Today's Edition
KUUMAR SHYAM (DUBAI)
The wide, sprawling Grandstand structure and the Meydan hotel not just overlooked the Racecourse on Saturday, but it stood as a symbol of grand theatre, sporting excellence, and a secure venue housing thousands.
As Dubai welcomed the racing fraternity and fans for a milestone 30th staging of the Dubai World Cup, the atmosphere was charged with a sense of triumph that extended far beyond the track. Despite the complexities of the current geopolitical climate, the Emirates once again proved its unique ability to remain a stable, neutral, and welcoming ground for global assembly.
From the first race flagging off at 3:45pm until the final one at 8:45pm, nine horses reached the winner’s paddock, but the overarching philosophical winner was one – the UAE’s spirit to continue with business as usual, its ecosystem to generate a secure environment working quietly like a miracle.
A vision launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, at the old Nad Al Sheba Racetrack in 1996, has grown from a $4-million dream, when the horse Cigar won, into a $12m spectacle, the richest prize purse until recently.
This year, the stakes felt higher as the meeting also braved weather odds. Owners, trainers, and horses arrived from every corner of the globe as late as last week, signaling a profound confidence in the UAE’s security and its commitment to international sport.
Then almost miraculously, there were no take-shelter alerts for those in the Meydan premises throughout Saturday and the dark, rain-filled clouds gave way to clear sunny skies.
Local spirits soared higher later in the evening when Ombudsman charged past the finishing post for Godolphin, the racing operation of the Dubai ruler, to claim a turf-track victory over Quddwah in Race 7.
Coincidentally, Ombudsman also happened to be the first horse on the night to justify his top billing, just like his owners did as the race hosts in principle.
On the dirt track for the main ninth race, the narrative was dominated by the clash between the Japanese sensation Forever Young and the clinical precision of Magnitude. Forever Young arrived seeking an unprecedented triple of the world’s richest dirt races, but the evening belonged to the American challenger. Magnitude took control from the stalls and never looked back, leaving the favourite to find that he had simply run out of real estate in the closing stages.
“We knew we had a very good horse, but obviously Forever Young is the best horse in the world,” said the winning jockey, Jose Ortiz. “We left all the options open. If he jumps well we can go to the lead, if somebody jumps better than him, just sit off, maybe behind the speed. He didn’t have a running start, but he jumped well and I knew it was time to go. I asked him to run and he was there for me.”
For the Japanese contingent, the defeat was a bitter pill to swallow. Forever Young’s trainer, Yoshito Yahagi, noted that the Meydan surface didn’t seem to suit his horse as well as others, but jockey Ryusei Sakai remained gracious in defeat.
“Everything went the way we planned but the winner was good today,” Sakai admitted.
The victory was a testament to the meticulous preparation of trainer Steve Asmussen, who has tasted success here with Curlin in 2008.
“What an incredible win,” Asmussen remarked after the race. “We just wanted to let him to run his race from point A to point B. The horse is running with a lot of confidence and that gave us confidence. It unfolded just as how we wanted it to.”
That also rings true for the Dubai organisers and sporting fans in the UAE. Just how they wanted it to pan out.
FC Ties in Dubai
The Asian Football Confederation has selected the UAE to host the quarter-final and semi-final matches of the Asian Champions League 2 (ACL Two) for the West Asia region, with all fixtures to be held at Zabeel Stadium in Dubai. The matches will now be one-off and not home-and-away, after crucial time was lost in postponement of matches due to the month-long ongoing conflict in the region.
The UAE Football Association announced that the quarter-final matches will be held on April 19, with host team and Dubai’s Al Wasl facing Al Nassr FC, while the latter’s fellow Saudi club Al Ahli will compete against Jordanian Al Hussein.
The semi-final match is scheduled for April 22, also at Zabeel Stadium. The decision demonstrates confidence in the UAE’s ability to organise major continental sporting events and offer world-class facilities for teams and fans alike.
