“INCOGNITO”

Enchanting Horses & the Allure of the Middle East

by Samantha Mattocks photography by Irina Filsinger

January 2011 sees the fourth running of the world-renowned Al Khalediah

Arabian Horse Festival. With an auction, endurance, racing and an ECAHO A

class halter show, the Festival is a thoroughly enjoyable, week-long event that

has become a firm favourite among the Arabian horse community.

The festival is run under the patronage of HRH Prince Khaled bin Sultan bin

Abdulaziz Al Saud and represents a coming together of his innovative vision

in promoting the origins and versatility of the Arabian horse. Central to Arab

culture, the Arabian horse has its origins in the desert and HRH Prince Khaled

is proud to be behind this showcase event which captures the true magic of the

Arabian horse, which has captivated so many for hundreds of years.

“PERUVIAN SPLENDOR”

Flying into Riyadh is a magical experience,

with the sprawling metropolis rising out of the

desert sands to meet you. The largest city in the

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh is the nation’s

capital and belongs to the historical regions of

Nejd and Al-Yamama. An hour’s drive away is

Tebrak, home of Al Khalediah Stables, and the

setting for the Festival.

Al Khalediah Stables is home to show-ring

stars such as Baanderos, Marquis and Layan

Al Khalediah and with its beautiful layout, own

racing circuit and endurance track, as well

as a purpose-built show arena, the stables is

the perfect setting for this benchmark show.

Renowned for quality and depth of entries, the

atmosphere at Al Khalediah is always one of

calm and serenity, with guests able to sit back

and relax, and enjoy the beautiful Arabian horses

before them.

The 2011 Festival will begin with endurance.

The Prince Khaled’s Cup Endurance Challenge

2011 is a FEI CEI** 120km event, where riders

are able to compete through the desert. With the

safety and welfare of the horses of paramount

CH BAANDEROS

importance, there will be ice water for

cooling and drinking water available

for the horses every 5km. The true

spirit of the desert Arabian will be

tested in this exciting opening to the

Festival.

The Monday sees an auction of 70

pure-bred Arabian horses, providing

a chance to purchase some of the

treasured bloodlines of this region

while on the Tuesday, the attention is

focused on the racetrack. Open to pure-

bred Arabian horses from the Kingdom

of Saudi Arabia, this five-race card

offers all the thrills and excitement you

would expect from such an event. With

Al Khalediah Stables and Athbah Stud

having had race winners across Europe

and the Middle East, this will be an

event not to be missed.

The final part of the Festival is spent

at the horse show. Each year, the

quality of entries has deepens and the

horses that have ended up victorious

have gone on to enjoy further success

around the world. For 2011, the

judges for this ECAHO A Show are

Dr Gianmarco Aragno (Italy), Nayla

Hayek (Switzerland), Holger Ismer

(Germany), Jaroslav Lacina (Czech

Republic), Dr Mohamed Machmoum

(Morocco) and Marie-Louise van Wyk

(South Africa).

HRH Prince Khaled has a clear and

explicit desire for the show to be held

in a natural, relaxed manner away

from the bagging that accompanies

many shows, and this is strictly

enforced throughout. This desire runs

through all aspects of the Festival and

the wellbeing of the horse is the main

focus.

During the three-day show, there are

also the hotly contested desert-bred

classes. For horses bred only in the

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and of the

original desert lines, these are the

classes that the local breeders most

want to win.

On the Friday evening, the Festival

finally draws to a close, and as the sun

sets in the desert behind, the newly

garlanded Champion Arabians sparkle

under the centre-ring spotlights. This

moment is a culmination of not just the

week’s events, but months of planning

that has gone into making the Festival

a success for everyone.

This exciting and all-encompassing

Festival is capably run by Melanie

Mannix with her dedicated team.

Melanie has a strong equine

background in racing which, combined

with good business knowledge, ensures

that the Festival runs smoothly for

horses, exhibitors and spectators alike.

LINKS

alkhalediah-festival.com

For more information on the 2011 event,

please contact the Festival Office at

info@ahahf.com or visit the website:

www.akahf.com. We look forward to seeing

you there, where you can experience the

majestic beauty of the Arabian horse,

combined with the allure of the

Middle East, for yourself.