The arrival of Teemu Taruvuori and Matias Posio in the capital marks a new era for ice hockey in the country.
Flown in from Finland, the pair have been charged with transforming the UAE ice hockey team into a force to be reckoned with in on the international stage.
Having qualified for the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championship Division III qualifiers, being held in Athens next April - the first Arab or developing Asian country to do so - the national team are on a mission to develop and improve standards of both senior and junior ice hockey in the UAE.
Taruvuori and Posio are part of this plan. Based at the Zayed Sports City ice rink, they will be working closely with the Abu Dhabi Ice Hockey Club (ADIHC) and the UAE team on skills and technique training, conditioning and nutrition.
The coaches will also work with ADIHC on their junior development programme - which has already seen youngsters from Abu Dhabi and Al Ain attend junior summer training camps in each city.
Recommended by the IIHF, the Finnish coaches are part of a sport and leisure management degree run by the Sports Institute of Finland, Vierumäki - both are in the capital as part of the final stage of the course.
With the Asian Cup and IIHF World Championship qualifiers coming up fast, Taruvuori and Posio aim to raise the level of skill and professionalism in the Emirates - ensuring they are contenders in 2010.
"I was surprised by the level of skill here. The level varies a lot, but there are some really good players already so that's a good start," said Taruvuori.
"All the players are really motivated too, which makes our job mush easier, they really want to learn and improve."
Both coaches come from a competitive background. "I played for 15 years and then quit because I had almost broken everything you could break," said Taruvuori.
"I was playing in the highest junior level you can play in - the year after I quit I would have been in the men's senior level. I was disappointed not to continue playing, but there were many crashes and injuries. Now I love coaching."
Launching a men's league is a key target, said Posio - who represented the Finnish junior team.
"Bringing more professionalism and team emphasis is the main challenge here, building a structure and making them into a professional team. It is not something they have had here before, but they are motivated to achieve this," he said.
"If we get the men's league going - which is due to start in September - we want to get a good season under us and get the players playing and competing all the time, raise the level of fitness and skills, and to build up the structure."
Both have been involved in coaching youngsters at the junior ice hockey summer camp, hoping to unearth future talent, since June 10.
"It has been a very good start, they are very enthusiastic and we have many good skaters," said Posio.
"Hopefully we will have more schools involved in the future and have bigger camps.
"The kids love to do it. It is a very good step in the right direction. Hopefully if we do good with this camp the word will spread and more kids will want to be involved."
Taruvuori believes they have already spotted a few youngsters with potential.
"We have scouted the best skaters from each age group. We have 10 good skaters who are showing talent," he said. "After the summer camp I hope we will have found more. They seem really motivated."
zgriffiths@thenational.ae
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
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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HOW TO WATCH
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A new relationship with the old country
Treaty of Friendship between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates
The United kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates; Considering that the United Arab Emirates has assumed full responsibility as a sovereign and independent State; Determined that the long-standing and traditional relations of close friendship and cooperation between their peoples shall continue; Desiring to give expression to this intention in the form of a Treaty Friendship; Have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE 1 The relations between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates shall be governed by a spirit of close friendship. In recognition of this, the Contracting Parties, conscious of their common interest in the peace and stability of the region, shall: (a) consult together on matters of mutual concern in time of need; (b) settle all their disputes by peaceful means in conformity with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
ARTICLE 2 The Contracting Parties shall encourage education, scientific and cultural cooperation between the two States in accordance with arrangements to be agreed. Such arrangements shall cover among other things: (a) the promotion of mutual understanding of their respective cultures, civilisations and languages, the promotion of contacts among professional bodies, universities and cultural institutions; (c) the encouragement of technical, scientific and cultural exchanges.
ARTICLE 3 The Contracting Parties shall maintain the close relationship already existing between them in the field of trade and commerce. Representatives of the Contracting Parties shall meet from time to time to consider means by which such relations can be further developed and strengthened, including the possibility of concluding treaties or agreements on matters of mutual concern.
ARTICLE 4 This Treaty shall enter into force on today’s date and shall remain in force for a period of ten years. Unless twelve months before the expiry of the said period of ten years either Contracting Party shall have given notice to the other of its intention to terminate the Treaty, this Treaty shall remain in force thereafter until the expiry of twelve months from the date on which notice of such intention is given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned have signed this Treaty.
DONE in duplicate at Dubai the second day of December 1971AD, corresponding to the fifteenth day of Shawwal 1391H, in the English and Arabic languages, both texts being equally authoritative.
Signed
Geoffrey Arthur Sheikh Zayed
The Limehouse Golem
Director: Juan Carlos Medina
Cast: Olivia Cooke, Bill Nighy, Douglas Booth
Three stars
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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
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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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.
What is hepatitis?
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver, which can lead to fibrosis (scarring), cirrhosis or liver cancer.
There are 5 main hepatitis viruses, referred to as types A, B, C, D and E.
Hepatitis C is mostly transmitted through exposure to infective blood. This can occur through blood transfusions, contaminated injections during medical procedures, and through injecting drugs. Sexual transmission is also possible, but is much less common.
People infected with hepatitis C experience few or no symptoms, meaning they can live with the virus for years without being diagnosed. This delay in treatment can increase the risk of significant liver damage.
There are an estimated 170 million carriers of Hepatitis C around the world.
The virus causes approximately 399,000 fatalities each year worldwide, according to WHO.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The%20specs
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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
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5