An ex-Australian Rules footballer turned hotly-debated fitness influencer has left Dubai, despite previously praising the emirate as “beautiful” just a few months prior.
This week, the region found itself under siege as Iranian missiles and drones launched a counterattack in response to the February 28 offensive spearheaded by the United States and Israel.
Social media platforms buzzed with videos showing the nation’s missile defense systems in action, aiming to thwart the attacks. The resulting debris, however, descended upon some of the most upscale areas of Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Thomas Baulch, known to his extensive online audience as PrimeTrain, has returned to Melbourne following a harrowing incident at a Dubai beach, which compelled his departure from the opulent desert metropolis.
“Relaxing at a beach club under the sun, only to suddenly hear missiles and drones overhead, with phone alerts urging us to seek shelter—it was all quite surreal,” Baulch shared on Instagram.
Thomas Baulch, who is known as PrimeTrain online, was living it up in his new home in Dubai (pictured) before the city was attacked
A stunned Baulch is pictured in a still from a video he recorded as missiles rained down on Dubai while he enjoyed a day at the beach
Baulch watched on as a missile exploded overhead (pictured). Iranian attacks with suicide drones have already hit two of Dubai’s most famous hotels
“I can’t fathom the reality for those who have endured such conditions in war-torn countries over recent years,” he added.
‘I think the whole experience puts everything in perspective. I don’t want to harp on about this too much, but it probably has been the craziest 72 hours of my life.’
Baulch said he felt leaving Dubai was the ‘safest move under the circumstances’.
‘Landed back in Melbourne this morning. Seriously wild when you have to pack up all your essentials and get out of a place. Again, puts things all in perspective in life,’ he said.
‘Your issues, political views, f**** everything doesn’t matter.’
Baulch is well known among footy circles for his Instagram account where he helps his followers get in shape and gives them life tips.
He previously played in the WAFL for East Perth, NEAFL and the VFL for Aspley and Port Melbourne.
The fitness trainer, who has more than 177,000 followers on his PrimeTrain Instagram account, posted a video last August of his new digs in Dubai.
Baulch and his business partner Keenan Chapman decided to head back to Australia after the attacks on Dubai
Baulch was happy to be back in Melbourne after two days of travelling from Dubai
He showed off the city from his balcony, praising just how lovely his adopted city was.
‘How’s this for a view. Oh, my days, wow. This is what we’ve got. Thank you very much, Dubai, you are beautiful,’ he said.
Baulch’s business partner Keenan Chapman also posted a video from their new apartment, saying: ‘We got super lucky with this new home.’
‘One thing I’m most excited about here in Dubai is finally finding a place to call home,’ Chapman said.
‘I’m not trying to brag about this lifestyle but it’s something super special to me.’
Following his decision to flee Dubai, many followers wished Baulch luck while one had a jab at his decision to move to the United Arab Emirates.
‘Thought it was the place to be,’ they said.
Baulch has a history of creating controversy and in January he posted a video to Instagram telling his male followers to unfollow female influencers, equating the practice to pornography usage.
The post was described by critics as a dangerous anti-women rant and they criticised Baulch for promoting toxic masculinity to his impressionable audience.
Former Aussie cricket star Brett Lee and his wife Lana Anderson are pictured in Dubai, where he bought a new property just weeks before the attacks started
Stephanie Rice is pictured with husband Mark Lassey in Dubai. She issued an urgent plea on social media after missile attacks struck
Baulch isn’t the only high-profile Aussie sports star caught up in the situation in the Persian Gulf.
Cricket great Brett Lee described Dubai as ‘one of the safest places in the world’ for women and children after relocating his family to the United Arab Emirates, weeks before Iranian missile and drone strikes damaged key sites across the city.
The 49-year-old former fast bowler confirmed last month that he had moved full-time to Dubai, purchasing property and shifting his family to the Gulf state.
‘What captured the essence of me moving over was a number of things, [mainly] safety. This is one of the safest places in the world, especially for females and certainly for kids,’ Lee said.
Three-time Olympic gold medallist Stephanie Rice also made the move to Dubai and she took to Instagram after the city’s famous Burj Al-Arab hotel was reportedly hit by an Iranian suicide drone.
‘Please help me in praying for all my friends, loved ones and people in the UAE that they would be protected and feel a tangible sense of God’s peace in this scary situation,’ Rice wrote on her Instagram.
Rice, 37, moved to Dubai in November 2023. She met her husband, pastor Mark Lassey, soon after relocating to the city of four million.
Australian billionaire Adrian Portelli has said, however, that he feels safer with his young family in Dubai than he did living in Melbourne despite Iranian missiles raining down on the city.
‘Guess what? I do feel safer here,’ he said.
‘There’s a few explosions here and there, they rattle the house, but big s***. It looks worse on media and socials than what it actually is.’
