RIYADH: Latifa Al-Sheikh of Kingdom Team, which is sponsored by Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, won first place in Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al-Khalifa World Endurance Championships held in Bahrain last week.
Al-Sheikh is the first Saudi equestrienne in history to win the world endurance challenge. Twenty-seven lady riders from all over the world took part in the 120km race that consisted of five endurance phases. Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation president, awarded the cup to Al-Sheikh.
Al-Sheikh said that this achievement was God’s blessing and the result of prince’s continuous support to the team and its members. She expressed her happiness at winning the championship she described as extremely challenging with world lady riders competing.
Al-Sheikh dedicated her achievement to Prince Alwaleed who congratulated her and the team during a telephone conversation. Najeeb Al-Barjes, Kingdom Team manager and trainer, said that the success of Al-Sheikh and Kingdom equestrian team was due to Alwaleed’s continuous support that has encouraged the team to score further successes. Najeeb added that he had every confidence in the Kingdom Team as they were well prepared for this highly competitive race.
Prince Alwaleed and his spouse Princess Ameera Altaweel received the 35 members of Kingdom Team at Kingdom Resort in Riyadh and awarded them SR1 million including six cars in acknowledgement of their recent achievements. The prince’s guests included Omar Almutawa, assistant executive manager, Administration and Financial Affairs, Al-Barjes, Al-Sheikh, Abdulrahman Alhawas, Humoud Al-Shamamri and Maha Al-Jifri.
The Kingdom Team achievements this year include Alhawas’s victory in the Al-Khalediah Prince Khaled’s Cup Endurance Challenge 2009.
In 2008, Kingdom Team won the Alwafa’ International Championship Cup held in Damascus, Syria. The Saudi show jumper Khaled Al-Eid earned the highest points in the final Arab League qualifying for the World Cup Championship. In March 2008, Ramzi Al-Duhami, a national rider like the veteran Al-Eid, achieved first place in the Qatar International Championship Cup held in Doha, Qatar. In February 2008, Al-Duhami, a Kingdom team member, won first place in the King of Bahrain Championship qualifying for the world championship finals.. Al-Duhami achieved second place in the opening round and third place for the smaller award during the International Abu Dhabi Championship that qualified him for the World Cup in January last year. In January 2007, Kingdom Equestrian Team won the 2007 Bahrain Endurance Championship. The team had won 1st, 3rd and 4th place during the race which was organized by The Equestrian Royal Federation for Endurance Races, under the patronage of Nasser bin Hamad Al-Khalifa. The team participated in the 120km race in which 60 riders from around the world took part. In February 2007, the Kingdom equestrian team won the First Crown Prince Endurance Cup in Saudi Arabia.
In March 2007, the team also won the King Abdullah Endurance Cup 2007 which took place in Alras town in the Gassim province in north of Riyadh. In April 2007, they won the King Abdulaziz Endurance Cup that took place in Hail and in November 2006, the team also won the Saudi Federation Cup.
