RIYADH, 22 September 2003 — On behalf of Prince Faisal ibn Salman, chairman of the Saudi Research and Marketing Group, Prince Muhammad ibn Salman inaugurated on Saturday evening the Horse Faithfulness Exhibition organized by the House of Artists Jeddah in memory of Prince Ahmad ibn Salman, former chairman of SRMG.
The exhibition, at the Prince Faisal ibn Fahd gallery, shows some 60 paintings focusing on horses. Among the artists who displayed their works were Hisham Banjabi, Taha Sabban, Umran Alqeesi and Muhammad Al-Ribat.
The exhibition’s organizers have also scheduled a week exclusively for women under the auspices of Princess Lamya bint Mishal ibn Saud from next Saturday. Half of the money collected from the exhibition will go to the Prince Fahd ibn Salman Charitable Association for Kidney Patients.
Prince Ahmad ibn Salman, former chairman of SRMG, was the owner of last year’s Kentucky Derby winner, War Emblem, and 2001 horse of the year, Point Given. With the victory of War Emblem, Prince Ahmad became the first Arab owner to win the Kentucky Derby. He was widely traveled and received his education in the United States and Saudi Arabia. He studied at the Colorado School of Mines and graduated from Wentworth Military Academy before joining the Saudi Air Force.
After returning to the United States, he took a BA in Comparative Culture and, in 1985, he formed ASAS, a company which specialized in maintenance and contracting. In 1989, he became the chairman of SRMG.
It was here that he built a lasting testament to his energy, personal and business skills. During his tenure, he took the group’s capital from just SR22 million to over SR600 million and built the assets up to more than SR2 billion, making it the largest media group in the Arab world. The group became a joint stock company in July 2000 in preparation for public share issue, a first for an Arab media company.
His charitable works were of particular importance to him. While he was chairman of the Prince Fahd Charitable Association for Kidney Patients, he initiated a campaign with Al-Eqtisadiah to collect funds for the charity, aligning it with SRMG’s efforts to give moral and financial support to society.
Prince Ahmad died on July 22, 2002. His contributions to publishing and the equestrian world will be remembered.
