Dubai World Cup

Dubai World Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually since 1996 at the Nad Al Sheba Racecourse in the city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The race is operated through the Emirates Horse Racing Authority (EHRA) whose Chairman is Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Presidential Affairs of United Arab Emirates.

The race was the creation of the Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum who owns Darley Stud & Godolphin Racing, one of the world's leading thoroughbred breeding and racing operations.

Being the world`s richest horse race, it is an event that attracts the very best horses, jockeys and trainers from all over the world, offering horse racing of the highest caliber. Among the horses entered in the inaugural race was a 13-time winner from Australia, a seven-race winner from Great Britain, the ‘dirt horse’ champion from Japan, and Cigar, North America’s ‘Horse of the Year’ for 1995.

In little over a decade, the event has established itself as the pièce de resistance on the international horseracing calendar. Reflective of the overwhelming generosity of the UAE and embodying the warmth of traditional Arabian hospitality, contenders for the purses are flown in from all corners of the world, such as North and South America, South Africa, South East Asia, Australasia and Europe, and horsemen enjoy generous travel subsidies for their support of racing in the UAE. With a purse of $6 million to the winner, this year sees the 13th running of the richest horse race in the world. Classified as a ‘Group 1 Flat Race’ on dirt for four-year-old thoroughbreds and above, the Dubai World Cup spans a distance of two kilometres (one mile, two furlongs). 

Sponsored by Emirates Airline, the 2008 Dubai World Cup will be held on Saturday, March 29, it will hosted by the 4 racing clubs of the United Arab Emirates; the Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club, Dubai Racing Club, Jebel Ali Racecourse,  Sharjah Equestrian & Racing Club. The Dubai World Cup meeting comprises of seven races of varying purses, totalling a staggering $21.25 million. Chief supporting races are the $5 million Dubai Duty Free and the $5 million Dubai Sheema Classic - the two richest races run on turf, anywhere in the world. Also on the card are the Dubai Golden Shaheen and UAE Derby, both worth $2 million, and the $1 million Godolphin Mile, while the evening kicks off with the Group 1 Dubai Kahayla Classic for Purebred Arabians.

Perhaps part of the Dubai World Cup’s success is not only due to the state-of-the-art race track, but the burgeoning status of Dubai as an international crossroads and global transport hub, and of course a first-class tourist destination, evidenced by more than 50,000 racegoers attending the Dubai World Cup meeting each year.  

By: Shabina Sanad

GOWEALTHY.COM © 2008

For comments: editor@gowealthy.com