Great Britain: Meydan Sponsorship Deal Criticized

Horse-canada.com - Full Article

Horse Sport December 23, 2014

by: Horse-Canada.com

At the beginning of December, Endurance Great Britain (EGB) approached members with proposed sponsorship package from Meydan, a company owned by HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The package proposed providing EGM with a large but undisclosed sum of money to support EGB while also providing new ride opportunities in Great Britain. However, given the terrible troubles facing Endurance as a result of serious rule infractions committed by riders in Group 7, including members of the Maktoum family, many EGM members have voiced serious concerns about accepting sponsorship proposal. Herewith is an open letter written to the board of EGB:...

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http://www.horse-canada.com/horse-news/meydan-sponsorship-deal-criticized/

Great Britain: Intrepid Reporter Gets More Accolades

Horse-canada.com - Full Article

Horse Sport December 19, 2014
by: Horse-Canada.com

Equestrian journalist Pippa Cuckson has received the Liz Dudden Memorial Trophy in recognition of her tireless quest to expose horse welfare issues at the highest level of sport. Her ongoing coverage of the Middle East endurance scandals in international media outlets, including her blog at horse-canada.com/cuckson-report, has shone a light on these issues, and demanded improvements.

Presented by the British Equestrian Writers Association (BEWA), the Liz Dudden Memorial Trophy recognizes outstanding contributions to equestrian sport. Cuckson accepted the award at the BEWA annual awards ceremony, held December 18th at the Olympia Hilton, at a special luncheon during the London International Horse Show at Olympia.

BEWA president, Alan Smith, explained that the Liz Dudden award was started in 1993 in honour of accomplished journalist Liz Dudden. “She died, all too early, of cancer,” said Smith. “So, we decided to give an award in her honour to someone other than a competitor: e.g. a team trainer or manager, a show organiser or official. Generally speaking, we prefer to give it to someone outside our profession, but felt that Pippa’s work, especially on endurance and associated horse welfare, warranted it this year.”

Cuckson is only the second journalist to receive the award...

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http://www.horse-canada.com/horse-news/intrepid-reporter-gets-more-accolades/

Abu Dhabi: Abdullah Rashid Mohammad Saeed Al Naqbi wins Dh1m Abu Dhabi endurance ride

Gulfnews.com - Full Article

Rowallan Dee Jay triumphant in 120km event, overtaking Al Kamda on Baraja in final loop

Staff Report
Published: 18:44 December 27, 2014

Abu Dhabi: Abdullah Rashid Mohammad Saeed Al Naqbi took top honours at the 120km Shaikh Rashid Bin Hamdan Al Maktoum Challenge Festival Endurance Ride For Private Owners at the Emirates International Endurance Village in Al Wathba on Saturday.

Al Naqbi rode 11-year-old Arab gelding Rowallan Dee Jay, trained by Ahmad Mahfouz at the Al Hayar Stables, to first place.
Rowallan made smooth progress from eighth and was in second place after four of the five stages with just 16km to go. In the lead at that stage was Rashid Saeed Al Kamda on Baraja, but a steady pace in the final loop saw Al Naqbi finish ahead of the pack in four hours, 46 minutes and 15 seconds at an average speed of 25.15km/hour...

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http://gulfnews.com/sport/abdullah-rashid-mohammad-saeed-al-naqbi-wins-dh1m-abu-dhabi-endurance-ride-1.1432703

Abu Dhabi: Dh1m up for grabs in Al Wathba endurance ride

Gulfnews.com - Full Article

More than 100 riders set for Saturday’s 120km event, including one loop of 40km

Staff Report
Published: 17:32 December 24, 2014

Abu Dhabi: The stage is set for the Shaikh Rashid Bin Hamdan Al Maktoum Challenge Festival For Private Owners — a CEN 120km endurance ride to be held at Emirates International Endurance Village at Al Wathba on Saturday.

The event is held under the directives of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and UAE Minister of Finance.

More than 100 riders will compete for a total prize purse of Dh1 million, while the winner will drive away in a new Lexus car. The ride will start at 7am and the distance is split into five loops of 40km, 27km, 26km, 19km and 16km.

Adnan Sultan Al Nuaimi, Director-General of the Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club, said, “We have been working hard to complete all arrangements for this race in order to reflect the bright image of the UAE as a major venue for international endurance rides...

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http://gulfnews.com/sport/horse-racing/dh1m-up-for-grabs-in-al-wathba-endurance-ride-1.1431531

Bahrain: Khalid bin Hamad crowns Al-Khatri as National Day Endurance Champion

BNA.bh - Full Article

20/12/2014
Manama, Dec20(BNA) National Guard Commander Lt. General Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalifa, Bahrain Royal Endurance Team leader Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa and Al Khalidiya Stables leader Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, attended the National Day Endurance Race Championship for a distance of 120km and qualifying for a distance of 80km.

Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad presented the prizes to the winners at the end of the race, led by overall number one Fahad Al Khatri.

Riding his horse Siba from Victory Stable of the Royal Team and coached by Ahmed Janahi, Al Khatri claimed the race title after finishing in a total time of 4:58:51 hours with an average speed of 24km/h...

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http://www.bna.bh/portal/en/news/646572

Kuwait: Equestrian Al-Mutairi wins endurance horse race

KUNA.net.kw - Full Article

22/12/2014 | Kuwait News

KUWAIT, Dec 22 (KUNA) -- Kuwaiti equestrian Fahad Al-Mutairi, riding Yejdebaz, won the title of 'Al-Qudra wa Al-Tahammul' (capability and endurance) 100 kilometers horse race, held on Monday as part of the Fifth National Heritage Festival.

The festival kicked off yesterday under auspices of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
Kuwait's Abdullah Al-Mutriga, riding Redam, came in second place followed by Kyrgyz equestrian Abdelhadi Abo-Jemma on his RPG horse while Majed Al-Rashdan, of Kuwait, came in the fourth place on Meotzadeh.

The results of the race will be confirmed after the participating horses undergo anti-doping tests ahead of the prize-giving ceremony...

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http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=2415615&language=en

Kuwait: Equestrian Al-Azemi wins endurance horse race

KUNA.net.kw - Full Article

KUWAIT, Dec 21 (KUNA) -- Female equestrian Abrar Al-Azemi won the 'Al-Qudra wa Al-Tahammul' (capability and endurance) horse race held on Sunday as part of the Kuwait's Fifth National Heritage Festival.

The festival kicked off earlier today under auspices of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
Shadera Ahmad Al-Hajjaj, of the UAE, and her compatriot Hanan Al-Mutairi came in the second and third places respectively.

Kuwait's Jamila Ahmad and Fare'a Al-Wuggayan ranked fourth and fifth in the race that gathered 46 female equestrians from Kuwait and other GCC member states.

The results of the race will be confirmed the participating horses undergo anti-doping tests ahead of the prize-giving ceremony.

Deputy Chairman of the contest affairs committee of the festival Sheikh Sabah Fahad Al-Nasser Al-Sabah commended performance of the contenders in the three stages of the race.

"The participation of female equestrians from Bahrain, Qatar and UAE alongside Kuwaiti contenders added value to the race," he told reporters...

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http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=2415415&language=en