Battle lines drawn as Amir Sword Festival begins today

As Qatar’s flagship racing event, HH The Amir Sword Festival, kicks off today, anticipation is at its peak with a top quality field lining up for the pair of million-dollar features on Saturday.
The draw for the two features, each offering $2.5mn in prize money, was held at the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (QREC) Clubhouse on Wednesday.
As has been the case in the last few years all eyes will be on the Arabian feature at the Al Rayyan Racecourse. Al Shaqab Racing’s Al Ghadeer under the tutelage of Francois Rohaut will bids to land the Golden Sword (Group 1 PA) and be crowned with the Doha Triple Crown, having already won the first and the second stages of the crown at Goodwood (Qatar International Stakes) and at ParisLongchamp (Qatar Arabian World Cup).
Defending champion Wathan Racing’s Abbes, trained by Alban de Mieulle, will also take centre stage in the prestigious event as he seeks to retain the Sword glory for the second straight year following his impressive victory in last year’s renewal. The two rivals will start next to each other in the 2,400m race a field of 11 runners on the final day of the three-day Festival on Saturday, having drawn the two widest stalls, Ebbes in Gate 2 and Al Ghadeer in 6.
Bin Al Tair will be another representative of Wathan Racing as well. The other challengers are His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Thani’s Al Doha, HE Sheikha Iman bint Mohamed bin Khalifa al-Thani’s Hareeb, HE Sheikha Yasmeen bint Mohamed bin Khalifa al-Thani’s Divine Princess, HE Sheikha Reem bint Mohamed bin Khalifa al-Thani’s AA Feel The Burn, Al Shaqab Racing’s Mezown and Al Tammtam, Abdullah bin Fahad A H al-Attiyah’s Ch’ezza and Sultan Ali al-Senaidi’s Djalnor.
Israr, a five-year-old British thoroughbred bay horse, has proven his worth with nine victories and is set to compete in the highly anticipated HH The Amir Trophy race at the Amir Sword Festival. Boasting a sterling lineage, including sire Muhaarar, a British racehorse renowned for his sprinting abilities, and dam Taghrooda, a mare with wins at Ascot, Epsom Downs, and Newmarket.
Israr and his jockey, Jim Crowley, prepare to face the defending champion, Russian Emperor, in a race that promises to be a thrilling one. Israr and Russian Emperor will start next to each other at Gate 6 and 7 respectively. Living up to his pedigree, Israr has notched nine victories, with his most recent performance at Ascot in October 2023 securing him the second position. He followed this up with another impressive second-place finish in Bahrain the following month.
The $10mn Festival starts today with an eight-race card and the 1700m Sand Championships for local Arabians is the feature. The day features the races for the leading horses, based in Qatar, which perform well on the sand track. There are four categories of horses: Thoroughbreds, Purebred Arabians, Local Bred Thoroughbreds and Local Bred Arabians.
There are two races for each category and one race for each category is for the best horses while the other is for young horses or horses which have not won yet. Every race is worth $100,000 which is three times as much as any other race on the sand. Tomorrow, the Al Rayyan Breeders Cup Day will be held. These are races for the leading horses, based in Qatar, which prefer the grass track. There are 10 races including races for the best female horses in each category (Thoroughbreds, Purebred Arabians, Local Bred Thoroughbreds and Local Bred Arabians)
The highlight of the day is the Al Rayyan Breeders Cup, worth $400,000, for Local Bred Thoroughbreds.
The other major event is the Al Zubarah Trophy, worth $200,000, for Local Bred Purebred Arabians