ARO Racing - Racing News

Royal Cavalry of Oman Qualifier Series
The Royal Cavalry of Oman have very generously sponsored a Qualifier Series. This series will comprise 4 qualifiers, to be held at ARO fixtures, with a Premier Handicap Final on the Thoroughbred card at Newbury, on Friday 22nd August.

The second qualifier for this series was run at Fontwell Park Racecourse on Sunday 15th June and was won impressively by Jelvita for her Owner/ Trainer, Sue Herrod. For the full race report, go to Racing Reports and scroll down to the Fontwell Raceday Review.

Racemeeting	Date	Distance	Rating	Prize Fund
Taunton	Saturday 3rd May	7 furlongs	0-90	£1,100
Fontwell	Sunday 15th June	7 furlongs	0-100	£1,100
Hereford	Saturday 28th June	1 mile 1 furlong	0-95	£1,100
Exeter	Saturday 5th July	1 mile 2 furlongs	0-85	£1,100
Newbury	Friday 22nd August	1 mile	0-100	£5,000

Beaufort Embryo Transfer offer exciting new award for Dubai Day
Published 13^th June 2008

The Arabian Racing Organisation is thrilled to announce that Beaufort Embryo Transfer have offered a new and unique prize to be awarded at the Dubai International Arabian Race Day at Newbury Racecourse on Sunday 20^th July.

A free embryo transfer will be offered to the best performing British bred mare in the NBD Hatta International Stakes (Group 1 PA). The contest will be judged by Emma Tomlinson MRCVS and Company Director of Beaufort Embryo Transfer, Richard Lancaster, Stud Director of Shadwell Stud and Georgina Tomkins, ARO Director Of Racing.

The embryo transfer procedure allows breeding from mares without interrupting their training by using a surrogate mare to carry her foal. This efficient process also allows the mare to produce more than one foal per breeding season.

High class proven horses are extremely valuable and difficult to find. Due to pressures of competing, top quality mares are not usually sent to stud until very late in their lives. Embryo transfer enables these mares to reproduce and continue their careers, without the risks associated with pregnancy. Furthermore an owner can take embryos out of a valuable competing mare and then sell her at prime without losing her bloodlines.

Exeter Saturday 5th July
Published 10th June

Please be aware that a number of races at this fixture will be subject to change. This has occurred due to drainage work that has been carried out on the track; due to adverse weather conditions part of the track will be out of bounds.

The Race Plan will be as follows:-
Race 1  The Southbrook Arabians Maiden Stakes over 7 furlongs (unchanged)
Race 2 The Royal Cavalry Of Oman Handicap Stakes (Series Qualifier) 0-90 over 1 mile 2 furlongs (to be reduced to 1 mile 1 furlong)
Race 3  The Jebel Ali Racing Club Handicap Stakes (Series Qualifier) 0-55 over1 mile (unchanged)
Race 4  The Ajay Construction Ltd Handicap Stakes 0-75 over 6 furlongs (unchanged)
Race 5  The Shaw & Fox Handicap Stakes 0-65 over 2 miles (to be moved to Hereford 2^nd August and replaced by a race for 0-65 over 1 mile 1 furlong)
Race 6  The Penn Challenge Handicap Stakes1 mile 2 furlongs (to be reduced to 1 mile 1 furlong)
Race 7  The Dutnall & Walker Maiden Stakes1 mile 2 furlongs (to be reduced to 1 mile 1 furlong)
Race 8 The Western Commodities Ltd Anniversary Open Race Handicap1 mile 2 furlongs (to be reduced to 1 mile 1 furlong).

Please Note: Racing Calendar Part 3 Supplement will be published on Friday 20th June, which will include the final race conditions.

Record Breaking Entries for the President of the UAE Hydra Properties Challenge Derby
Published 5th June
A total of 30 entries were received for one the highlights of the UK Arabian Racing season, the President Of The UAE Challenge Derby. The Group 1 race, to be run at Newmarket on 9^th July, has received more international entries than ever before.

Some of the most talented 4 year-old Arabian racehorses in the world will take to the course to compete for the richest Arabian race on UK soil. These include runners from France, Qatar, Belgium, Holland, Oman and a number of entrants from the UK

Zoumir, who made history in becoming the first foreign trained horse to win the UAE Arabian Derby for trainer Julian Smart and owners the Royal Cavalry of Oman, holds an entry alongside stablemate, Quorman Des Vialettes, already placed in some competitive Group races in Abu Dhabi and finished second on his first trip on turf in a competitive race at Huntingdon at the end of May

British-born trainer, Georgina Ward, has three entered for her Qatari boss, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Mohammed Bin Khalifa Al Thani, including Magadir, winner of the 2007 Qatar Derby. Wall Street, the runner up to Magadir in Qatar, trained in France by Sandrine Tarrou, will be looking to set the record straight at Newmarket.

British Champion trainer, Gill Duffield, has lined up two of her extensive string to contest the £30,000 race at her home track. Ejaabi proved his fighting spirit when losing his maiden tag on the first attempt at Huntingdon at the end of May, holding on gamely in the closing stages, and looks likely to provide stiff competition for the foreign team.

Suffolk- based American trainer, Dennis Batteate, has two entered including Prince Dormant who came home a very respectable fourth in the Group 2 Jumeirah International Stakes at Newbury on Dubai Day and looks likely to thrive in the step up in class.

It will be open to 4 and 5 year olds who have been bred in the UK which at the start of the season have not won more than one race.

The race will be run over 1 mile. Date and venue to be confirmed. Due to be run in September.

1st Stage entries:
Open at 2.30pm Tuesday 3rd June and close at 12 noon Wednesday 4th June. £50.

Open at 2.30pm Tuesday 5th August and close at 12 noon Wednesday 6th August. £50.

A free covering to a Shadwell Stud stallion to the small breeder (3 mares or less) of the horse nearest to finish.

The ARO 2007 Formbook
The ARO 2007 Formbook is now available to download by clicking here. With full results for every horse that raced under ARO Rules in 2007, including interesting insights from ARO Handicapper Graham Walcroft, it makes essential reading for punters, trainers, owners and jockeys alike. Hard copies can be purchased for £5.00 through the ARO Office.

The DIARD Handicap Stakes
The Dubai International Arabian Raceday committee have generously agreed to sponsor an additional Single Race, to be run at Kempton Park on Wednesday 2nd July. This will be a 6 furlong Premier Handicap; exact conditions will be published nearer the time. The Prize Fund for this race will be £10,000.

Pictured above, HH Sheikh Mohamed Bin Faleh Al-Thani (centre), Sami Jassim Al Boenain (right), General Manager of the Qatar Racing & Equestrian Club, and ARO Director of Racing Georgina Tomkins

The contract for this year's Qatar Racing & Equestrian Club International Festival Of Arabian Racing at Lingfield on Saturday 23rd August, was signed at the Qatar REC racecourse in Doha on Thursday 28th February. Their 2008 International Equestrian Festival, which ran from 23rd February till 2nd March, featured 2 days' racing, which included a combination of Purebred Arabian & Thoroughbred races, finishing with the QR1,000,000 Qatar International Trophy, won by Al Dahma.

Already set to be shown live on AtTheRaces, this Lingfield fixture has already attracted a lot of attention internationally; Sweden are planning to send 6 horses to compete in the 3 International Races.