Abu Dhabi: Eleven lady jockeys will get to test their riding skills on the frozen lake in St. Moritz in Switzerland Sunday when they compete in Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship.
The race is part of the HH Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival series and the winner will qualify for the championship finale in November, in Abu Dhabi.
Briton Rachael Kneller rides the favourite Alibaba Del Sol while Ireland’s lady Nora Lobby partners the second favourite Athlete Del Sol.
Karin van den Bos trains both contenders for owner Langoeld Waterland and the Dutch pairing will be looking for another double to follow up on the success they achieved a fortnight ago.
Earlier this month, Alibaba Del Sol beat Athlete Del Sol in the Festival’s Listed Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup.
“This is going to be an exciting contest on the White Turf with one of the best crowds packing this venue among the stunningly beautiful, snow-capped mountains of St Moritz,” said Lara Sawaya, Executive Director of the Shaikh Mansoor Festival.
“The Del Sol pair of horses have been multiple winners of events organised by the Shaikh Mansour Festival at various venues and along with the nine other runners are all set to showcase yet another trait of the Purebred Arabian horse while racing on the ice and snow here in St Moritz.
“Sunday is the third and final meeting at the St Moritz European Snow Meeting and the HH Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship over 1600 metres is one of the feature events with a prize fund of Euros 30,000 (Dh125,000),” she added.
The Shaikh Mansour Festival is organised by the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority and coordinated by Abu Dhabi Sports Council in association with Emirates Racing Authority, IFAHR and Emirates Arabian Horse Society and is supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the General Authority of Youth and Sports Welfare.
The National Archives is the official partner and Emirates airline the official carrier.
The event is also sponsored by Invest AD, Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC), Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), Al Awani General Enterprises, Kabale, Al Wathba Centre, the UAE’s General Women’s Union, the HH Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Sports Academy, Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition 2015, Dr. Nader Saab Switzerland, Al Wathba Center, Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club, Eastern Mangroves Suites-Abu Dhabi by Jannah, Abu Dhabi Sports Channel and Racing Post.
