Dubai: Longtime Meydan pillar partner Emirates return to sponsor the much-anticipated opening night’s racing at the iconic venue, which is set to unveil a brand new dirt track.
The track replaces the Tapeta synthetic surface, which has hosted five runnings of the $10 million (Dh36.72 million) Group 1 Dubai World Cup, the world’s richest horse race which will be celebrating a milestone 20th anniversary next March.
Emirates has been associated with the Dubai World Cup since the race was inaugurated in 1996, and the airline traditionally sponsors the first card at Meydan.
All six races, including the night’s twin feature, the two Emirates Airline Handicaps, will be run on the dirt track which will be used for the first time, with all six of The first is a benchmark 100 contest over 1900m while the second is a benchmark 95 event over 1400m.
Shaikh Majid Al Mualla, Emirates’ Divisional Senior Vice-President, Commercial Operations, said in an official press release: “Emirates has a long and successful history of supporting horseracing which goes back over 20 years.
“We are the proud partner of the internationally renowned Godolphin Stable – the Maktoum family’s private horseracing stable, which has produced some of the world’s highest calibre horses and jockeys.
“We sponsor various races across the globe including the Melbourne Cup [which was held on Tuesday in Australia], The Emirates Singapore Derby and of course the Dubai World Cup.
“Supporting events, such as the Dubai World Cup, is very important to us as it helps to promote Dubai as a premier sporting, business and tourism destination. We have no doubt that the success of previous years will be repeated as we head into another exciting Meydan racing season.”
Malih Al Basti, Chairman of the Meydan Racing Committee, welcomed the airline back to Meydan and said: “The 20th season of the Dubai World Cup is a significant event, not only for the Meydan Group and Dubai Racing Club, but also for Dubai as a whole and the wider racing world.
“Emirates has been a partner of the Dubai World Cup since the 1996 beginnings of this famous race and it is with great pleasure that we welcome the airline back to our track for the start of this landmark season, 20 years later.
“We are very proud of our connection with this iconic Dubai brand and look forward to working with Emirates during our special anniversary season.”
Since the first flight took to the air in 1985, Emirates has become one of the fastest-growing international airlines in the world and has won more than 500 international awards for excellence across its business operations.
