Action during last year's Qatar National Day Trophy and the Late Sheikh Jassim Bin Mohammed Bin Thani Trophy race meeting. PIC: JUHAIM/QREC
Doha, Qatar: The Qatar Racing & Equestrian Club (QREC), chaired by Hamad bin Abdulrahman Al Attiyah, will stage a major race meeting this evening, featuring racing for the Qatar National Day Trophy and the Late Sheikh Jassim Bin Mohammed Bin Thani Trophy.
The nine-race card will be run on the turf track at Al Rayyan Racecourse, with leading owners, trainers and jockeys all set to take part as they compete for substantial prize money totalling QR2m. Prize money includes QR500,000 for each of these two feature races, Races 8 and 9 on the card.
In addition to the two feature contests – the Qatar National Day Trophy a Gr2 international racefor Purebred Arabians, and the Late Sheikh Jassim Bin Mohammed Bin Thani Trophy, a Class 1 for LocalPurebred Arabians– the programme also includes a number of cup races.
These high-profile contests include the Al Safliya Cup, a QA Gr3 for Thoroughbreds, which serves as a qualifier for the Shalfa Race to be held during the HH The Amir Sword Festival next February; the Halul Island Cup, an open race for Local Thoroughbreds; the Al Busayyir Cup, a Thoroughbred Conditions; and the Falcon Cup, an open race for Thoroughbreds.
Winners of the cup races will be crowned after each contest while the winners of the two feature trophies will be honoured at the conclusion of the meeting.
QREC has made full preparations for the occasion, which ranks among the QREC’s major fixtures each season and is staged annually in conjunction with the Qatar National Day celebrations.
Al Sij Al Sakab and Jabalah: Last year’s trophy winners
In last year’s renewal, the ninth race, the Late Sheikh Jassim Bin Mohammed Bin Thani Trophy for three-year-old and older Local Purebred Arabians over 1400m, was won by Al Sij Al Sakb, owned by Khalid Hamad Al-Atteya. The then six-year-old delivered a powerful performance under the care of trainer Jassim Hamad Al-Atteya, with Alberto Sanna producing a fine ride.
Meanwhile, the eighth race, the Gr2Qatar National Day Trophy for four-year-old and older Purebred Arabians over 2100m,was claimed by Jabalah, in the colours of Wathnan Racing.
The then eight-year-old finally secured the title after finishing runner-up in the same race in both 2022 and 2023.
The victory came under the supervision of trainer Alban de Mieulle, with James Doyle in the saddle.
