Abu Dhabi: The International Federation of Horse Racing Academies (IFHRA) unveiled an innovative Racing Scholarship Fund (RSF) and also admitted 14 new members to the Federation at its General Assembly meeting at Warsaw, Poland, on Friday.
An amount of $100,000 (Dh367,000) has been earmarked for the IFHRA Racing Scholarship Fund and is expected to initially benefit 10-20 apprentice jockeys who will spend two months with reputed mentors.
The concept is based on providing students with valuable continuing educational opportunities in the event they choose a new path within horse racing and related industries.
Lara Sawaya, Executive Director of the HH Shaikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival and Chairman of IFAHR’s Ladies & Apprentice Racing Committees said: “This Fund will help provide professional mentorship opportunities abroad for students who are currently enrolled in or who have recently graduated from an IFHRA member Racing Academy or national representative. The goal is to improve the horse racing and breeding industry workforce by providing deserving racing academy students or recent graduates with the opportunity to gain new knowledge and experience in equitation and overall horsemanship, while learning about new culture and customs.”
“We thank all the UAE envoys who attended this meeting to boost this initiative by Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs.”
Explaining details of the IFHRA RSF, Remi Bellocq, General Secretary of IFHRA, said: “The Fund is designed to benefit both students of IFHRA members and employers within the horse racing and breeding industries. Students will work abroad in real-world situations gaining experience and benefitting from mentorship which will be a long-term benefit to future careers.
“Future employers will also benefit from students who have experienced the IFHRA RSF and who have therefore gained training in the newest practices the industry offers.”
The IFHRA meeting was held on the sidelines of the ongoing sixth World Arabian Horse Racing conference in Warsaw, Poland.
The 14 new IFAHR member countries include Argentina, Brazil, China, Denmark, France, Hong Kong, Hungary, Morocco, Sultanate of Oman, Portugal, Poland, Turkey, Slovakia and Sweden. Meanwhile, the memberships of Bahrain and Switzerland, are pending.
The Federation also appointed Abu Dhabi-based Pat Buckley as the Vice-Chairman following the demise of Susanne Santesson earlier this year.
Members were urged to provide details on a regular basis for the official website to benefit all equestrian aficionados.
The meeting also decided to form a sub-committee to look into the insurance aspect for participating apprentice jockeys.
IFHRA was founded in 2014 under the instructions of Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE and Minister of Presidential Affairs.
It has its headquarters in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
The next IFHRA meeting will be held during the Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition, ADIHEX which will be held in Abu Dhabi from September 9 to 13, 2015.
