HH The President of the UAE Endurance Cup

Presidents Cup Results

UAE rider swept the first 9 positions of the 160-km race, with Sultan Ahmed Al Baloushi, riding Cronus (Set Sail) in first, in 6:25.13, with Omair Husain Abdulla Al Bloushi riding Marlicia Walter second by 7 seconds. Both are from Al Reef Stables.

France's Sarah Chakil, riding Bahia De Piboul finished 10th followed by fellow countrywoman Cecile Miletto riding Easy Fontnoire.

Americans Cici Butler-Stasiuk finished 20th on DJB Cytron Kon, in 8:19.43, and Deborah Reich and DJB Juniper finished 32nd, in 10:06.08.

Valerie Kanavy and Spectacular Gold were eliminated at the finish on metabolics. Leaving gate 5, she'd been in 13th place, 40 minutes behind the leader.

99 horses started and 32 finished.

Al Reef Stables Wins Again

Al Reef Stables, Abu Dhabi, won the third consecutive year the 12th edition of HH President of United Arab Emirates Endurance Cup, better known as Presidents Cup

The stable won the first edition of the race in 2000 with Abdullah Khamis Al Daees e Ben Salou.

In 2009, made with tripe and Yousef Ahmed Al Baloushi Charlandre El Sharif, who established the first horse world record in tests of 160 km a year before the Maktoum Cup with Omair Husain Abdulla Al Bloushi, placed second with Silversprings Kabir Arwa.

In 2010, Sultan Ahmed Al Baloushi, younger brother of Yousef, El Sharif won with Charlandre who broke his own record.

This year, together with Sultan did Cronus (Set Sail) and crossed in the first place (6:25:13 and 24.92 km / h) followed by cousin Omair Husain (6:25:13 and 24.91 km / h) Marlice with Walter. Third was the knight in Dubai, Majed Mohd Salman Al Sabri Armin s Zulu (6:30:35 e 24,58 km/h). (6:30:35 and 24.58 km / h).

Less than a month, on January 15, ran the HH Sh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Endurance Cup 2011, the first 160 km race of the season and also made Al Reef double cousins. This time, with OH-Omair Jay Sultan cruised through the first and second with Walter Marlice.

Ninety-nine riders from over 10 countries are prepared to try an unprecedented achievement in the test His Highness The President of United Arab Emirates Endurance Cup on Saturday, February 12.

Fifteen riders in the U.S., Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden and Slovakia will compete alongside their colleagues from the UAE and the GCC in the 160 km race, held at the Emirates International Endurance Village in Al Wathba in attempt to become the first champion of the event not Emirati.

Read more here:
http://www.enduroonline.com.br/presidents_cup2011.asp

Al Beloushi scores repeat victory

Emirati rider wins second successive president's cup in Abu dhabi
By Leslie Wilson Jr, Racing & Special Features Writer
February 13, 2011

Gulf News -http://gulfnews.com/sport/other-sports/al-beloushi-scores-repeat-victory-1.761120 Dubai: The Al Reef Stables' Sultan Ahmad Al Baloushi won the HH The President of the UAE Endurance Cup for the second year in a row as he led a sensational UAE sweep of the top nine positions in the CEI three star ride at Abu Dhabi's Emirates International Endurance Village in Al Wathba yesterday.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance, Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs and other Shaikhs and officials attended the ride.

Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince, participated in the event which saw a total of 90 riders in action.

Al Beloushi, who was aboard the bay gelding Cronus, held off a strong challenge from fellow Al Reef rider Omair Hussain Abdullah Al Bloushi to win the gruelling 160km event in a time of 6 hours 25.13 minutes. Al Bloushi, riding the grey Marlicia Walter, finished just seven seconds behind the winner.

Third place went to Majid Mohammad Salman Al Sabri who clocked a time of 06:30.35 aboard the 10-year-old chestnut Armin s Zulu. Al Sabri rides out of the Emaar Stables who also supplied the fourth place finisher, Ahmad Mohammad Al Jaber Al Marri who finished in 06:38.27.

