London: No fewer than 80 horses, including 13 individual Group 1 winners, will be seen in action at the 34th edition of the Dubai International Arabian Races, Purebred Arabian Racing’s flagship day which takes place at Newbury Racecourse on Sunday.
Mirza Al Sayegh, Chairman of the Organising committee, and the driving force of the event which was first staged at Kempton Park in 1982, was delighted by the number of entries and the quality of horses that the three featured Group 1 events have attracted.
“It is very encouraging for us as it is our objective to ensure that the event gets bigger and stronger each year,” he said.
“We began planning for this day in January this year, and we are confident that it will be a memorable occasion not only for the owners, trainers and jockeys, but also for the public and the families that will be attending the races.”
Al Sayegh pointed out that Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance, who created the Dubai International Races as a vehicle to promote Purebred Arabian racing in the United Kingdom and around the world, remains committed to sponsoring and supporting the event.
“His Highness is keen that the Dubai International Arabian Races attract the maximum attention from the horsemen, and also the community in the UK,” he said. “He is actively involved with the planning and implementation and is as excited about the day, as anybody else.
“The whole team has worked very hard for the past seven months to ensure that no stone is left unturned and that the event will be a big success on Sunday. We are also very grateful to Newbury Racecourse, who are part of the family of Arabian racing, for providing all their support for what we hope with be one of the highlights of the summer in the UK.
“We are particularly proud that horses from all over the UK, Europe and the Middle East are represented in the eight-race card and it is very pleasing to see some stars as well, including Shaikh Hamdan’s champion Al Hibaab and Djalina Des Forges, who is the joint highest rated horse in the world, participate in our event.”
