Dubai Golden Shaheen joins Global Challenge

The Gulf News-sponsored $2 million (Dh 7.34 million) Dubai Golden Shaheen (Group 1) has received a significant boost by being named in the 2012 Global Sprint Challenge (GSC), making the UAE the sixth country to host the exciting series. The inclusion of the Dubai Golden Shaheen, to be run over six furlongs on the All Weather track at Meydan Racecourse on March 31 next year, expands the series which began life as a six-event competition in 2005, to ten legs. UAE will join Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom and Singapore as hosts in a contest that has been won by top class sprinters including Starspangledbanner (2010), Scenic Blast (2009), Apache Cat (2008), Miss Andretti (2007), Takeover Target (2006) and Cape of Good Hope (2005). GSC Chairman Leigh Jordon said it was fitting that the Challenge would now enjoy a presence at the world's richest race fixture. "The Dubai Golden Shaheen, sponsored by Gulf News, is one of the world's top sprints with a proven record of attracting horses from multiple jurisdictions and will be a welcome addition to the Global Sprint Challenge," Jordon said. Delighted Malih Lahej Al Basti, Board Member of Dubai Racing Club, added: "As evidenced by our Dubai World Cup Carnival and the Dubai World Cup meeting, the Dubai Racing Club is committed to the internationalisation of horse racing and we are delighted to be a part of the Global Sprint Challenge. "Any initiative to further advance the cause of horses from different parts of the world competing against each other is beneficial to the sport and naturally has our complete support. "The Dubai Golden Shaheen has proven to be among the most international sprints having attracted horses from 14 countries throughout its short history, and being part of the Global Sprint Challenge adds further to the prestige of the Dubai World Cup meeting." Duleep George, Executive Director Marketing and Sales, Gulf News, remarked: "We are absolutely thrilled that the Dubai Golden Shaheen, which we have sponsored since its inception, is now included in the prestigious Global Sprint Challenge. "It is a matter of pride for us that our race, which has attracted horses from many countries, now represents its own country in the Global Sprint Challenge." The race was first run in December 1993 as the Nad Al Sheba Sprint, and its place in the calendar was moved in 1996 to be included in the Dubai World Cup meeting each March. The race was renamed the Dubai Golden Shahen in 2000 and it attained Group 1 status in 2002. The Champion Sprinter trophy is awarded to the connections of the horse that wins a GSC race in three countries which can include the horse's country of origin. This differs from the 2011 format when a horse had to register three GSC wins outside its own racing jurisdiction to be eligible for the prize. The bonus will be split 75 per cent to the owners and 25 per cent to the trainer, with the $1 million pool split equally if more than one horse achieves the feat in 2012.