FAIRPLAY

The second round of the Al Ain Camel Racing Festival kicks off today, Friday, at Al Rawdah Camel Racecourse in Al Ain. The races are organized by the Racing and Presidential Camel Affairs Center and supervised by the Camel Racing Federation. The second round will continue until August 10 and will include 165 races..

The races in the second round are part of three preliminary rounds for the four-month festival. The festival kicked off last July and continues monthly during August and September. The festival will conclude with the final round in early October, which will witness the crowning of the festival’s elite winning camels.

Following the success of its first round, the Al Ain Festival has joined the series of important camel racing events that have received exceptional attention within the United Arab Emirates, which is keen to promote identity and heritage sports in order to preserve the legacy of its forefathers. The late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan was keen to Nahyan, may God bless his soul, for his interest in Emirati heritage and related sports.

The second preliminary round of the festival will be held over 165 rounds at the Al Rawdah racecourse for the various age groups of participating camels. The festival’s organizing committee has allocated 40 rounds for weanlings, 30 rounds for Haqaeq, 30 rounds for Laqaya, 25 rounds for Idha, 20 rounds for Thanaya, and 20 rounds for Haul and Zamoul. All competitions will be held in the morning.

The festival kicks off on its first day with challenges for weanlings, covering a distance of 1.5 km and 20 rounds. The second day of competition will be held on Saturday. The challenges will move to Haqaeq on Sunday and Monday, covering a distance of 3 km. The Laqaya competition will be held over 30 rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday, covering a distance of 3 km, with 15 rounds per day. The broadcast competitions will be held over 25 rounds next Friday, covering a distance of 4 km. The Thanaya competitions will be followed by the same-distance races on August 9. The festival concludes on August 10 with the Haul and Zamoul competitions, which will include 20 rounds.

The winners and participants will receive valuable cash prizes in all rounds, as allocated by the festival’s organizing committee. The final rounds, held in October, will feature cash prizes in addition to the tokens, the most important and valuable prizes in the world of camel racing. This reflects efforts to encourage heritage sports and establish the event on the country’s annual camel racing agenda.

The festival’s launch last July was a great success, with the wide participation of camel owners from across the UAE and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. The first round lived up to expectations, witnessing a competitive and enthusiastic atmosphere across the various categories and rounds, confirming the owners’ interest in participating in this new heritage event.