egyptian race in Khaleej times

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Shaikh Mohammed to ride in Egyptian race 

CAIRO - Top Arab riders, including General Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al 
Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE Minister of Defence, will test their 
horses in a 100km desert race near the pyramids today with prizes totalling a 
million pounds at stake.

The endurance race starts at dawn in Sakkara, outside Cairo, and will take 
around 160 contestants over a looping, hilly course overlooking the pyramids 
of Giza, Dahshour and Sakkara.

General Shaikh Mohammed, who is one of the world's leading racehorse 
owners-breeders and endurance champions, will be up against riders from the 
Gulf, Jordan and Egypt.

Competitors must pace their horses, all pure-blooded Arabians or 
Arabian-mixed breeds, carefully to cover the course in the stipulated minimum 
time of seven hours and maximum of nine.

The race, the first in Egypt to be governed by international rules, does not 
necessarily go to the fastest. Riders are also judged on the condition of 
their horses at the finish.

"An endurance race teaches people true horsemanship as the contestants learn 
how to monitor training and development of their horses," said Maryanne 
Gabbani, a local rider-manager.

"A horse needs two to three years of intensive training to master the art of 
running distances and finishing healthy," she told Reuters.

"Contestants from the UAE will be old hands at this type of race since their 
horses have participated in numerous endurance races in harsh environments."

The horses must be at least six years old. Riders must be aged at least 14 
and weigh at least 75kg, making up any shortfall with weights.

A score of Egyptian and foreign veterinarians backed by a team of veterinary 
students will be posted along the course to make sure horses are fit to 
continue.

The race will be run in temperatures that could reach 33 degrees Centigrade 
(91.4 Fahrenheit) and the horses will be able to quench their thirst at 
watering stations every five km.

"Most local riders are in it more to get the experience than to win," Gabbani 
said of the 70 or so Egyptian contestants. - Reuters