Italian was handed an immediate provisional suspension but was allowed to continue playing having successfully challenged the decision. Sinner maintained that he had been contaminated by his physiotherapist Giacomo Naldi, who had applied an over-the-counter spray, which contained clostebol, to a cut on his own hand before carrying out treatments on Sinner.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted Sinner's explanation that he had been inadvertently contaminated, with an independent tribunal clearing the Australian Open champion of fault or negligence. A statement from the ITIA revealed less than a billionth of a gram of clostebol was detected in the tests.

Sinner did not escape completely punishment-free as the Italian was stripped of the 400 ranking points he won at Indian Wells and the $325,000 prize money.

“I will now put this challenging and deeply unfortunate period behind me," Sinner said in a statement. "I will continue to do everything I can to ensure I comply with the ITIA’s anti-doping programme and I have a team around me that are meticulous in their own compliance.”

Sinner may be happy to move on, but some of his peers are not. Former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios suggested he is not buying the explanation and was left bemused at the lack of a lengthy suspension.

“Ridiculous - whether it was accidental or planned. You get tested twice with a banned (steroid) substance ... you should be gone for 2 years,” Kyrgios wrote on X. “Your performance was enhanced. Massage cream ... Yeah nice.”

Former world No 10 Denis Shapovalov directed his ire at the authorities for a lack of consistency. Perhaps the most famous doping case in tennis history involved Maria Sharapova, one of the sport's biggest stars who in 2016 tested positive for meldonium, a substance that had been recently added to the banned list. On appeal, she was found not to have intentionally doped and was cleared of fault but was still banned for 15 months.

“Can’t imagine what every other player that got banned for contaminated substances is feeling right now,” Shapovalov wrote on X. “Different rules for different players.”

Meanwhile, British player Liam Broady criticised the lack of due process, which allowed Sinner to continue playing for the past five months while the investigation was underway when typically players serve provisional suspensions.

“Whether Sinner was doping or not. This is not right," Broady wrote on X. "Plenty of players go through the same thing and have to wait months or years for their innocence to be declared. Not a good look.”

Sinner did find an ally in John Millman, with the Australian posting on social media: “Before jumping to conclusions, Jannik Sinner had less than a billionth of a gram in his system. I believe him 100 per cent ... maybe we should change threshold [to] cater for contamination."

Jannik Sinner won his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January. EPA
Jannik Sinner won his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January. EPA

It is Broady's point that is most worth addressing. Whether Sinner intentionally doped or not – and, without knowing all the facts, the miniscule amount of detected clostebol suggests he didn't – the Italian has been free to compete, collect ranking points, and earn money when many others have served bans in similar situations.

Between the failed tests at Indian Wells in March and the conclusion of the investigation this week, Sinner has played eight ATP tournaments, participated in the Olympic Games, won three titles, collected 4,500 ATP points, and earned almost $4.5 million. Without those points, the Italian would have slipped to world No 5 and would enter next week's US Open as the fifth seed, theoretically handing him a more challenging route to the final.

Instead, it would have been world No 2 Novak Djokovic and third-ranked Carlos Alcaraz – separated by just 100 points – who would have been jostling for the top ranking ahead of the US Open. Spare a thought also for Grigor Dimitrov, Hubert Hurkacz, and Frances Tiafoe, who were respectively beaten in the Miami, Halle, and Cincinnati finals by Sinner, denying them trophies and precious ranking points shortly before Grand Slams.

The ATP will, of course, not want this saga to be the main focus in the lead-up to the US Open as a season that has witnessed a clear changing of the guard, centrally involving Sinner, edges towards its conclusion. However, Sinner's perceived preferential treatment has shone a renewed light on the alleged inconsistencies of the ITIA, and given the Italian's status as the world's best player, it will be an unwelcome distraction in New York.

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Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters

The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.

 Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.

A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.

The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.

The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.

Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.

Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment

But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.

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The more serious side of specialty coffee

While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.

The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.

Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”

One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.

Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms. 

Jetour T1 specs

Engine: 2-litre turbocharged

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VEZEETA PROFILE

Date started: 2012

Founder: Amir Barsoum

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: HealthTech / MedTech

Size: 300 employees

Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)

Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC

The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Trailblazer

Price, base / as tested Dh99,000 / Dh132,000

Engine 3.6L V6

Transmission: Six-speed automatic

Power 275hp @ 6,000rpm

Torque 350Nm @ 3,700rpm

Fuel economy combined 12.2L / 100km

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
While you're here
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Challenge Cup result:

1. UAE 3 faults
2. Ireland 9 faults
3. Brazil 11 faults
4. Spain 15 faults
5. Great Britain 17 faults
6. New Zealand 20 faults
7. Italy 26 faults

2.0

Director: S Shankar

Producer: Lyca Productions; presented by Dharma Films

Cast: Rajnikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson, Sudhanshu Pandey

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Defence review at a glance

• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”

• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems

• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.

• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%

• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade

• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels

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Rainbow

Kesha

(Kemosabe)

Episode list:

Ep1: A recovery like no other- the unevenness of the economic recovery 

Ep2: PCR and jobs - the future of work - new trends and challenges 

Ep3: The recovery and global trade disruptions - globalisation post-pandemic 

Ep4: Inflation- services and goods - debt risks 

Ep5: Travel and tourism 

Women & Power: A Manifesto

Mary Beard

Profile Books and London Review of Books 

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Our legal consultants

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

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

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BeIN Sports currently has the rights to show

- Champions League

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- Italian, French and Scottish leagues

- Wimbledon and other tennis majors

- Formula One

- Rugby Union - Six Nations and European Cups

 

The specs: Fenyr SuperSport

Price, base: Dh5.1 million

Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six

Transmission: Seven-speed automatic

Power: 800hp @ 7,100pm

Torque: 980Nm @ 4,000rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 13.5L / 100km

Squad

Ali Kasheif, Salim Rashid, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Ali Mabkhout, Omar Abdulrahman, Mohammed Al Attas, Abdullah Ramadan, Zayed Al Ameri (Al Jazira), Mohammed Al Shamsi, Hamdan Al Kamali, Mohammed Barghash, Khalil Al Hammadi (Al Wahda), Khalid Essa, Mohammed Shaker, Ahmed Barman, Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Al Hassan Saleh, Majid Suroor (Sharjah) Walid Abbas, Ahmed Khalil (Shabab Al Ahli), Tariq Ahmed, Jasim Yaqoub (Al Nasr), Ali Saleh, Ali Salmeen (Al Wasl), Hassan Al Muharami (Baniyas) 

Match info

Australia 580
Pakistan 240 and 335

Result: Australia win by an innings and five runs

Porsche Taycan Turbo specs

Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors

Transmission: two-speed

Power: 671hp

Torque: 1050Nm

Range: 450km

Price: Dh601,800

On sale: now

The candidates

Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive

Ali Azeem, business leader

Tony Booth, professor of education

Lord Browne, former BP chief executive

Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist

Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist

Dr Mark Mann, scientist

Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner

Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister

Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster

 

Milestones on the road to union

1970

October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar. 

December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.

1971

March 1:  Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.

July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.

July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.

August 6:  The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.

August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.

September 3: Qatar becomes independent.

November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.

November 29:  At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.

November 30: Despite  a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa. 

November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties

December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.

December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Which honey takes your fancy?

Al Ghaf Honey

The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year

Sidr Honey

The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest

Samar Honey

The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments

Updated: August 21, 2024, 10:56 AM`