The undefeated filly “THAYDAH ATHBAH”, emerged as the champion of the third edition of the Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Cup for purebred Arabian horses aged four and above, competing in the third category over a distance of 1600 meters. The race took place on September 9, 2023, at Haydock Park Racecourse in the United Kingdom, with a prize purse of £20,000, under the patronage of the fifteenth edition of the Sheikh Mansoor bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival.
The organization of the race is aimed at promoting and supporting the heritage of purebred Arabian horses and is organized with the support and encouragement of HH Sheikh Mansoor bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, Minister of Presidential Court and Chairman for the Emirates Arabian Horse Society, with the aim of developing the horse racing industry worldwide, supporting the preservation of purebred Arab horse breeds, and encouraging breeders to care for them across continents.
The undefeated filly “THAYDAH ATHBAH” trained by Philip Collington and ridden by Taj O’Shea, left no room for male and female competitors as she won comfortably with a lead of 4.25 lengths over her undefeated rival “UPSTART CROW”.
The champion, descending from the “AF Bahr” bloodline, clocked a time of 1:52:35 over the one-mile race distance. “MAYFAIR”, secured the third place.
The race was presented by Lara Sawaya, Executive Director of the Sheikh Mansoor bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival, and Jenny Heinz, CEO of the Arabian Racing Organization in England. Trainer Philip Collington received the award on behalf of the owner, and jockey Taj O’Shea also received his prize.
Lara Sawaya extended her congratulations to the winners and praised the high-quality participation in the race. She commended the undefeated filly “Zaida Azza” for her performance in this third round of the competition under the festival’s patronage, emphasizing that this event is one of the most significant races in the United Kingdom.
Jenny Heinz expressed her gratitude to the Sheikh Mansoor bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival for their continuous and generous support of their race, highlighting the popularity of the Wathba Stallions series, which supports the grassroots of this sport worldwide. She also thanked them for increasing the prize fund to £20,000.
The festival includes races such as the Jewel of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan’s Crown, the Zayed Cup, the Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Cup, the Wathba Stallions Cup, and the International Meeting for Purebred Arabian Horse Racing.
The festival’s inaugural race started strongly on January 11 of this year. With the addition of new races in the 2023 season, the festival includes a total of 152 local and international races around the world, covering various categories such as first, second, and third-class races.
The HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Horse Racing Festival is sustained by the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture & Tourism coordinated by Abu Dhabi Sports Council, with National Feed as strategic partner, The National Library & Archives as the official partner , MUBADALA as the official partner ,Emirates Airline as the official carrier, Etisalat as official sponsor & sponsored by Al Massood Automobiles Nissan, Areej Alameerat, Omeir Travels Agency, YAS Sports TV, Viola Communications, the UAE’s General Women’s Union , Emirates International Endurance Village, Emirates Arabian Horse Society & Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club.
