Essam Al-Sayed (Abu Dhabi)
The activities of the Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan International Endurance Festival will start on Wednesday morning at the Boudhieb Global Endurance Village, which will continue until next Sunday and include 4 races, organized by the Equestrian and Racing Federation.
The festival’s activities begin with a race for private stables and individual participation for a distance of 100 km. On the second day, a women’s race for a distance of 100 km will be held, with the participation of the elite Emirates female knights in the country, along with other female knights representing the different stables.
The third day will witness the launch of the Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan International Endurance Cup, for a distance of 161.9 km, which is internationally classified as “two stars”. Also, the international youth and junior race for a distance of 100 km “one star”.
The distance of the private stables race is 100 km, and it was divided into 4 stages. The distance of the first stage, painted with orange flags, is 30.30 km, the second with blue flags is 30.80 km, then the third with white flags in white, and its distance is 20.17 km, while the last stage drawn by flags is The green is 20.07 km, and the stages are interspersed with compulsory rest periods ranging from 40 to 60 minutes.
Among the most prominent and important conditions of the race is that the minimum age of the participating horse is 6 years and above, and that the weight of the rider is not less than 60 kg with the saddle, and that the horse’s pulse after the end of each of the four stages does not exceed 64 beats per minute.
The village of Boudhieb witnessed veterinary examinations of horses and the weights of male and female riders in accordance with the conditions and regulations of the race, and the Equestrian and Racing Federation completed the arrangements for holding the festival through the specialized committees.
The last edition of the race saw the riders of Al Ain Stables dominate the first and second places, and the Uruguayan rider Walter Hernandez won on the back of “SM Real” with a time of 3:55:49 hours, followed by his compatriot and his companion in the stable, Fiber Perez, on the back of “HC Shakira”. Recording 3:55:59 hours.
