Final batch of horses arrives

Staff Report

Dubai: With the arrival of the final batch of horses from Bahrain and Oman, the field is now set for the FEI World Endurance Championship on Thursday.


"We've have received one horse from Oman and another six from Bahrain and this completes the entire list of foreign horses," Mohammad Rashid Bin Ghadayer, Chairman of the Higher Organising Committee for the championship, told Gulf News.



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By M. Satyanarayan, Staff Reporter

Dubai : One of the strongest assets of the current UAE national endurance team is the teenage presence.

Out of the 12-member UAE team named for the World Endurance Championship , five are teenagers including the reigning world endurance champion Shaikh Ahmad Bin Mohammad Al Maktoum.



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US riders have their task cut out

By M. Satyanarayan, Staff Reporter

Dubai : Riders from the US are here on a mission. After having dominated the first seven World Endurance Championships, they have drawn a blank in the last two editions. However, the six-member strong US team have arrived to take on the world, particularly hosts UAE.
While team officials have already indicated their focus would be on the team honours, the individual US riders have been quietly working towards a good finish on Thursday


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WEC: The Stage is Set

Stage set for World Championship
The Gulf News
25 January 2005

DUBAI ? The 10th edition of the FEI World Endurance Championship will kick off with record field of 186 riders from 41 countries around the globe saddling their horses in the purpose-built state-of-the-art facility in the heart of the desert, off Dubai City on Thursday morning, it was announced yesterday.


General Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE Minister of Defence will lead the 12-man squad which will carry the hopes of the host country in the international extravaganza.

According to the organisers, it has not been yet decided who will be representing the country in the individual and teams competitions, and the issue will be worked out by the captain of the team General Shaiklh Mohammed and will be announced probably one day before the riders line up for the big test.

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EnduranceNet Coverage

WEC: Bahrian National Endurance Team

Endurance challenge for top riders
Gulf News

THE Bahrain national endurance horseride team, led by Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation president Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, arrived in the UAE for the World Championship on Thursday starting at 5pm Bahrain time at the endurance village premises in Dubai.

The six-member Bahraini team qualified for this event after completing three races over 160 kms last year. The team will be hoping for victory in this one-day event over a distance of 160 kms with 186 riders representing 48 countries in the fray.

Shaikh Nasser qualified for the championship following his success at the Bahrain Endurance Championship, the New Market Race in the UK and Florac Race in France.

The remaining riders are Breef first vice-president Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa of the Royal Endurance Team, Shaikh Daij bin Salman bin Mubarak Al Khalifa of Al Talia Stable, Shaikh Salman bin Saqer Al Khalifa of Ahmed Al Fateh Stable and Royal Endurance Team's Hamad Al Maraisi and Yousef Taher.

Team manager Shaikh Daij bin Salman Al Khalifa said a meeting will be held today for officials of the participating teams. The opening ceremony is also scheduled for today at 6pm Bahrain time while the riders' weigh-in will be held tomorrow at 7am Bahrain time.

EnduranceNet Coverage

WEC: Course Description Announced

The course at the Dubai Endurance City will be laid out in a sequence of 6 stages. The competitors will, at the end of each stage, present to a standard "Gate to Hold" for a mandatory rest and evaluation period. The competition clock will stop for each entrant when they pass through the In Time gate in to the hold area.

Riders must then present their equine for evaluation of metabolic and mechanical characteristics within 30 minutes. Following the presentation of the equine to the evaluations, the hold time begins. This time varies with each phase (gate), ranging from 30 minutes early in the competition, to 40 minutes in the later stages of the event.

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EnduranceNet Coverage

www.emiratesendurance.com

WEC: Australian Border Riders go for Gold

Border riders to go for gold at world event
The Border Mail 19Jan05
DI THOMAS

TWO Border endurance riders have arrived in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and are making final preparations before they take on the worlds best at the World Endurance Riding Championships next week.
Meg Wade, of Burrowye, and Kristie McGaffin, of Wodonga, are among a team of six Australians who will join riders from more than 40 other countries in the sports premier event.

McGaffin will celebrate her 21st birthday on the day of the race on January 27 and her twin sister Naomi has also flown to Dubai as a member of the Australian crew.
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