DOHA: More than 50 Qatar riders, minus the defending champion, will be seen in action battling for top honours over the course of the three-day Emir’s Sword Festival at the Outdoor Arena of the Qatar Equestrian Federation (QEF).
This was announced by QEF President Hamad bin Abdulrahman Al Attiyah.
Last year’s winner Sheikh Ali bin Khalid Al Thani and compatriot Bassem Hassan will not be seen in action this week as the two are busy competing in FEI championships in Europe, Al Attiyah said during a pre-event press conference.
The three-day event - which starts today - carries an overall prize bag of QR1m.
Three competitions - the Small Tour (100/115cm), the Medium Tour (125/135cm) and the Big Tour (140/150cm)- will be held today. The first competition starts at 4:00pm with the second commences at 6:30pm. The third and final competition starts at 8:30pm.
“We expect a stiff competition among the young riders as this is the Emir’s Sword Festival week,” the QEF President said.
He added: “However, this year’s edition will not feature the defending champion Sheikh Ali bin Khalid Al Thani, who won the Emir’s Sword last year. Sheikh Ali and Qatar’s top rider Bassem Hassan are away in Europe competing at top international events. These two riders are battling for FEI Classification points and are out of the country.”
Al Attiyah announced that Qatar National Bank (QNB) are the main sponsors of the event whereas Abdullah Abdulghani & Brothers (Lexus) are the gold sponsor with Al Hazm Mall being the silver sponsor.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank our sponsors for their support and contribution towards making this championship a success. We see this championship growing over the years,” Al Attiyah told reporters at a pre-event press conference on Tuesday.
“Qatar National Bank has as been in partnership with the QEF for several years now. We value their support and hope this sponsorship of this immensely popular championship grows further,” Al Attiyah said.
Ali Al Rumaihi, Qatar’s Olympic Games rider, said: “The championship this year will see a large participation from the national riders in all the three categories. I wish them all the success this week. This championship has seen some memorable performances and we expect something similar from Qatari riders this week.”
QEF Secretary General Badr Al Darwish said: “Without the support of the sponsors, it would not have been possible to raise the standard of the championship to where it is today.”
