The big tour CSI 3* was won by Bassem Hassan Mohammed aboard Anyway II, owned by the QEF. Photo by Graham Gannon
Four classes launched the first day of FEI jumping competition at the CHI Al Shaqab in Doha, Qatar, on March 12th. Bob Ellis (GBR), who set the tracks for the 2012 London Olympics, is the course designer for this major show – the biggest of its kind to date in Asia.
The hot, breezy afternoon began with the small tour CSI3* over a course in the enormous arena that allowed for lots of galloping lines. The big atmosphere rattled some horses and riders (all but one of the 29 entries were Qatari) during this two-phase power-and-speed competition. Twenty-year-old Saeed Nasser Al Qadi was the ultimate winner aboard St. Lucia, a 12-year-old grey Holsteiner mare he has been partnered with for a year. Al Qadi, who trains with Ian Kerr of Ireland at the nearby Qatar Equestrian Federation (QEF) riding club, described the course as a bit of an endurance test. “The course was a little bit long and it was hot, so the horses got tired at the end.”
Al Qadi is no stranger to endurance, as he competed in that discipline until two years ago. “I started riding for fun, then rode twice a week and started to really like the horses,” he said. He was asked to join a young riders’ team for the QEF, but his goals are much bigger now. “Next year at this time we need to qualify for the Olympics, and that’s my goal,” stated Al Qadi. Qatar already has two riders qualified for the World Cup Final this April.