UAE runners crown week of wins at Chantilly
UAE runners crown week of wins
Paris: It turned out to be a perfect weekend extending into Monday - a French national holiday - for French trainer-jockey combination Freddie Head and David Bonilla, who delivered a double Group 1 success for Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance.
Sunday's win at Chantilly for the lightly-raced Tamayuz, owned by Shaikh Hamdan, in the Abu Dhabi Sorouh Prix Jean Prat (Group 1), came after Head and Bonilla had combined on Friday to win the Darley July Cup in a thrilling Group 1 race at Newmarket on Marchand D'Or.
It crowned another fantastic week for the UAE, starting with Wednesday's win in the UAE Hydra Falmouth Stakes by Nahoodh, owned by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai.
"We will have to talk to Shaikh Hamdan, but the Prix Jacques le Marois (at Deauville on August 17) would be the obvious race for him," said Head, who described his double success as a dream come true.
In fact Sunday's Abu Dhabi Sorouh Prix Jean Prat race witnessed a 1-2-3 by UAE connections as the second-placed Raven's Pass is owned by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, while Rio De La Plata is from Dubai's Godolphin stable.
'Fantastic result'
"This is a fantastic result and great for UAE racing," said Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, who attended Sunday's race in Chantilly, where the UAE-based Sorouh Real Estate sponsored two races.
Shaikh Zayed along with the French Minister for Budget and Finances, Eric Woerth, Sultan Abdullah Al Marzouqi, Secretary General of the UAE Equestrian and Racing Federation, Adnan Sultan Al Nuaimi, Director General of Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club, Masood Al Awar, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer of Sorouh and Lara Sawaya, Managing Director of Tasweeq, took part in the prize distribution ceremonies of the two races.
Apart from the 400,000 euro Abu Dhabi Sorouh Prix Jean Prat (Group 1), Sorouh also sponsored the Abu Dhabi Sorouh Prix De Plailly - a 58,000 euro Handicap race. Shawnee, trained by Wern Baltrome and ridden by Dominique Boeuf, won the Abu Dhabi Sorouh Prix De Plailly with C. Laffon-Parias-trained Tito Bustillo ridden by M. Blancpain, finishing second.
Promote the UAE
The two races ere organised by the UAE Equestrian and Racing Federation with The Abu Dhabi Sports Council, the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority, the Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club and the Abu Dhabi International Hunting & Equestrian Exhibition, to promote Abu Dhabi and the UAE.
