Egyptian swimmer Omar Sayed Shaaban, 21, who has broken the record for the highest out-of-water jump while wearing a monofin, arrives for a training session at Cairo Stadium Swimming Pools, Egypt. Reuters

Like a fish (jumping) out of water: Egyptian record breaker shows how it's done



Athletes are constantly trying to reach new heights - some of them literally.

Take a look at Egypt's Omar Sayed Shaaban, who recently entered the Guinness World Records for the highest out-of-water jump while wearing a monofin, reaching a remarkable 2.30 metres.

The 21-year-old, who trains at Cairo Stadium Swimming Pools, broke a record that had stood for nine years.

The civil engineering student took the record from Soliman Sayed, who is not only a fellow Egyptian, but comes from Ismailia, the same city as Shabaan.

Shabaan is also regarded as one of the world’s fastest sprinters underwater.

He trains three times a day, two of them in water, with a gym session in-between, and can cross 50 metres underwater on one breath in only 15.6 seconds, and 100 metres in 35.5 seconds while wearing a snorkel, according to Guinness World Records.

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How to invest in gold

Investors can tap into the gold price by purchasing physical jewellery, coins and even gold bars, but these need to be stored safely and possibly insured.

A cheaper and more straightforward way to benefit from gold price growth is to buy an exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Most advisers suggest sticking to “physical” ETFs. These hold actual gold bullion, bars and coins in a vault on investors’ behalf. Others do not hold gold but use derivatives to track the price instead, adding an extra layer of risk. The two biggest physical gold ETFs are SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Gold Trust.

Another way to invest in gold’s success is to buy gold mining stocks, but Mr Gravier says this brings added risks and can be more volatile. “They have a serious downside potential should the price consolidate.”

Mr Kyprianou says gold and gold miners are two different asset classes. “One is a commodity and the other is a company stock, which means they behave differently.”

Mining companies are a business, susceptible to other market forces, such as worker availability, health and safety, strikes, debt levels, and so on. “These have nothing to do with gold at all. It means that some companies will survive, others won’t.”

By contrast, when gold is mined, it just sits in a vault. “It doesn’t even rust, which means it retains its value,” Mr Kyprianou says.

You may already have exposure to gold miners in your portfolio, say, through an international ETF or actively managed mutual fund.

You could spread this risk with an actively managed fund that invests in a spread of gold miners, with the best known being BlackRock Gold & General. It is up an incredible 55 per cent over the past year, and 240 per cent over five years. As always, past performance is no guide to the future.

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Tank warfare

Lt Gen Erik Petersen, deputy chief of programs, US Army, has argued it took a “three decade holiday” on modernising tanks. 

“There clearly remains a significant armoured heavy ground manoeuvre threat in this world and maintaining a world class armoured force is absolutely vital,” the general said in London last week.

“We are developing next generation capabilities to compete with and deter adversaries to prevent opportunism or miscalculation, and, if necessary, defeat any foe decisively.”

Business Insights
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Section 375

Cast: Akshaye Khanna, Richa Chadha, Meera Chopra & Rahul Bhat

Director: Ajay Bahl

Producers: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak & SCIPL

Rating: 3.5/5