Manama: Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai, won the first ever CISM World Military Endurance Championship (WMEC) held at the Bahrain International Endurance Village in Sakhir on Saturday.
Held under the patronage of Bahrain’s King Hamad Bin Eisa Al Khalifa, the 120km ride was contested by more than 100 riders from 19 countries, including top stars from the host country, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Italy, Brazil, Estonia, Ecuador, Morocco, Palestine and Uruguay.
The ride was attended by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
Shaikh Hamdan received the gold medal from Colonel Alexandre Morisod, representative of the International Military Sports Council (IMSC), who congratulated him on the achievement.
Shaikh Mohammad and King Hamad, as well as Princes and Shaikhs, congratulated Shaikh Hamdan on his victory.
Shaikh Mohammad was also honoured and decorated with the sash of the International Military Sports Council, the highest badge of honour granted to world leaders who support military sports, especially endurance races, and who have had achievements in this field.
The ride commenced at 7am and also marked the celebrations of Bahrain’s National Day and King Hamad’s accession to the throne.
Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa led the Bahrain team, which also included Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Shaikh Salman bin Saqer Al Khalifa, Abdulrahman Al Zayed, Abdulrahman Saad and Yaqoub Al Hammadi.
It was contested over five stages, with the first and second loops covering 30kms, the third 25 kms, the fourth 20kms and the fifth 15 kms.
The event was organised by the Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation (Breef), in co-operation with Military Sports Federation, and was supervised by the International Military Sports Council (CISM).
(with Staff Inputs)