Mohammad Ali Al Shafar, from the Al Reeh Endurance Stables was fifth aboard Dalyn Man, while another Emaar Stables rider, Buti Ali Saif Ali Al Nuaimi took the sixth place with Laziz du Barthas. Al Shafar set a time of 06:46.42 while Al Nuaimi clocked 06:52.15.

Emirates Stables' Ahmad Mohammad Yafour Al Sabusi finished seventh, Thani Mohammad Al Muhairi of the Seeh Al Salam Endurance Stables eighth and Mansour Ebrahim Al Salman from the Fazaa Endurance Team in ninth place.

French endurance rider Sarah Chakil finished best among the international riders in 10th place.

Al Baloushi brothers and fellow Emiratis take on the world in 160km President's Cup endurance race at Al Wathba

photo:Maria Alvarez Ponton (1) leads Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (7) at the 2010 World Endurance Championship. John Sommers / Reuters

ABU DHABI

The reigning world champion Maria Alvarez Ponton of Spain and Valerie Kanavy, the two-time world champion from the United States, are among the top riders in today's President's Cup endurance race at the Emirates International Endurance Village in Al Wathba.

Ponton, who trains endurance horses in Dubai with her husband, Juma Punti Dachs, won the world title from Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, in the US last September.

Today, Ponton will compete aboard Iska, a 15-year-old Anglo-Arab. When she rode at the world championship in Lexington, Kentucky last year, she was on Nobby, a purebred Arabian of the same age.

Kanavy, the winner of the world title in 1994 and 1998, is one of the five riders from the US who will compete in today's 160km race. She rides Spectacular Gold, a nine-year-old bay gelding.

She won on Gold Raven over the same distance at the Dupuis Equestrian Centre near Indiantow, Florida, at the first US endurance meeting of the season in January. The Al Reef Stables' al Baloushi brothers, Yousef Ahmed and Sultan Ahmed, have won the last two runnings of the race and they post the biggest challenge in a field that also include past winners Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid, the Crown Prince of Dubai; Hassan bin Ali and Abdulla Khamis Ali Saeed.

"The President's Cup is the biggest endurance prize in Abu Dhabi and is the dream of every rider to win it," said Yousef Ahmed al Baloushi, who trained and rode the 2008 winner Charlendre El Sharif, who repeated that success under Sultan Ahmed, the younger brother, last year.

Yousef has been the most successful trainer/rider in the domestic season for the past five years and he is riding Elphyn Silverlight, a nine-year-old grey gelding.

He also trained OH-Jay, the winner of the Sheikh Rashid bin Mohammed Cup, another 160km race in Dubai in January, ridden by his cousin Omair Hussain al Baloushi.

"We have had a lot of success because we have prepared the horses well, and we also are quite fortunate to have some good horses in training," he said. "A 160km race will test the best of the horses but we are hopeful."

It was announced yesterday the Netherlands will host the second World Arabian Horse Racing Conference from June 16-18 following the success of the inaugural conference in Abu Dhabi last September.

President's Cup

Pamela Burton reports on the 2011 UAE President's Cup

"I’m off to Abu Dhabi! When the winter chill hits the riding trails, we are all thinking of warm breezes, a perfect time to visit the Arabian Gulf ~ well, if it is Abu Dhabi. The winter weather in Abu Dhabi is like Palm Springs ~ lovely for all snowbirds to warm up, enjoy the turquoise sea near the water and inland, desert jeep safaris complete with camels to ride and a “almost” genuine Arabic feast ~ and don’t forget the dancing girls!

February is also the annual Abu Dhabi Endurance Invitational, the President of the UAE Cup, known as “The President’s Cup”. The 2011 ride has invited 20 horses and riders from Europe and North America. Valerie Kanavy, Deborah Reich and Ceci Butler-Stasiuk will be the US representatives. While Valerie has many times been to the UAE, it will be the first trip for Deborah and Ceci. Jason Stasiuk, Ceci’s husband, called yesterday and said Ceci was scheduled to leave that evening with all three horses from Miami. ”She is so excited she is about to burst,” he said.

