Qatar Tribune
Tour 2 of the Sixth season of the very popular Qatar Equestrian Tour – Longines Hathab, supported by The Social & Sport Contribution Fund (Daam), will be held at Qatar Equestrian Federation’s (QEF) Indoor Arena this weekend (September 16 - 17).
The new season has begun comparatively early this season so that the riders can get into the groove before the break for the FIFA World Cup 2022 in November and December.
The first round held in the first week of September saw a large number of entries in all showjumping and the dressage class indicating the growing interest of riders in taking up the sport at a professional level.
A large number of riders made up the list in the Small Tour, Medium Tour, and Future Riders’ classes besides the Open Class, Big Tour, and Teams Tour.
For the record, there were as many as 62 entries in the Small Tour, 45 in the Open Class while 16 made the final round of the Big Tour.
Qatar’s top riders and young and upcoming riders participate in the annual equestrian series which sees Tours at QEF and the Longines Arena at Al Shaqab. The series of 14 individual and team competitions this season is being held between September 2022 to April 2023 and includes multiple categories in showjumping and dressage, across various age groups.
An initiative of HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President of the Qatar Olympic Committee and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Al Shaqab, Longines Hathab is the country’s premier equestrian competition series and fulfills a vital role for the horseriding community.
It seeks to inspire Qatar’s next generation of international champions as well as increase awareness of horsemanship as part of Qatar’s culture and tradition.
Longines Hathab has been steadily growing year on year leading to riders’ excellence and stature with many going on to represent the Qatari national equestrian teams, and Qatar at other international championships.
This year, Longines Hathab is also helping Qatar’s equestrian team prepare for participation at a camp in the Netherlands ahead of the qualifiers for the finals of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, besides other Arab and international championships.
Following the first round at QEF, Hassan Yousef Al Obaidly, Head of the Program Evaluation Study Department at the Sports and Social Activities Support Fund (Daam), expressed satisfaction with the strong start of the Qatar Equestrian Tour – Longines-Hathab, noting that he was surprised by the number of fans who attended the event, as also a large number of participants.
Al Obaidly said: “The organization is very distinguished, and the great participation of the riders and horse owners in the championship is a matter of pride and happiness, especially since most of them are Qataris.”
Regarding the sponsorship of Hathab by the support fund, he said: “This is the second time that we are supporting the tournament and there is permanent cooperation between us, Al Shaqab, and the Qatar Equestrian Federation.
“We applaud Hathab’s strength and success in the community and its great impact on the riders in particular the youth in the last few years,” he added.
Ali bin Yousef Al Rumaihi, Event Director, Longines Hathab, also welcomed the bright start and thanked the media, social media, and television for highlighting the event and the efforts of the organizers, riders, and judges.
He said the impact of Hathab has led to an increase in buying and selling of horses in the local Qatar market. With the growing number of riders, there is demand for more horses – being bred at various stud farms in and around Qatar.