Royal team gear up for France event

Bahrain Gulf Daily News


ROYAL Endurance Team delegation arrived in France for the Compiegne International Endurance Horseride Championship to be held on Saturday at Compiegne racecourse of the Equestrian Stadium, near Paris.

The race, which is over 160km, is regarded as a qualifier for Europe Endurance Horseride Championship to be staged in Portugal in September.

The team, captained by Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation (Breef) president Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, had taken part in the Europe 2005 edition championship which was held at the same venue and attended by His Majesty King Hamad.

Other team members include Shaikh Talal bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, Ahmed Abdulla, Raed Mahmood and Ahmed Abdulsamad.

Apart from Bahrain, 11 other nations have so far confirmed their entry for the championship. They are Algeria, Belgium, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Oman, Pakistan, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and the UAE.

Shaikh Nasser said the team have been always keen at taking part in these races to gain more experience despite the tough and inconvenient environment surrounding these venues.

The Breef chief said only four riders will compete in this race and will be chosen according to their fitness and physical conditions.

The five-member team have taken part in the 120-km Endurance Horserace Championship for the Kingdom of Bahrain Trophy which was held yesterday in the UK, near Tottenham, where Shaikh Nasser came second.

The Equestrian Stadium has a top quality circuit with excellent sandy tracks in the imperial forest of Compiegne and holds the 2004 record of participating nations - 19 nations and 87 competitors, half of them were foreigners.