ABU DHABI // The organisers of the round-the-world Volvo Ocean Race have revealed the logistical complexities of making sure the race village was open on time to welcome competitors.
The yachts began arriving in the capital on December 13 after completing the second leg of the race from Cape Town in South Africa.
They will stay here until January 3, before setting sail for Sanya in China.
But containers with all the equipment for the race village on the Corniche Breakwater have taken a different route, being shipped directly from the starting point in Alicante, Spain and bypassing entirely the South African stop-off.
Because the racing yachts are much quicker than any transport ship, there are two different sets of components for the race villages.
These then leapfrog each other, from port to port, to ensure the racing village is ready for the yachts when they make a stop.
Sean Bradley, the marketing director at logistics company Gulf Agency Company, said route one started in Alicante and the next stop was Abu Dhabi, while route two began in Cape Town and bypassed the capital on its way to China.
“The boats go faster than any container vessel. So by the time they pack up, and they completely remove all of the pavilions from Alicante, they will not be able to catch up with the racing boats before Cape Town,” he said.
“So they have to have two different sets of equipment and they basically leapfrog each other around the world for nine months, until they reach Gothenburg at the end of June in 2015.”
In total there are 240 containers of material used to construct the race village pavilions, with half of these being set up in each stopoff at a time.
The process of building a single pavilion in the village takes about 10 to 12 days, Mr Bradley said.
“Some of the pavilions and race villages are different sizes, they take a little bit of a different time to put up and then take down again.
“We have to have the material arrive almost exactly the same time according to the schedule. It will then come by container to the race village and then they will take them out of the containers and start to build the pavilions,” he said.
The Volvo pavilion has to arrive first, because it is the biggest and the most difficult to construct.
“It’s very futuristic. It has got fibre optic cables, a fantastic light show inside and it’s almost like a small advanced cinema,” said Mr Bradley.
“It has got a stage where they do some shows and I think that they can hold more than 300 people in this pavilion.”
Mr Bradley said once the competitors sail out of Abu Dhabi, the equipment will be shipped out to Auckland in New Zealand for the fourth stopover of the race.
“The first air freight containers will depart immediately after the race boats on January 3, and within three and a half days 60 per cent of the race village will leave for Auckland by sea freight.”
Lukas Jonsson, an on-ground team manager for the race, said: “Between our travelling colleagues from specialist yachting and sailing events experts GAC Pindar and our colleagues at GAC Abu Dhabi, we had 11 permanent staff working round-the-clock to make sure the whole operation was completed without a glitch and we’re proud that our efforts ensured that the Abu Dhabi race village opened on time.”
The 12th round-the-world race started in Alicante on October 11 and will finish in Gothenburg, Sweden in June next year.
aalkhoori@thenational.ae
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
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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
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
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*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
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- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
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A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
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Ain Dubai in numbers
126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure
1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch
16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.
9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.
5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place
192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
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Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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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THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
THE BIO
Age: 30
Favourite book: The Power of Habit
Favourite quote: "The world is full of good people, if you cannot find one, be one"
Favourite exercise: The snatch
Favourite colour: Blue
A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
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Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
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What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
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
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if you go
The flights
Direct flights from the UAE to the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu, are available with Air Arabia, (www.airarabia.com) Fly Dubai (www.flydubai.com) or Etihad (www.etihad.com) from Dh1,200 return including taxes. The trek described here started from Jomson, but there are many other start and end point variations depending on how you tailor your trek. To get to Jomson from Kathmandu you must first fly to the lake-side resort town of Pokhara with either Buddha Air (www.buddhaair.com) or Yeti Airlines (www.yetiairlines.com). Both charge around US$240 (Dh880) return. From Pokhara there are early morning flights to Jomson with Yeti Airlines or Simrik Airlines (www.simrikairlines.com) for around US$220 (Dh800) return.
The trek
Restricted area permits (US$500 per person) are required for trekking in the Upper Mustang area. The challenging Meso Kanto pass between Tilcho Lake and Jomson should not be attempted by those without a lot of mountain experience and a good support team. An excellent trekking company with good knowledge of Upper Mustang, the Annaurpuna Circuit and Tilcho Lake area and who can help organise a version of the trek described here is the Nepal-UK run Snow Cat Travel (www.snowcattravel.com). Prices vary widely depending on accommodation types and the level of assistance required.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Normcore explained
Something of a fashion anomaly, normcore is essentially a celebration of the unremarkable. The term was first popularised by an article in New York magazine in 2014 and has been dubbed “ugly”, “bland’ and "anti-style" by fashion writers. It’s hallmarks are comfort, a lack of pretentiousness and neutrality – it is a trend for those who would rather not stand out from the crowd. For the most part, the style is unisex, favouring loose silhouettes, thrift-shop threads, baseball caps and boyish trainers. It is important to note that normcore is not synonymous with cheapness or low quality; there are high-fashion brands, including Parisian label Vetements, that specialise in this style. Embraced by fashion-forward street-style stars around the globe, it’s uptake in the UAE has been relatively slow.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
In numbers
1,000 tonnes of waste collected daily:
- 800 tonnes converted into alternative fuel
- 150 tonnes to landfill
- 50 tonnes sold as scrap metal
800 tonnes of RDF replaces 500 tonnes of coal
Two conveyor lines treat more than 350,000 tonnes of waste per year
25 staff on site
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Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
