Faris al Sultan, the Al Ain-based triathlete, will spearhead the four-strong Abu Dhabi team at the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii tomorrow.
Al Sultan won the World Championship in 2005 and finished in third place in 2004 and 2006. The German is the founder of the Team Abu Dhabi Triathlon and he will captain a quartet that features Australia's Pete Jacobs, Germany's Andi Bocherer and the UK's Rachel Joyce. The event includes a 3.8km swim, a 180km bike ride and a 42km run.
After suffering a stress fracture at the Abu Dhabi International Triathlon in March, al Sultan, 32, is not over-confident. "First of all I will hopefully arrive in Kona without any health problems," he said. "So I think I can improve on my 10th place of 2009. "But you never know how the race will go. I'm not sure if I can repeat the victory of 2005 but my chances of getting under the top 10 are really solid.
"My running has improved, compared with last year and since I was only five minutes from top five and 11 minutes from first place in 2009 I hope to make up some places. My personal goal is a top-five result. Al Sultan has been preparing for the big event in California. "I started a good build-up in winter and spring in Al Ain," he said. "Unfortunately, I was injured in March. "I got back relatively fast after the stress fracture had healed but a seven-week break from running wasn't exactly beneficial to my training plan.
"Fortunately, I could swim and ride the bike. Two Olympic distance races brought me back into the game and they went well. My season highlight was winning the inaugural Ironman in Regensburg. "Last year I developed a training routine which I will also follow this year. Part of the routine consists of a challenging bike ride, as well as a long run with race-specific elements. "The uniqueness of this triathlon is that nowhere in the world is there a stronger starting field combined with the history and enigma of this event. Hawaii is 'the race' in long-distance triathlon."
Al Sultan plans to leave the island of Kona, where the event is being held, and return to the UAE to begin preparation for the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge in December. "I will leave the island pretty soon after the race," he said. "It's not that I don't like it but I want to spend some time at home. "The following four weeks are recovery weeks and I will start to prepare for the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge.
"After we had to drop out in 2009, the main goal is to cross the finish line. As running through the desert, mountain biking, climbing and canoeing are the disciplines, I have to practice some of them more, to get used to all the equipment."
* Agency
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)
Third-place play-off: New Zealand v Wales, Friday, 1pm
The specs
Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder
Power: 220 and 280 horsepower
Torque: 350 and 360Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
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Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada
Father of two sons, grandfather of six
Plays golf once a week
Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family
Walks for an hour every morning
Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India
2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business
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
ALL THE RESULTS
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Kaan Ofli (TUR) bt Walid Laidi (ALG) by TKO.
Lightweight
Abdulla Al Bousheiri (KUW) bt Leandro Martins (BRA) by TKO.
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Ahmad Labban (LEB) bt Sofiane Benchohra (ALG) by TKO.
Bantamweight
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Mohammed Yahya (UAE) bt Glen Ranillo (PHI) by TKO round 1.
Lightweight
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Featherweight title bout
Romando Dy (PHI) v Lee Do-gyeom (KOR) by KO round 1.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
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