BERLIN // Should you be allowed to compete at the Olympics for Germany if your partner is a neo-Nazi?
The country has been agonising over that question since last Friday when Nadja Drygalla, a member of the women's rowing eight team, left the Games in London early after it emerged that her boyfriend, Michael Fischer, was a leading right-wing extremist in the eastern city of Rostock
Drygalla, 23, vowed on Sunday that she does not share her boyfriend's views. "I must say very clearly that our relationship was very heavily burdened by that and that I said clearly in many discussions that I don't share this view and don't support him in that," she told the dpa news agency on Sunday, fighting back tears.
Her case has triggered a national debate about whether she is being subjected to a witch-hunt or is unfit to represent her country.
Drygalla's defenders say personal relationships and politics should be kept out of sport and that she is being declared guilty by association - a common practice during the Nazi period. Critics argue that even if she disagreed with her partner's views and actions, she evidently tolerated them enough to share her life with him.
Tagesspiegel, a Berlin newspaper, commented that Ms Drygalla "is either unbelievably naive or stupid or infected by Nazi demons herself" and suggested she was far from "a model sportswoman".
Awareness of the threat of neo-Nazism has grown since last November when the nation was shocked to discover the existence of a terrorist cell that had murdered 10 people, most of them Turks, in assassination-style shootings across the country between 2000 and 2007.
The authorities' failure to stop the terrorist trio, called the National Socialist Underground, has led to parliamentary enquiries. For years, police ignored appeals from the victims' families to investigate a possible far-right motive.
Opposition politicians have called for an inquiry into when sports bodies found out about Drygalla's relationship. The German Olympic Sports Confederation said it did not know until last week, but her local rowing association had known for years.
Regional authorities in her home state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania also knew about it at least since last year, when she was pressured into resigning from the police force.
She said she wants to continue competitive rowing but her sponsorship will be reviewed after the Games. There are also renewed calls to force German athletes to declare their commitment to democracy in future.
"If her relationship with a former neo-Nazi was known, Frau Drygalla should not have been selected for the German Olympic team," said Michael Hartmann, a member of parliament for the opposition Social Democratic Party.
But many politicians have rushed to her defence. The interior minister, Thomas de Maiziere, said the uproar was exaggerated. "Must we demand that sportswomen and sportsmen reveal who they are friends with, what they think? Where does one draw the line?" he said.
Michael Fischer, a former competitive rower himself, ran for the regional parliament last year as a candidate for the far-right National Democratic Party, which the domestic intelligence agency says is racist and sympathetic to National Socialism.
He was also a leading figure in the National Socialists Rostock, a radical group. According to public broadcaster NDR, he was part of a group of neo-Nazis who disrupted a memorial ceremony in February for Mehmet Turgut, one of the 10 victims shot dead by the NSU.
Mr Fischer told dpa on Monday that he had decided before the London Olympics "to take the step to stop being a neo-Nazi". He added that he regretted the problems he had caused his partner. But several German newspapers and anti-racism groups question whether he is indeed a reformed character.
While in London to watch Ms Drygalla compete at the Games, he wrote a sarcastic comment on Facebook: "I am delighting in international understanding. Sitting next to blacks and Pakis on the train."
Nikolaus Schneider, the head of the Protestant Church in Germany said Ms Drygalla deserved a second chance but added: "I found it a bit regrettable that Frau Drygalla commented about it so late."
He said that "it is of course right that this debate is taking place now because right-wing extremism is not acceptable".
His views chime with those who argue that Germany as the country that committed the Holocaust should hold itself to the highest standards in the fight against the far right, and that a top athlete's relationship with a known Nazi should not have been ignored.
foreign.desk@thenational.ae
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.
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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: Rent Your Wardrobe
Date started: May 2021
Founder: Mamta Arora
Based: Dubai
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Stage: Bootstrapped, self-funded
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Last 10 NBA champions
2017: Golden State bt Cleveland 4-1
2016: Cleveland bt Golden State 4-3
2015: Golden State bt Cleveland 4-2
2014: San Antonio bt Miami 4-1
2013: Miami bt San Antonio 4-3
2012: Miami bt Oklahoma City 4-1
2011: Dallas bt Miami 4-2
2010: Los Angeles Lakers bt Boston 4-3
2009: Los Angeles Lakers bt Orlando 4-1
2008: Boston bt Los Angeles Lakers 4-2
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
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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Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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.
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.
Surianah's top five jazz artists
Billie Holliday: for the burn and also the way she told stories.
Thelonius Monk: for his earnestness.
Duke Ellington: for his edge and spirituality.
Louis Armstrong: his legacy is undeniable. He is considered as one of the most revolutionary and influential musicians.
Terence Blanchard: very political - a lot of jazz musicians are making protest music right now.
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
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
The%20specs
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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UAE players with central contracts
Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Adnan Mufti, Mohammed Usman, Ghulam Shabbir, Ahmed Raza, Qadeer Ahmed, Amir Hayat, Mohammed Naveed and Imran Haider.
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The Abu Dhabi Awards explained:
What are the awards? They honour anyone who has made a contribution to life in Abu Dhabi.
Are they open to only Emiratis? The awards are open to anyone, regardless of age or nationality, living anywhere in the world.
When do nominations close? The process concludes on December 31.
How do I nominate someone? Through the website.
When is the ceremony? The awards event will take place early next year.
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
