Qatari owners eye top honours at ParisLongchamps

Doha, Qatar: Only a few days to go before the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (QREC) sponsored Qatar Prix de l Arc de Triomphe weekend kicks off at P...

Doha, Qatar: Only a few days to go before the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (QREC)-sponsored Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe weekend kicks off at ParisLongchamp as part of the partnership between QREC and France Galop.

The meeting will take place next Saturday and Sunday. A day earlier, a race meeting will be held at Saint-Cloud. The two feature races on Friday are the Qatar Arabian Trophy des Pouliches, a Gr1 for three-year-old fillies, and the Qatar Arabian Trophy des Poulains, a Gr1 for three-year-old colts and geldings.

The entries of the two races have published recently, reflecting the good representation of Qatari owners, who look forward to winning the two trophies and then continue excellence at ParisLongchamp, especially the Gr1 Qatar Arabian World Cup. The Group one Arabian event has been a major outcome of the Qatari-sponsorship of the weekend and has contributed to fostering Qatar’s role in promoting Arabian racing worldwide and at Europe’s top racecourses.

The Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triompheis Europe’s most prestigious race with total prize money of €5m on offer, which is the highest in the French racing programme.

Held annually, it attracts the best thoroughbreds from around the world. Some of the most famous winners of the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe include Sea-Bird II, Dancing Brave, Enable, Treve and Zarkava. The only horse who has won the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe for a Qatari owner was Treve in 2014 and 2015. In 2016, the wonderful mare was not successful in her bid to register a legendary record by winning the same title for the third time in a row and retired to stud.