Tennis players don't typically have much time on their hands to pursue other experiences. The season is long, the travel is wide and the space between campaigns – around one month – does not lend itself to much more than a couple of weeks holiday to recharge, before pre-season gets underway.
This past break was vastly different. After the rescheduled French Open concluded on October 5, the WTA Tour put on just two more tournaments, in the Czech city of Ostrava and Linz in Austria, after the Asian Autumn swing was cancelled into response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Garbine Muguruza played in neither tournament, so her campaign came to an end after her third-round exit at Roland Garros. With the additional time on her calendar, the Spanish two-time Grand Slam champion took the opportunity to do something a little bit different: she joined the Civil Guard.
During her "experimental" week, Muguruza took part in helicopter rescue missions, went cave diving, hiked with the mountain brigade, and participated in self-defence classes, sharing much of the experience with her 800,000 Instagram followers.
"I’ve always wanted to do military training, ever since I was a kid, but the timing was never right with playing tennis," Muguruza said. "It was an incredible week. We went to Mallorca to train there and more than the activities we did, which were incredible, just sharing with them the kind of job that they do – they don’t get any awards or trophies – it was such an experience. I loved it."
But there was one area that proved particularly sobering as Muguruza spent time with the coast guard and witnessed people making dangerous sea crossings.
"It was quite hard because you see many people in need," she said. "I experienced many aspects of [the Civil Guard's] job and I found this one pretty tough. I love all the adventure stuff but there is an ugly truth that they have to face and it really opened my eyes."
After her time with the Civil Guard, Muguruza started a "longer than usual" pre-season to prepare for the 2021 campaign – her 10th on the WTA Tour.
Her season begins in both new and unique surroundings. The pandemic still looms large and has forced the WTA into creating a special calendar to get the year started in a safe and efficient way.
Kicking off this special calendar is the inaugural Abu Dhabi WTA Women’s Tennis Open. Starting on Wednesday and taking place at Zayed Sports City International Tennis Centre, the Abu Dhabi tournament will feature four of the world's top 10. Muguruza, ranked No 15, is seeded fifth and will face France's Kristina Mladenovic in the first round.
"I'm happy to be back at a new tournament because it’s been a long time since I’ve been at a new tournament," Muguruza said.
Beyond experiencing a new event, the 27-year-old former world No 1 is looking forward to returning to competitive action after so much time away from the court. However, Muguruza insists that the break from tennis has given her the chance to reflect.
"I couldn’t do my job – to be in competitions, to play on big courts and having butterflies in the stomach, and I learned that when you’re on the go, you don’t really think about it," she said.
"When you stop you realise that you miss it. But I also really appreciated the time at home so I learned that I didn’t miss tennis that much.
"Many people were sad that they had to be at home and couldn’t go out, but I was like ‘this is great!’ It was good I was able to do and explore different things."
After exploring "different things" with the Civil Guard, now it's back to the day job for Muguruza, starting in Abu Dhabi.
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Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
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Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
How to help
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Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
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Price: On request
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
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All matches start at 10am, and will be played in Abu Dhabi
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3rd ODI, Tuesday, January 12
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- Flexible work arrangements
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- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
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Available: Now
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Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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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What is a Ponzi scheme?
A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
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Christopher Celenza,
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Game Of Thrones Season Seven: A Bluffers Guide
Want to sound on message about the biggest show on television without actually watching it? Best not to get locked into the labyrinthine tales of revenge and royalty: as Isaac Hempstead Wright put it, all you really need to know from now on is that there’s going to be a huge fight between humans and the armies of undead White Walkers.
The season ended with a dragon captured by the Night King blowing apart the huge wall of ice that separates the human world from its less appealing counterpart. Not that some of the humans in Westeros have been particularly appealing, either.
Anyway, the White Walkers are now free to cause any kind of havoc they wish, and as Liam Cunningham told us: “Westeros may be zombie land after the Night King has finished.” If the various human factions don’t put aside their differences in season 8, we could be looking at The Walking Dead: The Medieval Years.
The Rub of Time: Bellow, Nabokov, Hitchens, Travolta, Trump and Other Pieces 1986-2016
Martin Amis,
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