Dubai
Emirates, a long-time supporter of horse racing in the UAE and around the world for over twenty years, will sponsor the full, six-race card at Jebel Ali Racecourse’s eighth meeting of the season on Friday.
The award-winning airline has been synonymous with major sports including, football, cricket, rugby, sailing, tennis, Formula one and baseball. However, the sport of horse racing forms an important part of its sponsorship portfolio.
Adil Al Gaith, Senior Vice-President Commercial Operations, explained: “We believe that sports sponsorship is an excellent way of connecting with out customers, by sharing in and supporting their interests and passions.
“Emirates support of horse racing, here in Dubai and elsewhere is well known and has been one of the mainstays of our sports sponsorship portfolio for a long time.
“We have been an avid supporter of Jebel Ali Racing for over 20 years.”
Each of Friday’s races will be run under the banner of one of their brands including Emirates Airline, Emirates Sky Cargo, Emirates Holidays, Emirates Skywards and Arabian Adventures.
Al Gaith thanked Major General Shaikh Ahmad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Chief of Dubai Police and Public Security, who created and owns Jebel Ali Racecourse for the opportunity to supports the venue’s endeavours to sustain and develop the sport.
“On behalf of Emirates I would like to thank Shaikh Ahmad and the Jebel Ali Racecourse management for their co-operation in making the Emirates Airline Race Day possible,” he said during a press conference at the racecourse Majlis on Tuesday.
“Emirates is happy to continue its relationship with the Jebel Ali Racecourse.
“I would also like to compliment the organisers for their hard work in making this event a success every year.”
Shareef Al Halawani, Manager, Jebel Ali Racecourse, also thanked Emirates for their magnanimous support for over two decades.
“Without the commitment and support that we receive from partners like Emirates, Jebel Ali Racecourse would not be able to sustain the high standards of racing that Jebel Ali Racecourse has been recognised for over the years,” he said.
“We truly appreciate their involvement and generosity which helps us to aim higher in order to reach our potential.”
The highlight of Friday’s six-race card is the Emirates Airline Conditions Stakes which has attracted a field of six quality milers led by the home-trained Bluff.
Trained by Dhruba Selvaratnam, the ex-American trained horse will be ridden by stable jockey Chris Hayes.
“He’s on a retrieval mission having run below expectations in his last start,” explained Hayes. “He’s a horse that we like a lot but the pace of the race will tell is a lot about his well-being and how we he performs.
“But we’re optimistic.”
Selvaratnam said that he was looking forward to seeing how his America import performs following his disappointing run at Meydan on his last start.
“We know he goes well on the Jebel Ali track and hope that he can bounce back from his Meydan run,” said Selvaratnam.
