GEORGE TOWN: It took some 700kg of fine river sand and water for visual artist Mohammad Ikhwan Ibrahim to create a sand sculpture standing almost two metres tall at Setia SPICE Convention Centre here. The 1.8x2m sculpture was created after five days of work by the 31-year-old at the vaccination centre (PPV). The sand sculpture, which was made using only sand and water, is expected to last three months if maintained properly. “This sand sculpture is more than just a normal display or exhibit. Yeoh said the sand sculpture was a project debut by the Sand Sculpture Art Club and sponsored by Penang State Exco Office for Tourism and Creative Economy.

BEIJING: In late December 2019, managers at Volkswagen headquarters in Wolfsburg realised they might have a serious problem in China, the company's biggest market and ticket to its electric future. It was a significant cost for a company that had said it was trying to trim manufacturing costs in China and globally. "In China there are central barriers on the highways," Volkswagen added. FAW-Volkswagen saw sales grow 23% while overall Chinese passenger car sales jumped about 29%. Volkswagen's China chief Stephan Woellenstein acknowledged in January that the failed crash test and subsequent online backlash had triggered the decline in Passat and SAIC venture sales.

As the Covid-19 pandemic raged through the country last year, many business owners found themselves facing uncertain futures. But even as physical storefronts closed and shoppers stayed home, more than a few forward-thinking entrepreneurs shifted some or all of their business online. Coming from a salt-of-the-earth upbringing, he is now a successful e-commerce business owner with big ambitions. Ooi, the founder of the very successful Shopee online store that bears his namesake, attributes his success to the incredible efforts of his parents. “My parents’ business was doing really well, but I felt it could be doing better with an online presence.

A reopening of the economy, however, will not help companies that have downsized, or worse, shuttered their operations. Under Pemulih, the central bank had increased its loan capacity twice, to RM27.1 billion from RM9.1 billion, with RM8.6 billion still available as at end-June. In 2H2021, it is estimated that an SME operator can obtain up to RM11,700 in cash aid and another RM31,000 in cash flow relief through moratoriums and discounts — for a total of more than RM40,000 in assistance. All these do not include new loans, which are readily available from banks and other business support institutions. As vaccination is ramped up, the hospitalisation rate is expected to decrease, which will improve our public healthcare’s capacity to respond.

ISKANDAR PUTERI (Aug 8): Rembau Member of Parliament Khairy Jamaluddin said today that he would continue serving the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government led by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, pending the determination of its legitimacy in Parliament next month. For UMNO, I am an UMNO minister. “I’m still in the government because I have a trust issue with the UMNO president (Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi),” he told reporters at Iskandar Malaysia Studios here. Khairy, who is Science, Technology and Innovation Minister, attributed the trust issue to several actions taken by Ahmad Zahid. Khairy said there was also the issue of an audio recording of a conversation between the president and the opposition leader (Anwar), which was initially denied by Ahmad Zahid.

BARCELONA (Reuters) - Between trying to compose himself, wiping away tears and facing a long standing ovation, it took Lionel Messi more than a minute to start his farewell news conference on Sunday at FC Barcelona, where the Argentine has spent all of his playing career. "I don't know if I am going to be able to speak," were his first words, tears running down his cheeks. I feel very sad that I have to leave this club, this club that I love. I wasn't expecting it," Messi said, adding that he and his family had been convinced they were going to stay in Barcelona, and "wanted that more than anything". Both Barca, which has suffered steep losses recently, and Messi had wanted to sign a new contract.

There were moments during the interview that tears welled up in Azizulhasni’s eyes, as he tried to come to terms with not being able to deliver the gold medal. The weight of carrying the hopes of an entire nation - who were counting on him to end the country’s quest for a first-ever Olympic gold medal - finally proved too much for the man, known as The Pocket Rocketman. With tears streaming down his cheeks, Azizulhasni kept on apologising for not fulfilling the hopes of all Malaysians. In today’s race, Azizulhasni came in second just 0.763 seconds behind Kenny, who also won the gold at the 2016 Rio Games. Azizulhasni’s silver is the second medal Malaysia have won at the Tokyo Olympics after national shuttlers Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik bagged a bronze in men’s doubles on July 31.

