Sport | Other Sports
UAE team set to create history
The UAE endurance team is all set to create a piece of history at the Asian Games in Doha, with the four sons of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum appearing in one event
- By M. Satya Narayan, Staff Reporter
- Published: 23:35 May 3, 2009
- Image Credit: Gulf News archive
- Shaikh Rashid, Shaikh Hamdan, Shaikh Ahmad and Shaikh Majid, sons of Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, will spearhead the UAE's challenge in endurance, which is making its debut, in the Asian Games in Doha.
Abu Dhabi: The UAE endurance team is all set to create a piece of history at the Asian Games in Doha.
The four sons of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Shaikh Rashid, Shaikh Hamdan, Shaikh Ahmad and Shaikh Majid, will be the first quartet of siblings to appear in one event when they start the 120-km Endurance ride on December 14.
Apart from creating sporting history, the four sons of Shaikh Mohammad, along with Sultan Ahmad Bin Sulayem and Ali Mohammad Al Muhairi, will be giving the UAE one of its best chances of winning a gold in endurance, which is making its debut in Asian Games.
Both Shaikh Rashid and Shaikh Hamdan are former European Open champions while Shaikh Ahmad won the world championship in 2002.
Shaikh Majid has also won quite a few international rides, while both Sultan Bin Sulayem and Ali Mohammad are known for their consistency.
The six-member UAE team will be staking its claim in both the individual as well as team events.
While all six will be eligible to go for gold in the individual event, a four-member team will be named on December 13, just after the final veterinary pre-ride check.
However, it is expected that Shaikh Rashid, Shaikh Hamdan, Shaikh Ahmad and Shaikh Majid will be named as team riders and the best three timings of the four-member team count for medals.
The UAE riders recently used the international ride in Jordan to prepare their horses and four of the eight horses entered finished at the top.
Among those horses from which the six will be chosen are Orkara, Kamel Armor, Jazyck, Munef, Iknor de Lebire, Nashmi, Zanor Harji Bubba and Shazana.
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