Doha [Qatar], February 10: The Qatar Racing & Equestrian Club (QREC) announced its full readiness for the launch of the HH The Amir Sword Festival at Al Rayyan Racecourse, which will run over four days from Wednesday, until Saturday (February 11-15). The programme will comprise two days of racing on the sand track, followed by two days on the turf.
To mark this readiness, a press conference was held at QREC on Monday, and attended by Bader bin Mohammed Al Darwish, Acting Chief Executive Officer of QREC, Ahmed Al Sheebani, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, and Abdulla Al Kubaisi, Racing Manager.
Representatives of the Festival's sponsors were also present, including Nasr Jairoudi, General Manager of AlfardanPremier Motors, Hassan Youssef Al Obaidly, Director of Programs at the Social and Sports Activities Support Fund (DAAM), Ahmed Abdullah Al Attiyah, Director of Public Relations at the Qatar Media Corporation, and Faisal bin Khalid Al Otaibi, Chairman of Loom, the Festival's marketing partner.
Ready for flagship Festival
Bader bin Mohammed Al Darwish, Acting Chief Executive Officer of QREC, said: "I would like to welcome you all to this press conference, held just hours before the start of the HH The Amir Sword Festival. I would like also to confirm that all organisational and logistical arrangements for this year's Festival have been completed, including the full readiness of the Al Rayyan Racecourse and the entire infrastructure of the QREC."
He added: "The Festival features a total of 32 races across the four days. It begins with two days of sand-track racing, bringing together the leading sand specialists among Purebred Arabians and Thoroughbreds. Attention then switches to the turf on the third day, which includes one of the Festival's most important races, dedicated to local breeders. The Festival concludes with a series of major feature races, highlighted by the HH The Amir Sword and the HH The Amir Trophy, each carrying total prize money of US$2.5 million. Notably, the HH The Amir Trophy will be staged this year as an International Group 2 contest for the first time, having previously held Group 3 status."
He confirmed that the HH The Amir Trophy for Thoroughbreds and the HH The Amir Sword for Purebred Arabians will both be run on the closing day, as Races 3 and 4 on the card.
Al Darwish noted that this year's edition holds particular significance for Al Ghadeer, owned by Al Shaqab Racing, who will be seeking not only to defend his title, but also to secure the HH The Amir Sword for a third consecutive time. Achieving that feat would see the horse complete the Doha Triple Crown for the third time, an unprecedented achievement.
Addressing the new elements of this year's renewal of the Festival, Al Darwish said: "Among the additions to the programme are several new races, including the Middle-Distance Cup - a Local Purebred Arabian Handicap (85-105) over 1700m, the Sand Sprint Cup - a Thoroughbred Handicap (85-105) over 1200m, and the Qatar International Thoroughbred Handicap Cup (90-110) over 2400m. We are confident that competition among owners, trainers and jockeys will exceed expectations, given the high level of challenge across the programme. We wish all participants the very best as they compete for the season's most prestigious honours."
Source: Qatar Tribune