The 11th edition of the Salon du Cheval was inaugurated at the Mohamed VI Exhibition Centre in El Jadida, Morocco, yesterday afternoon, and the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (QREC), the Platinum Sponsor, is participating in the week-long event, which is being held under the patronage of King Mohammed VI of Morocco.
The edition, which has a theme ‘Equestrian Sports in Morocco’, will also see participation of Qatar Equestrian and Modern Pentathlon Federation, and Al Shaqab, member of Qatar Foundation.
Morocco’s Minister for Agriculture and Maritime Fisheries, Aziz Akhannouch, inaugurated the event in the presence of Moroccan Royal Equestrian Federation president Prince Abdellah Alaoui, QREC chairman Issa bin Mohamed al-Mohannadi, QREC general manager Nasser bin Sherida al-Kaabi, and QREC Board member Khalid bin Mohamed al-Ali.
Abdullah al-Yami, First Secretary at Qatar’s embassy in Morocco, represented the embassy on behalf of Abdullah bin Falah al-Dosari, Qatar’s ambassador to Morocco.
The Salon saw a large participation and significant attendance from several countries, and Akhannouch toured the Salon, starting with the stand of Qatar as QREC is the Platinum Sponsor of this year’s edition. QREC chairman al-Mohannadi presented a memento the Akhannouch, expressing Qatar’s pride in participating in the prestigious equestrian event every year.
Following the minister’s tour, a horse show, which saw a huge turnout, was held and showcased several Moroccan arts and techniques of horse riding and the equestrian sport. The organising committee expects the total number of visitors to reach at least 300,000 this edition.
QREC delegation to the Salon also includes Racing manager Abdulla Rashid al-Kubaisi, Riding and Training head Abdulrahman Mohamed al-Naam, Horse Show head Hassan al-Mannai, and PR and Media head Jawaher Sultan al-Suwaidi.
‘Full support to Qatar’s participation’
Following yesterday’s opening ceremony, al-Yami, First Secretary of Qatar embassy in Morocco, said, “We attended the opening ceremony to support Qatar’s participation in the Salon, especially as QREC is the Platinum Sponsor of this year’s edition. We do realise the significance of this participation given the nature of the strong relations between Qatar and Morocco, not only on the political and economic levels, but also on the cultural and sports ones. We, therefore, were keen to be here even though ambassador Abdullah bin Falah al-Dosari had a previous commitment to another event at the same time of the inauguration of the Salon.
“We are ready to provide all facilities to the Qatari delegation at the Salon du Cheval. We will spare no effort in providing any logistic requirements, even as all other technical matters related to this participation have been already perfectly fulfilled by QREC. After all, we all work for Qatar.”
For his part, Moroccan minister Akhannouch said that Morocco pays due attention to horses in accordance with the directions from King Mohamed VI.
He said, “In Morocco, we pay due attention to horses as there are 100,000 horses of various breeds with 33,000 people working in this field. We are deeply committed to horses and strive to ensure the integrity of horses. In addition, there are 1,800 pure Arabians in Morocco. As such, investments are large in this area. We do work towards the success of this annual event which see the participation of many countries as it reflects how Morocco is deeply connected to the equestrian sports and the desire to attract more investments in this field.”
Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (QREC) chairman Issa bin Mohamed al-Mohannadi (centre) and QREC general manager Nasser bin Sherida al-Kaabi (left) present a memento to Morocco’s Minister for Agriculture and Maritime Fisheries, Aziz Akhannouch (right), during the inauguration of Salon du Cheval in El Jadida, Morocco, yesterday.
