http://www.khaleejtimes.com Dubai Race

[Beverly540@aol.com]

Hi all,
       I know some of the ridecampers have e-mail only, no internet services.
So, for those folks I have reprinted below the 2 articles I found on line
today, Dec. 10, about the race in Dubai. The site address for those who may
have missed it when Steph published it is http://www.khaleejtimes.com    It's
a daily newspaper. 
Happy Trails, Bev Schlegel

Take part in true spirit; Mohammed 
By Lawrence Machado

FOR General Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai
and UAE Minister of Defence, winning is not the ultimate aim in the World
Endurance Championship.

"For me winning is not the main aim but making sure that my horse finishes the
race," said General Shaikh Mohammed after his weigh-in at Ghantoot. He will be
riding Al Aswad (Nelson I), a 12-year-old cross bred gelding in the 160km race
which has attracted a record field of over 175 riders from 37 countries who
will start the race at 5.45am at Ghantoot.

General Shaikh Mohammed and his 12-member team may not have the experience of
previous championships like many of the competing teams but he does have a
winning habit as seen in his recent forays in Ireland and Jordan.

At the last Desert Giants ride from Ghantoot, General Shaikh Mohammed retired
early but his son, Shaikh Rashid bin Mohammed, went on to win the 120km event
in style.

Hassan bin Ali, the racing manager for Shaikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum,
Deputy Ruler of Dubai and UAE Minister of Finance and Industry, is also a
recent winner in the UAE but skipped the last Desert Giants race where he
helped crew for winner, Shaikh Rashid bin Mohammed. Shaikh Rashid will ride Mr
Junabee, the same horse which Hasan bin Ali rode to victory in the opening
Desert Giants race this season.

"We are confident of victory though the Americans are the favourites," said
Shaikh Rashid, who will be accompanied by his brothers, Shaikh Hamdan bin
Mohammed and Shaikh Maktoum bin Mohammed. Abdullah Bilhab, one of the main UAE
competitors, will face extra attention as he is riding Cass, who has recovered
from an accident last year to become one of the best endurance horses in the
world. This is Cass' first outing in the UAE and he will have his American
owners, Tom and Rita Swift, for support.

Meanwhile, the main threat for all competitors will come from the unusually
warm weather at this time of the year. Yesterday, the veterinary officers
admitted that the weather is warmer than expected though the three-week
acclimatisation period for most horses and riders could help them cope better.
Competitors from the Gulf and Asia could have an advantage due to this, though
the Americans have been to sample similar conditions due to a warmer than
usual autumn back home.

Qatar are represented by Saud Al Saaq and Atta Mohammed while the Saudi
Arabians have sent Mohammed Al Mehiesi, Mazin Al Shayan, Abdul Razzak Al
Qahtani and Tareq Taher. 

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Race prizemoney 


By Our Sports Reporter

THE Dubai World Cup bandwagon got rolling yesterday with the organisers
confirming that next year's edition could be the best in its brief history.
The Dubai World Cup committee is also reviewing the amount of prize money for
the richest horse race on earth where the winner rides off with $2.4 million.
The race is schedule for Sunday, March 28.

"We are reviewing the prize money and will make an announcement in January,"
said Kevin Greely, racing secretary of the World Cup Committee.

"The quality of the 62 horses nominated, which includes last year's winner,
Silver Charm, Real Quiet, Banshee Breeze and Australia's Might and Power,
gives next year's Dubai World Cup the potential of being the best so far,"
Greely told a Press conference at Naad Al Sheba.

"The Breeders Cup Classic offers $4 million but the organisers give only 55
per cent of that to the winner while we give 60 per cent," said Greely.

Dr Michael Osborne, chairman of the World Cup committee, said that the new
lighting planned for the Naad Al Sheba course, where the World Cup is held,
will help maximise the use of the grass track. The enhanced lighting,
scheduled to come on in March, will be in addition to the extensions on the
grandstand.

Nancy Petch, Dubai co-ordinator, spoke about the overall renovations and
improvements at the racecourse. "We are also redesigning the International
Village for the entertainment of the general public," she said. Group One
winner in both Europe and America, Daylami, heads the 54 nominations for the
Jebel Ali Free Zone and Dubai Ports Authority Turf Classic while the Dubai
Arabian Classic has been awarded Group One status, which is a major boost for
the organisers. The timings of the races will be released next month.

BBC will be showing the Dubai World Cup (Group 1) and the Dubai Duty Free
Stakes (Group 3) live. Colm McLoughlin of Dubai Duty Free and Ghaith Al Ghaith
of Emirates airline, the title sponsors, also spoke at the Press conference. 

