London: UK backers of the Dubai International Arabian Race Day, the annual race meeting held at The Racecourse Newbury, in Berkshire, England, have revealed their intent to make the showpiece event even better in the future.
Some of the best Arabian horses based in the UK competed against strong raiders from Europe in eight races offering a total prize purse of 158,000, the richest by far, in the country.
Mirza Al Sayegh, Advisor to Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance, who is the driving force behind the Organising Committee, told Gulf News that they were always looking at ways to take the meeting to a higher level and to bring more attention to Arabian racing.
“Each year we review the impact the event has had on the Purebred Arabian industry, the people involved and, of course, the racegoers, who are fundamentally the ones who can make it a success,” he said.
“This year was fantastic, we could not have asked for anything more. We had such a large turnout and we appreciate that the racegoers connect with Arabian racing and what we are hoping to achieve. I’ve never seen so many happy faces in a long time.
“The quality of the competition was more than satisfying and, while we will always endeavour to attract the best Arabian racehorses to our meeting, we are very pleased with the calibre of Arabian race horses that we saw in action on Sunday,” he added.
More than 15,000 racing enthusiasts attend the Dubai International Arabian Race Day, which in addition to the outstanding eight-race card,also offered a variety of entertainment in the form of free-to-enter competitions.
A highlight was the Children’s Camel Painting Competition, an initiative that annually raises £15,000 (Dh92,500) for the development of education around Newbury.
“It was a pleasure to be associated with the many schools that took part in the event, which is something that the children look forward to each year,” said Al Sayegh.
“We hope that through this initiative some of the kids may grow up with greater interest in horse racing, particularly Arabian racing, and become champion jockeys, trainers or racing administrators.
“Shaikh Hamdan has been a big supporter of the youth in the country through various charities run under the Shadwell banner and we will continue to target the children for they are the future of our sport.”
