ABU DHABI // Hundreds of spectators lined the Corniche on Friday afternoon to cheer home the riders on the second stage of theAbu Dhabi Tour.
Britain’s Mark Cavendish edged ahead of Italian Elia Viviani to win the stage and with it take the overall lead.
Abu Dhabi Tour ambassador Cavendish completed the stage in two hours, 32 minutes and 21 seconds. He prevailed in a tight sprint finish over Viviani with another Italian, Andrea Guardini, finishing third.
“I’m happy with that,” Cavendish said.
“We wanted to win today. I felt good. It was a very chaotic sprint in which I lost my lead-out in the second-last corner. I thought, ‘that’s it’, but we got back on.”
Spectators stood for hours along sections of the 115-kilometre route that started at Emirates Palace, passed several capital landmarks before finishing at the marina on the Corniche,.
“It was impressive to see the buildings, the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and the towers and to finish in Al Marina,” Cavendish said.
Cycling fans Michael Smith, 27, and Chris Johnson, 36, were thrilled to watch Cavendish win. “He is one of the greatest cyclists, it’s so exciting to see him here,” Mr Smith said.
“The event is well organised and we could see the action on a video screen, too.”
Earvin Tumalad, 25, a Filipino sales co-ordinator, cheered for the two-time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador.
“It’s such a big event that we shouldn’t miss it,” he said. “It’s a good day for cyclists like myself.”
Marc Vanderslyen, 46, stood near the finish line along with his children Noah, 14, Tessa, 10 and Micha, 7, and waved a Belgian flag to support countryman Greg Van Avermaet.
“He’s a gold medallist in the Olympics,” said Mr Vanderslyen, who drove to the capital from Dubai. “Maybe he will win tomorrow.”
Craig Brookestein, 46, operations manager of a sports company who also drove down from Dubai, rooted for Emirati Yousif Mirza.
“He is a UAE national champion who went on to represent the UAE and the Middle East in the Olympics, and he’s a good ambassador for the sport,” he said.
The spectators, many of them enthusiastic cyclists waved UAE flags, and said the race would help to grow the sport in the region.
Organisers described the weather conditions as ideal.
“The large number of spectators here gives us a good feeling about the success of the event so far,” said Aref Al Awani, general secretary of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council.
“The weather is fine, much better than last year. This is a tough race, and we did not want it to be just an entertaining race for the riders. We want it to feel that when they come here, it’s going to be tough and challenging.
“We promise that Stage 3 in Al Ain will also be challenging for all the riders.”
The route took in several of Abu Dhabi’s attractions beginning with Emirates Palace, down Khaleej Al Arabi Road, past the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, winding out into Khalifa City and then to Yas Island, Saadiyat and Reem islands and back into downtown with a finish along the Corniche.
Road closures for the tour did not cause major traffic congestion.
The riders head to Jebel Hafeet and cycle around Al Ain in the 150km stage on Saturday before the race concludes with 26 laps of the Yas Marina Formula One race circuit on Sunday.
rruiz@thenational.ae
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.
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The most expensive investment mistake you will ever make
When is the best time to start saving in a pension? The answer is simple – at the earliest possible moment. The first pound, euro, dollar or dirham you invest is the most valuable, as it has so much longer to grow in value. If you start in your twenties, it could be invested for 40 years or more, which means you have decades for compound interest to work its magic.
“You get growth upon growth upon growth, followed by more growth. The earlier you start the process, the more it will all roll up,” says Chris Davies, chartered financial planner at The Fry Group in Dubai.
This table shows how much you would have in your pension at age 65, depending on when you start and how much you pay in (it assumes your investments grow 7 per cent a year after charges and you have no other savings).
Age
|
$250 a month
|
$500 a month
|
$1,000 a month
|
25
|
$640,829
|
$1,281,657
|
$2,563,315
|
35
|
$303,219
|
$606,439
|
$1,212,877
|
45
|
$131,596
|
$263,191
|
$526,382
|
55
|
$44,351
|
$88,702
|
$177,403
|
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJune%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Alnamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMicrofinance%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E16%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFamily%20offices%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Who is Allegra Stratton?
- Previously worked at The Guardian, BBC’s Newsnight programme and ITV News
- Took up a public relations role for Chancellor Rishi Sunak in April 2020
- In October 2020 she was hired to lead No 10’s planned daily televised press briefings
- The idea was later scrapped and she was appointed spokeswoman for Cop26
- Ms Stratton, 41, is married to James Forsyth, the political editor of The Spectator
- She has strong connections to the Conservative establishment
- Mr Sunak served as best man at her 2011 wedding to Mr Forsyth
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
The five pillars of Islam
Expert advice
“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”
Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles
“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”
Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”
Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
What to watch out for:
Algae, waste coffee grounds and orange peels will be used in the pavilion's walls and gangways
The hulls of three ships will be used for the roof
The hulls will painted to make the largest Italian tricolour in the country’s history
Several pillars more than 20 metres high will support the structure
Roughly 15 tonnes of steel will be used
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More on Palestine-Israeli relations
Ad Astra
Director: James Gray
Stars: Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones
Five out of five stars
TEAMS
US Team
Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth
Justin Thomas, Daniel Berger
Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler
Kevin Kisner, Patrick Reed
Matt Kuchar, Kevin Chappell
Charley Hoffman*, Phil Mickelson*
International Team
Hideki Matsuyama, Jason Day
Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen
Marc Leishman, Charl Schwartzel
Branden Grace, Si Woo Kim
Jhonattan Vegas, Adam Hadwin
Emiliano Grillo*, Anirban Lahiri*
* denotes captain's picks
The%20specs
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How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.