Qatar this weekend staged two major events – the Amir Sword Festival of horse racing and the Amir Sword Festival’s show jumping and dressage competition – successfully, reaffirming it’s status as one of the main centres of the equestrian sports in the world.
Plenty of other sports action including the Qatar Cup football semi-finals and the Qatar Cup volleyball final was also held at the weekend but the two popular equestrian competitions stole the limelight. The Amir Sword Festival of horse racing was a three-day event and took place at Qatar Racing and Equestrian Centre (QREC) while the Amir Sword Festival’s show jumping and dressage competition continued for two days at Qatar Equestrian Federation’s (QEF) Outdoor Arena.
The Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani also attended the action at QEF Arena and honoured the winning participants of the two events. It was a fanfare at the two world class centres with a limited number of fans attending the action, held under strict safety and health guidelines issued by the Ministry of Public Health to stop the spread of coronavirus. The Amir Sword Festival of horse racing carried a whopping total prize money of $4.34m while in the showjumping event, a total of QR500,000, was up for grabs. The champion rider of the marquee contest Hamad Nasser Al Qadi walked off with the prestigious Amir’s Sword and a brand new car. The two events also featured entries from abroad adding thrill to the competitions. Mon’nia and Noor Al Hawa grabbed victories in the most coveted events - H H The Amir Festival and H H The Amir Trophy respectively – in horse racing securing a staggering winning prize of $570,000 each.
The top-notch action in equestrian sports will continue in Qatar till the end of the season in around two months time. Next week, Al Shaqab, Qatar Foundation’s state-of-the-art equestrian centre, will organise the 8th edition of Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab which will bring together the best show jumpers in the world. The signature equestrian competition which has gained immense global recognition over the years, will take place from February 25-27, at the Longines Arena at Al Shaqab. A few days later, the same venue will host the Longines Global Champions Tour (LGCT) and Global Champions League 2021 season openers from March 4 to 6. The massively popular 16-leg series will kick off in Doha.
The sports authorities in Qatar are putting in a lot of effort by continuing organising major events despite facing unprecedented challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. All their hardwork is proving fruitful as the top-notch action is giving fans a lot of cheer in these challenging times.
