On a leafy boulevard in downtown Havana, a man is beating himself with a sledgehammer, on his wrists, elbows and forearms, drawing a crowd of passers-by who gather to film the spectacle with their phones.
What shocks the crowd is not the apparent self-mutilation, but rather the fact that he appears to come away unscathed.
Cuban "Ironman" Lino Tomasen said he once aspired to be the next Mike Tyson.
Tomasen trained to become a professional boxer by subjecting himself to millions of blows with the hammer, and eventually moving from the Caribbean island to fight in Mexico City.
"I had 27 matches won by knockout, but I retired because in the last of them I fractured the skull [of my opponent] and he died instantly," he said in Havana.
"I gave away all the money I made in my fights to his family. I vowed never to fight again."
Tomasen, 32, estimated that he gave the family more than $100,000, a huge amount of money for most Cubans.
He has since written off fame and fortune, and makes a far more modest living on the streets of Havana and nearby beach communities, collecting tips from impromptu shows.
On a recent sultry summer morning, Tomasen chewed on a half-smoked cigar and amazed a crowd by doing push-ups on his bent wrists with a full-grown man on his back.
Then he returned to beating himself with his hammer, pounding every joint in his arm to the winces of onlookers.
"It's all real, nothing fabricated," said Edward Carbonell, who watched Tomasen in awe. "He did some push-ups with me on his back."
Tomasen said he was content now to serve as an inspiration for those who strive to break barriers and had no regrets in leaving behind a career in boxing.
"They have offered me thousands, millions of dollars to get back into it, because they know my potential that I have, and I have always said no," he said.
"I want to be remembered as someone who pushed the limits of what was possible."
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Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
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Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
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Brown/Black belt finals
3pm: 49kg female: Mayssa Bastos (BRA) v Thamires Aquino (BRA)
3.07pm: 56kg male: Hiago George (BRA) v Carlos Alberto da Silva (BRA)
3.14pm: 55kg female: Amal Amjahid (BEL) v Bianca Basilio (BRA)
3.21pm: 62kg male: Gabriel de Sousa (BRA) v Joao Miyao (BRA)
3.28pm: 62kg female: Beatriz Mesquita (BRA) v Ffion Davies (GBR)
3.35pm: 69kg male: Isaac Doederlein (BRA) v Paulo Miyao (BRA)
3.42pm: 70kg female: Thamara Silva (BRA) v Alessandra Moss (AUS)
3.49pm: 77kg male: Oliver Lovell (GBR) v Tommy Langarkar (NOR)
3.56pm: 85kg male: Faisal Al Ketbi (UAE) v Rudson Mateus Teles (BRA)
4.03pm: 90kg female: Claire-France Thevenon (FRA) v Gabreili Passanha (BRA)
4.10pm: 94kg male: Adam Wardzinski (POL) v Kaynan Duarte (BRA)
4.17pm: 110kg male: Yahia Mansoor Al Hammadi (UAE) v Joao Rocha (BRA
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
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Mobile phone packages comparison
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
