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His Excellency Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad al-Thani paid his first visit to the headquarters of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) in Kuwait Sunday as President. He chaired the 108th meeting of the OCA Executive Board, where the minutes of the previous meeting, held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on January 26, were approved. The Executive Board members also discussed upcoming 2026 Asian Games, including the 2028 Asian Beach Games in the Philippines and the 2030 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Mongolia.**media[417545]**They were also briefed on the latest developments regarding the Afro-Asian Cultural Summit scheduled for March 28 in Kuwait. Sheikh Joaan met with OCA staff and thanked them for their efforts, saying: “I am delighted to be here at the OCA headquarters today. We have a strong team, and each and every one of you is a part of that team. Your hard work is appreciated, especially over the past few years.” He continued: “We have a lot of work ahead of us, and we look forward to achieving even more. We have three Asian Games in 2026, and as the new president, I am confident that everyone here will contribute their expertise to working with all the National Olympic Committees. We have a strong team, but we need to strengthen it further to overcome future challenges together.” 

A visit to Pebble Beach last year helped set up Rory McIlroy for one of the biggest moments of his golf career.McIlroy earned a two-shot victory at the 2025 AT&T Pebble Beach ‌Pro-Am, kickstarting a stellar run that saw him win the ​Players Championship before completing the ‌career Grand Slam by capturing the Green Jacket at the ‌Masters.The 36-year-old ⁠Northern Ireland native ‌is back on the Monterey ‌Peninsula this week to defend his Pebble Beach championship."Obviously last year was a ⁠great way to start the 2025 season," McIlroy said. "Historically I haven't played Pebble Beach that well. I've played OK, but nothing spectacular."I think winning on a golf course that I hadn't won on before, hadn't really contended on before, I feel like it gave me a lot of confidence going into the rest of the season."He added ​of his triumphant performance at Pebble Beach Golf Links that he was pleased with "how in control I was with my ball flight, especially in tough conditions last ‌year on the Saturday. There ⁠was a ​lot of things that I worked on in the offseason that ​I brought with me into here. Yeah, it was a massive confidence boost and obviously then went on to play well in that early part of the season, won at The Players and then obviously into the Masters."Yeah, it was a perfect way to start the year here last year. Hoping for something similar this."An aggressive approach and clutch work on the greens were key to prevailing at Pebble Beach, McIlroy believes."I hit driver a lot, giving myself ‌short irons in," he ‌said of his 2025 strategy. "I think ⁠last year as well, it was probably the best putting performance I've ever ⁠had on poa greens. ⁠I usually come to the West Coast and I struggle a little bit on the poa, and last year I didn't. I holed a lot of putts and that was a big difference."McIlroy finished last season and started this season well, too. After the PGA Tour playoffs concluded, he captured ​the Irish Open, tied for third in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and finished second at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.After tying for 14th at the Australian Open to end 2025, he tied for third and tied for 33rd in two Middle Eastern events to kick off 2026."Game feels in good shape," McIlroy said. "I had two weeks in Dubai to sort of shake the rust off. Played ‌OK, wasn't anything spectacular. ​But I've had two nice weeks at home and done some practice. ... I feel pretty good coming in here." 

Australian surf lifesavers lined the shore of Sydney's Bondi Beach and fell silent Saturday to honour the 15 people shot and killed when gunmen fired into crowds at a Jewish festival by the sea.Scores of rescuers stood by the water's edge along the entire length of the beach, six days after the two alleged assailants carried out one of the deadliest mass shootings in Australia's history.The elder gunman, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, was shot and killed by police.His 24-year-old son Naveed survived and remains in hospital under police guard facing charges including terrorism and 15 murders.Facing the ocean while wearing their red-and-yellow uniforms, the lifeguards observed three minutes of silence.Some cried or hugged each other at the morning ceremony, with a surf lifesaving helicopter hovering overhead, television images showed.Volunteer surf lifesavers across the country, who number more than 200,000, were being asked to join the homage in solidarity with those affected by the Bondi attack before starting their morning patrols.Ocean rescuers wanted to recognise the "tragedy that has unfolded at Bondi while also reflecting on our respect and compassion for the Jewish community targeted by this attack", Bondi's two lifesaving clubs said in a message."We pay respects to those who lost their lives, those who risked their lives, those who worked so hard to save lives, and all of us who will never forget."Lifeguards at Bondi have been widely praised for their courage on the day of the December 14 attack, dragging people to safety, bandaging and resuscitating victims, and pulling panicked swimmers from the waves.A photo shared widely online showed lifeguard Jackson Doolan running barefoot down the road from a neighbouring beach towards the Bondi shooting, carrying a defibrillator to help victims.The local mayor described his actions as "remarkable".Australia will hold today a national day of reflection with the theme "light over darkness" marking a week after the attack started with a minute's silence at 6.47pm (0747 GMT).Flags will fly at half-mast, and Australians are being asked to light a candle in their windows to honour the victims and stand by the Jewish community, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said."Sixty seconds carved out from the noise of daily life, dedicated to 15 Australians who should be with us today," he told reporters Saturday. "It will be a moment of pause to reflect and affirm that hatred and violence will never define us as Australians."Federal and state authorities are talking with Jewish community leaders about establishing a permanent memorial at Bondi Beach, as well as holding a national day of mourning in the new year, Albanese said.The prime minister has announced a suite of national measures to crack down on gun ownership and hate speech, promising stricter federal laws and harsher penalties.Albanese is under pressure from critics who say his centre-left government has not done ⁠enough to curb a surge in antisemitism since the start of the Gaza war.New South Wales Premier Chris Minns outlined plans Saturday for his state to ban "hateful" slogans and symbols, such as Islamic State (IS) group flags, while giving police greater powers."The displaying of these symbols can only be done by someone who's either deranged or has an intention to insult and intimidate and scare," Attorney-General Michael Daley said in a televised media conference in Sydney.A joint counter-terrorism team including police and intelligence services is pursuing a broad investigation into the alleged gunmen's contacts and movements before the shooting.Authorities believe the pair drew inspiration from the IS group.Australian police are investigating whether they met with religious extremists during a visit to the Philippines weeks before the shooting.Detectives carried out raids with search warrants in Australia as recently as Friday, police said, without revealing the locations."We are leaving no stone unturned in Australia and overseas," Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett told a news conference Saturday.Police were gathering evidence to prosecute the surviving alleged gunman, she said. "We will identify the methods, capability and connections of these alleged offenders to determine who the alleged offenders communicated with leading up to the attack." 

