AACHEN (ALETIHAD)
Paris 2024 Olympian Omar Abdul Aziz Al Marzooqi and Enjoy de la Mure delivered an exceptional clear round under the lights in Aachen to secure a place in the FEI Jumping World Championship Individual Final, the youngest rider to make the cut.
Returning to Aachen’s famous Main Stadium following a clear in Wednesday’s opening Speed Competition and a four-fault performance over Thursday’s demanding 1.65-metre course, Omar and Enjoy produced another faultless performance in the Second Individual Qualifier when it mattered.
The result leaves the pair on a championship score of 5.01 penalties and in 11th place overall, comfortably inside the top 25 combinations progressing to Sunday’s Individual Final.
For Omar, the performance reflected a partnership with Enjoy that appeared to strengthen with every fence.
“Enjoy felt unbelievable today. From our morning walk to the warm-up arena, it’s the best he’s felt,” said Omar. “After fence four or five, he started jumping better and better with every fence.
“He means everything to me and I’m so grateful to him. To have so much support from the UAE community, both here and back home, means so much to me.”
The 23-year-old will now return to the Main Stadium on Sunday 23 August at 2:20pm CEST to contest the Individual Final against the world’s leading combinations, bringing the rider’s debut World Championship campaign to a thrilling conclusion.
Earlier on Friday, two of the UAE’s brightest young showjumping talents also rose to the occasion in Aachen’s Main Stadium, as 17-year-olds Mabkhout Owaida Alkirbi and Mohammad Saeed Al Ghurair both delivered clear rounds in the opening CSIY competition.
Competing in the STAWAG-Prize against an international field of young riders, Mabkhout and Diabla PS produced the fastest of the two UAE clears, crossing the finish in 67.78 seconds to secure seventh place.
The performance continued a strong run of European form for the combination, who arrived in Aachen following a top-five finish in Kronenberg last week.
Mabkhout said the opportunity to compete on the same stage as the world’s leading riders made the result particularly special.
“I’m very happy with my result today and I’m so grateful to Emirates Jumping for giving me the opportunity to compete in Aachen and be here with the best riders in the world,” said Mabkhout. “I’ve only been riding Diabla for two weeks, so I’m especially happy with how she jumped today. She’s a truly fantastic mare.”
Mohammad and Etoile de Beliard ensured it was a double clear for the UAE, producing a composed performance to stop the clock in 72.41 seconds.
The 17-year-old, ranked 147th in the FEI U25 Rankings in August, arrived in Aachen following a top-10 finish in Šamorín last week and appeared unfazed by the occasion as he and Etoile de Beliard took on one of showjumping’s most celebrated arenas.
“The atmosphere was amazing and it’s so nice jumping in front of a crowd like this,” said Mohammad. “My horse felt great and adapted really well to the crowd. It’s surreal to be here in Aachen and not everyone gets the chance to jump at an iconic venue like this. My goal is Sunday, so I just need to stay calm and focused.”
For UAE Chef d’Equipe, William Funnell, the opportunity for two of the country’s emerging athletes to compete in Aachen while experiencing a senior World Championship first-hand is an important part of their development.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for the UAE to have two of our most promising young riders here, competing in the Main Stadium in Aachen and watching the World Championships,” said Funnell.
“It was a good start today with both riders jumping well. The main aim is to get through to Sunday. They both produced solid rounds and, so far, we’re on course for that, with the top 25 riders progressing.”