Caitlin Dillon
The Qatar Gold Sword, an annual event at the Racing and Equestrian Centre, took place yesterday. As the last big meeting on the 2018/2019 racing calendar, eight races took place in total, for both Purebred Arabians and Thoroughbreds, with a cumulative prize money of $1,000,000.
The first race, for purebred Arabians, spanned a distance of 1400m, with Ronan Thomas-led Gold Amer taking the top prize of $17,100.
In race two, the Qatar Silver Sword for local horse owners, again Ronan Thomas piloted the winning colt, this time AJS Moaddie, taking $85,000.
The third race for local thoroughbreds saw Ronan Thomas win his hat-trick as he led Al Lusail around the 1850m course, winning $45,600.
In race 4, the Sealine Sprint Trophy, Theo Bahelot steered Anima Rock into first place, winning $45,600.
The next race, the Al Wajba Trophy, was won by Luchador, with JP Guillambert in tow.
In the Qatar Silver Trophy, Ronan Thomas won another $45,600, this time astride Aahil.
Race seven and eight held the highest prizes, with a purse of $250,000 each.
The Qatar Gold Trophy saw Harry Bentley steer The Blue Eye to an impressive victory, pocketing $142,500.
In the final race of the night, the Qatar Gold Sword race, Yazeed, Gazwan and Ebraz were all favourites to win due to their impressive track records. And, when the time came, Yazeed and Olivier Peslier were first over the finish line, with Gazwan following shortly behind and Ebraz finishing fourth.