DUBAI // As Ryan Lochte and Cesar Cielo relaxed into their first-class seats bound for lands far away, they could have spared a thought for young Velimir Stjepanovic.
The Dubai-based 17-year-old, rather than being rewarded with a break for his performances at last week's Fina Short Course World Championships where he represented Serbia, was instead back in the pool yesterday competing at the Hamilton Swim Gala at GEMS World Academy.
Stjepanovic had competed in six events over five days at the Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Sports Complex in Dubai, impressing in the 50-metre and 100m freestyle where he finished among the top 30 per cent of the 120-plus swimmers who entered both races.
But yesterday he was competing in three more races and will take part in another three today.
"I'm feeling OK, but I'm sure I'll feel a little tired by tomorrow," he said, shortly before powering to victories in the 50m and 100m free as well as the 100m butterfly.
"The World Championships was a brilliant event and I was up against some really powerful competition. It was a huge learning experience for me and it really showed how much of a gap there is between the juniors and the seniors."
Stjepanovic finished only 1.94secs behind Brazil's Cielo in the heats for the 50m free, but he is under no illusions that he must continue his intense training.
"I spoke to lots of coaches and many of the people I met at the Youth Olympics," said Stjepanovic, who won one silver and one bronze at this year's inaugural Games in Singapore. "I'm happy with my performances, but I know that I have to continue to work very hard in the future."
Andrew Chetcuti is another UAE-based swimmer to enjoy the honour of representing his country at Dubai's first Short Course Worlds. The 18-year-old, who trains with Libra Elite Swimming Club, was born in Malta and competed in six events last week, breaking several of his country's national records.
In the men's 100m free, Chetcuti lowered his own mark by 1.05secs before, together with Maltese teammates Mark Sammut and Andrea and Neil Agius, smashing their 4x100 medley record by a massive 18.8secs.
Lochte, who won six gold medals in Dubai, was named best male of the championships while Spain's Mireia Belmonte Garcia was the best female athlete with three golds and one silver.
In all, 61 championship records were broken during the five-day meet as well as four world records, two by Lochte in the 200m and 400m individual medley, one by China's women's 4x200m freestyle relay team and the fourth by Russia's men's 4x200m freestyle relay team.
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
The Saga Continues
Wu-Tang Clan
(36 Chambers / Entertainment One)
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
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Huroob Ezterari
Director: Ahmed Moussa
Starring: Ahmed El Sakka, Amir Karara, Ghada Adel and Moustafa Mohammed
Three stars
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The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg
Real Madrid (2) v Bayern Munich (1)
Where: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
When: 10.45pm, Tuesday
Watch Live: beIN Sports HD
The biogs
Name: Zinah Madi
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Nationality: Syrian
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Los Angeles Galaxy 2 Manchester United 5
Galaxy: Dos Santos (79', 88')
United: Rashford (2', 20'), Fellaini (26'), Mkhitaryan (67'), Martial (72')
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Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
Eyasses squad
Charlie Preston (captain) – goal shooter/ goalkeeper (Dubai College)
Arushi Holt (vice-captain) – wing defence / centre (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Olivia Petricola (vice-captain) – centre / wing attack (Dubai English Speaking College)
Isabel Affley – goalkeeper / goal defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Jemma Eley – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Alana Farrell-Morton – centre / wing / defence / wing attack (Nord Anglia International School)
Molly Fuller – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Caitlin Gowdy – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Noorulain Hussain – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai College)
Zahra Hussain-Gillani – goal defence / goalkeeper (British School Al Khubairat)
Claire Janssen – goal shooter / goal attack (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Eliza Petricola – wing attack / centre (Dubai English Speaking College)
AGL AWARDS
Golden Ball - best Emirati player: Khalfan Mubarak (Al Jazira)
Golden Ball - best foreign player: Igor Coronado (Sharjah)
Golden Glove - best goalkeeper: Adel Al Hosani (Sharjah)
Best Coach - the leader: Abdulaziz Al Anbari (Sharjah)
Fans' Player of the Year: Driss Fetouhi (Dibba)
Golden Boy - best young player: Ali Saleh (Al Wasl)
Best Fans of the Year: Sharjah
Goal of the Year: Michael Ortega (Baniyas)
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
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COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
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Abu Dhabi GP starting grid
1 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
2 Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)
3 Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
4 Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
5 Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull)
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
7 Romain Grosjean (Haas)
8 Charles Leclerc (Sauber)
9 Esteban Ocon (Force India)
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Renault)
11 Carlos Sainz (Renault)
12 Marcus Ericsson (Sauber)
13 Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
14 Sergio Perez (Force India)
15 Fernando Alonso (McLaren)
16 Brendon Hartley (Toro Rosso)
17 Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso)
18 Stoffe Vandoorne (McLaren)
19 Sergey Sirotkin (Williams)
20 Lance Stroll (Williams)
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SEMI-FINAL
Monterrey 1
Funes Mori (14)
Liverpool 2
Keita (11), Firmino (90 1)
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ICC Awards for 2021
MEN
Cricketer of the Year – Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan)
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan)
ODI Cricketer of the Year – Babar Azam (Pakistan)
Test Cricketer of the Year – Joe Root (England)
WOMEN
Cricketer of the Year – Smriti Mandhana (India)
ODI Cricketer of the Year – Lizelle Lee (South Africa)
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Tammy Beaumont (England)
