St Moritz, Switzerland: The premier race series of the HH Shaikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival — the Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup — kicks off on the snow tracks of the frozen lake of St Moritz in Switzerland on Sunday.
Eight horses including some regular runners and past winners in the Festival contest the mile’s distance (1600 metres) on the snow tracks, which will once again prove the versatility of the Purebred Arabian horse.
Dutch trainer Karin van den Bos has two great champions in Athlete Del Sol under Alexander Pietsch and Alibaba Del Sol under Daniel Porcu, both in with a chance on Sunday.
Trainer Michal Borkowski also has a pair of runners in Estarion under Nicolas Guilbert and Esid in Zamour under Bauyrzhan Murzabayev.
But Swiss trainer Franziska Aeschbacher has the remaining four runners and it will be a great battle for the big prize on Sunday. Her runners include Nil Ashal under Tim Burgin, Nil Aziz under Vaclav Janacek, Nil Kamla under Raphael Lingg and Nil Alamoon under Astrid Wullschleger, the last named jockey being a winner of the HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship final two years ago.
Sunday’s race kick-starts the 2017 campaign in the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup.
The HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival is sustained by the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority and coordinated by Abu Dhabi Sports Council.