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Capital golf 


By A Correspondent

A TOP field of 63 local and AGCC golfers starts the 26th Abu Dhabi Men's Open
golf tournament at the Abu Dhabi Airport sand golf course today. The 36-hole
tournament is sponsored by African and Eastern (N.E.) Ltd. and British
Airways. The home professional Dayle Kelly will strike the first blow in this
year's championship played over two days.

The final three ball will tee off at 12.10pm in the third qualifying round of
the 1998-99 UGA Men's Topflite Order of Merit supported by Sun and Sands LLC.

Final draw: 8.30 D. Kelly (ADGC), S. Chambers (RLGC), C. Forster (FGCC); 8.40
I. Clark (ADGEC), S. Liddell (ADGC), A. Al Boainin (QGC); 8.50 G. Bent
(ADGEC), M. Al Mansouri (ADGC), W. Finley (AGC); 9.00 R. Davis (FGCC), R.
Connor (ADGC), J. Field (AGC); 9.20 J. Mason (FGCC), D. Tait (ADGC), F. Al
Shammre (QGC); 9.30 M. Twitchett (ADGC), D. Moore (FGCC), K. Evans (AGC); 9.40
F. Rahmattallah (ADGC), S. Hall (FGCC), A. Khalifa (BGC); 9.50 t. Nakano
(FGCC), S.C. Kim (ADGC), S. Sabri (AAGC); 10.10 J. Steven (ADGC), D. Miller
(WGC), Hassin A. Abdulla (BGC); 10.20 K. Salem Hamed (BGC), R. Ferguson
(ADGC), D. White (DCC); 10.30 Ali S. Al Noami (BGC), T. Moremon (ADGC), A.
Musbah (BGC); 10.40 K. Hind (DCC), R. Valencia (ADGC), Nasser S. Al Mahsni
(BGC); 11.00 Y. Carter (ADGC), Hamed S. Hamed (BGC), K. Herring (DCC); 11.10
M. Johnstone (ADGEC), H.J. Kim (ADGC), W. Mcbride (DCC); 11.20 Adnan M. Al
Suwaidi (BGC), G. Douglas (ADGC), T. Prescott (DCC); 11.30 M.B. Juma (DCC), D.
Hebenton (ADGC), S. Mather (DCC); 11.40 D. Stevenson (UGA), I. Sharif (DCGYC),
C. Reynolds (ADGC); 11.50 I. Mcpherson (Oman), A. Crawford (ADGC), S. Shamsaee
(DCGYC); 12.00 R. Bain (EGC), D. Whyte (DCC), J. Fellingham (DCGYC); 12.10 A.
Flaherty (EGC), M. Brett (DCC), M.E. Al Khalifa (BGC) Reserves: P.Donaldson
(ADGC). 

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UAE players top 


By A Correspondent

UAE players were in tremendous form, warding off a stiff challenge from
overseas stars to win the Open pairs, Mixed Pairs and the Swiss Team event in
the 7th Sharjah Bridge Festival held at the City Centre Hotel, Dubai. Leading
the UAE challenge was Maged Elewa, whose excellent performance earned him the
coveted king-of-the-tournament title and helped his team as well as the mixed
partnership to victories in the respective category.

The 6-day fiesta, held to coincide with UAE's National Day celebrations,
attracted a record 150 players from the UAE, Kuwait, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon,
Oman, Bahrain, Pakistan and India.

National Paints, Container Services Company and Karam Group sponsored the
various events. The tournament commenced with a three-day Open pairs event.
This was keenly contested with leaders changing with every round. However, a
strong rally in the final round by established stars Jameel Ahmed and Finton
Lewis (UAE) helped win the title, marginally ahead of runners-up Deepak Mehra
and Olavo D'Souza (UAE) and Jaffer brothers (Pakistan). The two-session Mixed/
Ladies Pairs event was next to follow.

The husband-wife team of Maged and Martene (UAE) took an early lead and held
on to it through both the sessions to finish worthy winners.

They staved off a strong challenge from the Egyptian international player,
Lilian and Basheer Ahmed. The third spot was won by Sultan Siddiqi and
Mehrangiz (Pakistan). Amongst the Ladies Pair, Roshan Bukhari/ Tita Agha (Pak)
stood first, while Arlene/ Jacqueline (UAE) and Nisreen/ Lamia (UAE) claimed
the second and third spot respectively.

The third and the final event of the tournament was the Swiss Team
championship. This was played in two stages, the qualification matches (phase
I) being followed by a play-off (phase II) between the 4 qualifiers for the
top spot. After a keen tussle, Maged's team (Maged, Sherban, Abdullah Shaa,
Nicholae) won by the narrowest margin, just a solitary point ahead of Maud's
team (Maud, Lily, Basheer, Taqi and Dr. Nigam). The third position went to Dr.
Mahmood's team (Dr Mahmood, Lotfy, Mohsen Kamel, Amr Askalami). 



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