IZU, Japan (Reuters) - It began with an Austrian mathematics lecturer bamboozling a five-star field to snatch gold in the women's road race and culminated in track king Jason Kenny in seventh heaven. In between -- on road, dirt, track or BMX park -- the Tokyo Olympic cycling provided a constant stream of two-wheeled highlights that will live long in the memory. They lined the brutally-steep Mikuni Pass as Ecuador's Ricard Carapaz produced a late attack to triumph in one of the hardest Olympic men's road races ever. Bethany Shriever won the women's racing event at Ariake Urban Sport Park, ending the reign of Colombian great Mariana Pajon in a thrilling final. Denmark ended Britain's gold-medal hopes in the men's team pursuit, only to lose to Filippo Ganna's Italy in a rip-roaring final the following day.

Email lifestyle@thestar.com.my or write to Dear Thelma, c/o StarLifestyle, Menara Star, 15, Jalan 16/11,46350 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. I have made mistakes but the smallest of mistakes tend to have a huge impact. I don't know what to do. I don't know how to survive this. First, we like to imagine the world is a just place, where good things come to good people.

If finding new uses for old stuff is one of the core tenets of a sustainable business, some young influencers are taking that idea to the bank – by giving old fashions a new lease on life. Read more: Most fashion consumers want to shop sustainably, but need more informationSome are clearing out old stuff. By buying and selling second-hand clothes, they are helping fuel a boom in a trendy corner of the global retail market. With her brother's help, the online fashionista buys the clothes, models them, creates the listings, and ships the items out. Within a few years, she wants to springboard from Depop to her own fashion brand, says Campos.

KUALA LUMPUR: Pos Malaysia will resume road tax and driving licence renewals at all its post offices from Monday (Aug 9) by appointment. It said in a statement on Saturday (Aug 7) that customers can book an appointment through the Outlet Finder feature at www.pos.com.my or Pos Malaysia's mobile application starting Sunday (Aug 8), adding that the appointments are necessary to avoid overcrowding at their premises. “A customer is permitted to book only one appointment slot per day and perform a maximum of three transactions per appointment,” it said in the statement. Pos Malaysia also urged customers to adhere to standard operating procedures (SOPs) such as wearing a face mask, checking body temperature, scanning of MySejahtera code and observing the one-metre physical distancing rule at the premises and avoid visiting its outlets if they were feeling unwell or experiencing Covid-19 symptoms. Customers can also extend their enquiries to AskPos on www.pos.com.my or via their Pos Malaysia mobile application.

It's not that I am not happy with the silver but I came here to win the gold," said the 33-year-old Azizul. "I'm sorry that I can't get the gold everyone was hoping for," said Azizul, who advanced to the top six final in style by winning his semi-final heat. Azizul had finished second in his quarter-finals heat behind Japan's Yuta Wakimoto to go through to the semis but Shah Firdaus, who had crashed heavily in the first round on Saturday, was eliminated. Maximilian Levy (Ger). Yuta Wakimoto (Jpn).

NEXT month, an accounting fresh graduate from Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TAR UC) will be representing Malaysia at a digital challenge that will see her competing with participants from across the Asia-Pacific region. At the national round, participants were tested on management spreadsheets, an area in which Tan had an upper hand as Advanced Spreadsheets was covered in her Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) programme. At the upcoming grand final, participants will have their data analytics knowledge tested. Tan is the second student from TAR UC who has advanced to the grand final of the competition, which is in its fourth edition this year. Held virtually, the ICDL Asia Digital Challenge 2021 is aimed at fostering practical digital skills, such as emerging technologies, data analytics, design, and the use of office application tools, required of various professionals in the workplace today and the future.

The conference, themed Resilient Online Teaching, sought to provide Malaysian teachers with the practical knowledge and tools to better cope with the stresses of online teaching. In my Resilient Online Teaching module, I gave the acronym CliMB: care and like yourself, motivate students, and build resilient (online) learning communities. Motivating students means that we give our students work that engages, challenges and empowers them to learn. Building resilient learning communities involves flexibility in terms of doing face-to-face, hybrid or fully online learning. Empathy is very important to build a resilient community of teachers and students, especially in these trying times of online teaching.

Kipchoge, 36, joins Ethiopia's Abebe Bikila (1960 and 1964) and East Germany's Waldemar Cierpinski (1976 and 1980) as the only runners to win back-to-back gold medals on the Olympic stage. The world record holder has now won four Olympic medals overall, having also taken 5,000m silver in 2008 and bronze in 2004. "I think I fulfilled the legacy by winning the marathon for the second time. Kipchoge finished in two hours, eight minutes and 38 seconds, coming in one minute and 20 seconds ahead of Nageeye. Kipchoge's triumph highlights Kenya's dominance in the Olympic marathon in recent years, with the men winning gold at three of the past four Games.