Saturday, Jun 22, 2013
Abu Dhabi: The Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival is all set to dominate Sunday’s racing at the historic Duindigt race course in The Netherlands with three top quality races.
The Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Arabian Cup (Group 3) race, the Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship IFAHR for lady jockeys and the Wathba Stud Farm Cup races will be worked off on the turf course in Duindigt with some great rivalries in European Arabian racing on the cards.
Poulain Kossack, a winner in Duindigt in the Zayed Cup here in 2011, will be looking to make up for his sixth place finish in Abu Dhabi last year.
However, the seven-year-old bay has already won the Festival’s Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Listed Cup in Berlin in May and last month followed it up with another Listed Cup win in Abu Dhabi last month.
Poulain Kossack, Ameretto and Sartejano had finished 1-2-3 both in Berlin in May and in the Listed Cup race in Abu Dhabi last month and will once again renew their rivalry. Ameretto and Sartejano have also won the Festival’s big races and the three are set to make this 1900-metre contest for a prize fund of €25,000 (Dh120,400) an exciting battle with six other runners.
An equally interesting contest is on the cards in the HH Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship IFAHR.
The horses and lady jockeys in the 1800-metre race are Athlete Del Sol (Erika Edvardsson), Chimco D.A. (Leonie Vethaak), Lillij Ann (Miss R. Danz), Mangnifique (USA), Mirabella del Sol (Ms S De la Calle), Parma T (N. Waidacher), Phraseur Kossack (Ms M Kucharikova), Sadiq (Ms. S. Ahern), Sankado (Ms E Toth) and Senna O.A (Ms Veronika Aske).
The Festival’s third race of the day is the highly popular Wathba Stud Farm Cup series which aims to promote Arabian horse racing at the grass root level.
Nine horses have entered this race including Alibaba Del Sol, Alzain, Derham, Detroit, Eausterlitz, Pandoro, Plastin, Tidoubia and Zam Zam.
Commenting on the UAE’s role in Sunday’s racing in Duindigt, Mubarak Al Muhairi, Director General, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority said: “Earlier this month, we witnessed the huge success of the Fourth World Arabian Horse Racing Conference and the two races in Toulouse apart from the success achieved over the last few years.
“All this has been possible due to the vision of Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs.”
“We are glad to announce that the Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC) have joined us to support the initiatives of HH Shaikh Mansour and Her Highness Shaikha Fatima,” said Ms Lara Sawaya, Director of the Festival and Head of International Federation of Arabian Horse Racing Authorities (IFAHR) Ladies Racing.
By M. Satya Narayan Abu Dhabi Deputy Editor
Gulf News 2013. All rights reserved.
