RESULTS
2pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,000m
Winner: AF Mozhell, Saif Al Balushi (jockey), Khalifa Al Neyadi (trainer)
2.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Majdi, Szczepan Mazur, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
3pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: AF Athabeh, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
3.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: AF Eshaar, Bernardo Pinheiro, Khalifa Al Neyadi
4pm: Gulf Cup presented by Longines Prestige (PA) Dh150,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Al Roba’a Al Khali, Al Moatasem Al Balushi, Younis Al Kalbani
4.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh40,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Apolo Kid, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muahiri
Al Roba'A Al Khali under Al Moatasem Al Balushi took the Gulf Cup for Purebred Arabians across the border to Oman after an impressive win at the Sharjah Racing and Equestrian Club on Saturday.
The five-year-old son of Za’eem ASF started to hang badly after taking over the running on home stretch, but he had just enough stamina left to finish two-and-a-quarter lengths ahead of Saudi Arabia’s Shareq Al Khalediah over the 1,700-metre trip.
“He has run all his races in right handed tracks and that was the only worry we had of him when we arrived here for the race,” Hamed Salim Rashid Al Balushi, the owner-breeder of the winner said.
“Moatasem has ridden him in his last two wins including the Oman Derby for the Arabians and he handled the situation very well. This is his biggest career prize. We’ll go back home and decide where he goes next.”
Al Roba’A Al Khali stretched his winning streak to four. “He’s got a fantastic record and this was his first race outside Oman,” Al Balushi said.
The inaugural Gulf Cup in 2019 was won by Saudi Arabia’s Mubasher Al Khalediah and the Musabah Al Muhairi-trained AF Momtaz landed the prize for the Emirati owner-breeder Khalid Khalifa Al Naboodah last year.
Khalifa Al Neyadi landed a double with two jockeys at the meeting. The Omani apprentice Saif Al Balushi rode AF Mozhell to victory in the opener and the Brazilian Bernardo Pinheiro on board AF Eshaar in the fourth race.
Al Balushi tracked the leaders, took up the running at the 200m mark and stayed on strongly to win from AF Hajeej and Algharbi by three quarter length and a length-and-a-half, respectively.
Pinheiro rode a similar race on AF Eshaar to lead a one-two finish for the stables. He came clear of Inthar under Al Balushi by two-and-three-quarter lengths with and Helal Al Alawi’s Al Hazeer a further quarter length behind in third.
“They have both run some good races in defeat and wasn’t surprising to see them win today,” Al Neyadi said.
“AF Mozhell went down by a neck at this track in his last start three weeks ago and AF Eshaar was also runner up at the track and trip two races earlier. I think they were both due for a win and they didn’t disappoint.”
The story in numbers
18
This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens
450,000
More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps
1.5 million
There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m
73
The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association
18,000
The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme
77,400
The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study
4,926
This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee
'The Batman'
Stars:Robert Pattinson
Director:Matt Reeves
Rating: 5/5
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Sheikh Zayed Future Energy Prize
This year’s winners of the US$4 million Sheikh Zayed Future Energy Prize will be recognised and rewarded in Abu Dhabi on January 15 as part of Abu Dhabi Sustainable Week, which runs in the capital from January 13 to 20.
From solutions to life-changing technologies, the aim is to discover innovative breakthroughs to create a new and sustainable energy future.
Thor: Ragnarok
Dir: Taika Waititi
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum, Mark Ruffalo, Tessa Thompson
Four stars
RESULTS
2pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,000m
Winner: AF Mozhell, Saif Al Balushi (jockey), Khalifa Al Neyadi (trainer)
2.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Majdi, Szczepan Mazur, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
3pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: AF Athabeh, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
3.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: AF Eshaar, Bernardo Pinheiro, Khalifa Al Neyadi
4pm: Gulf Cup presented by Longines Prestige (PA) Dh150,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Al Roba’a Al Khali, Al Moatasem Al Balushi, Younis Al Kalbani
4.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh40,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Apolo Kid, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muahiri