The ride started in 2000 with about 14 National riders, but now is a popular ride to show off horses from the many stables in the Gulf States. The ride is high profile, with many of the world’s top ranked riders invited, but it is assuredly tipped in favor of the home teams. The horses that have been trained in the hot desert climate on the sandy terrain by professional trainers have the upper hand, as much as the Alaska bred Iditarod dogs have in that race over a one owner team of dogs bred and trained in Milwaukee. That said, the Invited Riders know to ride to their horses’ ability and not try to race to the lead.

In any case, it’s a great adventure. The Arabs (the people not the horses) are known for their hospitality to guests and will have some fun treats in store for the riders including tours of local horse farms. There is big prize money and a car goes to the winner…and in the past there was payout for every rider that completed the ride. I’ll have more details after the Friday, February 11th Press Conference.

More news as it comes. By the way, the temperature in Abu Dhabi at present is 70 degrees F (20 C) and it is night time. They are 12 hours ahead in time (GMT+4)."

Current: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday vet-in -
Read more at Pamela's blog

Stage set for 90 riders to undergo gruelling 160km Endurance Cup

Friday, 11 February 2011

Ninety riders from over 10 countries are set to lock horns in the His Highness The President of United Arab Emirates Endurance Cup on Saturday.

Fifteen riders from the USA, Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden and Slovakia will line up alongside their counterparts from the UAE and the GCC in the 160km endurance horse race at the Emirates International Endurance Village in Al Wathba, as they bid to become the first-ever non-Emirati winners of the event.

Starting at 6am and running until 10.30pm, the race is split into six phases of between 16km and 34km, with two recovery inspection periods after the fourth and fifth loop. Last year’s race was won by Sultan Ahmed Al Bloushi, on Charlandre El Sharif, in a time of 06:21:12.

And the rider has again been in good form this season, winning the National Day Cup in December.

The top-three riders will each get their hands on a set of keys for a shiny new car, as will the winners of the team event.

The race is run under the directives of His Highness The President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and General Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, under the supervision of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Presidential Affairs.

The event is also held in conjunction with the Al Wathba Stud Farm, Abu Dhabi Sports Council, Abu Dhabi Culture and Heritage, Invest AD, Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition 2011, Areej Al Ameerat and HSBC Bank.

Declan Hegarty, HSBC’s Managing Director and Head of Business, Abu Dhabi said: “HSBC is proud to support Abu Dhabi and ADIHEX in celebrating Emirati culture and pastimes as the UAE continues to set the model of economic development for the Middle East.”

On a positive day for purebred Arabian horses, it was also announced by the Global Arabian Horse flat Racing Festival that the World Arabian Horse Racing Conference would be back for a second year, to be held in The Hague.

The conference will be held from June 16-18 and follows from the successful 2010 event that took place in Abu Dhabi.

By Martyn Thomas

Chris Yeoman's President's Cup Adventure - Part I

8th February 2011

Chris is riding in the President’s Cup in Abu Dhabi this weekend on ZT Richshakfy otherwise known as “Ricky”, her talented grey Argentinian gelding who completed his first FEI 160km last year. After months of preparation, Chris, Ricky and the crewing team, headed up by husband John, have now arrived in Abu Dhabi and Chris has sent us this report back.

“We started our journey well. The flights were ok except I was sat opposite a guy that was ill and sick for a lot of the time - yuk yuk yuk!!! That kept me from eating too much on the flight I can tell you! Anyway John and I met up at the airport as planned and made our way to the hotel. We were supposed to be picked up by the hotel but they never turned up so we got a taxi.

We arrived at the hotel at 2am UAE time on Sunday morning the 6th and they were expecting us (that was a relief… bearing in mind their failure to collect us from the airport!)

However, the hotel is undergoing a major makeover and they are building a whole new wing so peaceful it is not! Drills and hammers are going all day every day. Day one for 3 hours during the afternoon they even turn the water off - great!!

On the evening of the 6th Nikki (Malcolm) and Philip (Hirst) arrived, having been held up in London due to bad winds in Germany!...

Read more here:
http://www.endurancegb.co.uk/html/item.asp?ItemId=2282