The great form of Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan on the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour continues as the Qatari Olympic medallists claimed the title of the Elite event held in Newport Beach. The hottest men’s team in international beach volleyball right now, they made it to the top of the podium in California on Saturday, flanked by two South American duos, as Brazilians Evandro Gonçalves and Arthur Lanci finished second and the Chilean Grimalt cousins Marco and Esteban ranked third in the tenth Elite event of the 2025 season. The 2025 season has been a different one for Cherif and Ahmed, who typically compete in almost every Elite event there is, but this year were limited to only six appearances on the Beach Pro Tour because of injuries. The bronze medallists of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, have, however, made the most of every opportunity they had to compete in 2025, winning four golds, with victories in the Elite events held in Gstaad, Rio de Janeiro and Newport Beach and the Xiamen Challenge. Disregarding the three forfeit defeats they were forced to accept at the Montréal Elite after Cherif got injured, the two have won 17 of their last 19 matches, including the last 11. “Winning here feels amazing,” Ahmed commented. “My wife is from the United States, and I am very happy to be here and win the gold medal. It means so much to our entire family.” At Newport Beach, Cherif and Ahmed made it to the top of the podium with an undefeated campaign of six victories and only one set dropped. In the final, they overcame Evandro and Arthur in straight sets (21-16, 30-28). “It was a really tough tournament, and the final was no different,” Cherif reacted. “We faced so many tough teams here, and we wanted to congratulate Evandro and Arthur, who had a really good run. We love to entertain people and give the fans a great final, and I think that today we did it. I hope everyone enjoyed it.”

Qatar’s beach volleyball duo, Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan, clinched their third Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour gold of the year at the Rio de Janeiro Elite on Sunday.The third-seeded pair defeated Cuba’s Noslen Diaz and Jorge Alayo 2-1 (21-14, 17-21, 18-16) in a thrilling final.Younousse and Tijan had earlier won the Xiamen Challenge in May and the Gstaad Elite in July. Overall, it was Cherif and Ahmed’s fifth gold and ninth medal since the Tour was launched in 2022. The bronze medal went to the Dutch team, Stefan Boermans and Yorick de Groot.

Children are not permitted to swim alone in the sea without being accompanied by guardians or a responsible adult, the Ministry of Interior (MoI) has said.“Children must be continuously supervised both in the water and on the shore,” Lt Col Ahmed Ali Saad from the General Directorate of Coasts and Borders Security explained.He was sharing the general guidelines for sea, beach-goers and marine activity lovers at a recent awareness webinar organised by the Public Relations Department of MoI in association with the General Directorate of Coasts and Borders Security.“Swimming is considered one of the beautiful and enjoyable water sports, and it is also one of the most beneficial from a health perspective. It is the best exercise for activating, moving, and strengthening most of the body’s muscles. Therefore, out of concern for public safety, the General Directorate of Coasts and Borders Security urges swimming enthusiasts to adhere to the following advice, guidance and instructions,” the MoI official said.He urged sea-goers not to swim in places where there are signs prohibiting swimming by the administration and avoid swimming, if they suffer from fever or feel extremely tired.“It is essential to check the sea conditions and any potential currents before entering the water,” he said, adding that it is mandatory to wear appropriate and designated swimwear.The official urged marine activity enthusiasts to not swim alone even if they are skilled swimmers. “Always ensure that someone is nearby to assist you if necessary. Do not swim far from the shore; always remain close to it and avoid moving away. Do not swim or play in the water at night due to the difficulty of being able to determine your location in the dark,” he said. Lt Col Saad urged not to attempt to rescue a drowning person unless one is trained in lifesaving. ”If you encounter any difficulties in the water, do not panic; remain calm, move your legs gently up and down, and raise your hands to attract the attention of others. If a water current pulls you, do not resist it. Instead, swim across it until it fades, then swim back to the coast. Always handle inflatable flotation devices with great care, as they can easily lose air due to wind or water currents, especially for young children. Do not swim in restricted zones or close to water scooter (jet ski) areas,” he added.If someone is seen in need of help in the water, the General Directorate of Coasts and Borders Security should be contacted immediately at 2354666 or emergency should be called at 999. “If you can, throw them something to keep them afloat until the rescuers arrive,” the official added.