Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe Kicks off Thursday 

Doha, September 24 (QNA) - Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (QREC)-sponsored Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe will kick off Thursday and run through Oct. 1 with large international participation. The annual event, held in ParisLongchamp racecourse, is one of the most important and prestigious horseracing events in in the world given the tradition it enjoys and the distinction that is unique to it, whether in terms of its history or the level of competition among the world's major owners, trainers and jockeys. QREC Chairman, Issa bin Mohammed Al Mohannadi, said: "We are ready for an ideal start for this distinguished race meeting, which we all await every year. We seek a strong Qatari presence through Qatari owners' vying for the titles of several races, especially with the expected strong Qatari participation of horse owners who seek to confirm their merit with their eyes set on winning the races where they will be represented. "The Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe has become a milestone in the world's horseracing scene at this time every year thanks to its top international reputation and elevated level of organisation. This, in fact, increases the scale of challenge in every edition of the meeting and we look forward to to continuing to achieve the goals we aspire to. "The Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe weekend represents a remarkable opportunity to market the HH the Amir Sword Festival as one of the most important racing events organised by QREC, which is held annually and attracts international runners and connections, especially after increasing its prize money and with the dedicated efforts for the continuous development of the festival. In addition, it promotes Qatar's horseracing worldwide and contributes to activating the sponsorship goals of promoting Qatar in general and Qatar's horseracing in particular and focusing attention on the HH the Amir Sword Festival as the most prestigious event in QREC's racing calendar." The event will be held over four days through several events. The beginning will be next Thursday with the Arqana Purebred Horse sale where a distinguished group of horses will be on display in the presence of major owners and breeders around the world. The next day, a race meeting will be held at the Saint-Cloud racecourse with nine races, including the two feature races of the day, the Gr1/PA Qatar Arabian Trophy Des Poulains and the Gr1/PA Qatar Arabian Trophy Des Pouliches. There will a strong Qatari representation in both races with hopes to continue Qatari-owned horses' dominance on both races. Saturday will mark the kick off racing at ParisLongchamp with nine races, including six group races with three of them on the highest level: namely, the Gr1/PA Qatar Arabian Trophy Des Juments (4YO fillies), the Gr1 Qatar Prix De Royallieu and the Gr1 Qatar Prix Du Cadran. On Sunday, the finale will have a nine race-card, featuring seven group one races, including the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, which carries a purse of 5 million Euros, and the Qatar Arabian World Cup. The 2022 renewal of Qatar Arabian World Cup saw 16 runners, including nine for Qatari owners and the winner was Lady Princess (General x Nacree Al Maury) in the colours of Khalifa bin Sheail Al Kuwari for trainer Thomas Fourcy and jockey Jim Crowley. Runners from France, UK, Ireland, Germany, Japan and Qatar were in contention in last year's Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and the winner was the Kirsten Rausing-owned Alpinista (Frankel x Alwilda) for trainer Sir Mark Prescott and jockey Luke Morris. (QNA)