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Day Two: CSI 3*

Home rider Salman Mohammed A S Al Emadi clinched top prize in the second CSI 3* event on Day Two of CHI AL SHAQAB 2016, fending off competition from 25 riders. The two-phase jumping competition required contestants to clear fences with a maximum height of 1m 45. With only six clear rounds achieved, the course was certainly a challenging one.

Home rider Salman Mohammed A S Al Emadi clinched top prize in the second CSI 3* event on Day Two of CHI AL SHAQAB 2016, fending off competition from 25 riders. The two-phase jumping competition required contestants to clear fences with a maximum height of 1m 45. With only six clear rounds achieved, the course was certainly a challenging one.

The winner of the previous competition, Ali Al Khorafi, took an early lead, but was pipped at the post by Al Emadi near the end of the competition. The Qatari rider and his excitable horse Zorro Z impressed the audience with a slick display of harmony, accuracy and courage. The pair posted the fastest time of 26.9 seconds - comfortably ahead of Al Khorafi’s time of 28.07 seconds. Saudi rider Khaled Abdulaziz Al Eid trailed just 0.09 seconds behind, taking third place on the experienced stallion Old Chap Tame.

In the two-phase competition, riders were required to clear the first seven fences within a set time, before negotiating the remaining five fences against the clock. The treble, involving three fences in a row, caused its fair share of faults over the course of the competition.

Finishing outside the placings, despite showing great promise, was Qatari rider Maryam Mubarak A. Al Ali. Maryam was disappointed with her eight faults, but looked forward to improving her performance in tomorrow’s competition. As one of a minority of female Qatari Jumping riders, Al Ali could be the first woman to make a national team in one of the very few sports where men and women compete on an equal basis. She already has two horses capable of 5* level, and it is her ambition to compete at World Equestrian Games and Olympic Games in the future. Her experience at CHI AL SHAQAB will certainly stand her in good stead.