Longines Hathab Tour final round at QEF’s indoor arena from today
IN what would be a tight and closely fought finale, the 12th and final round of the third third season of the Longines
atar Equestrian Tour Hathab 2019-20 which resumed earlier this month after a long break forced due to the outbreak of the pandemic, will take place at the atar Equestrian Federation’s Indoor Arena from Thursday to Saturday.
The organisers atar Equestrian Federation and Al Shaqab have done an excellent job in conducting 10th and 11th legs of the series in a safe environment. Now the 12th and final leg, which will be a three-day affair starting today is set for a thrilling finish with overall titles up for grabs in the Big, Medium and Small Tour categories.
The in-form Hamad Nasser Al adi leads the Big Tour with 180 points and will go into the final round as a favourite. But with just seven points separating the top four showjumpers, Al adi will have repeat his recent form, where he has won three times and finished runner-up once.
Just three points behind is Faleh Suwead Al Ajami (177). The 2019 HH The Amir’s Sword winner won the 11th leg and will be the biggest threat to Al adi. Khalid Mohamed Al Emadi (175) is third, while Salman Mohamed Al Emadi (173) is fourth, with the both riders needing a victory to take the crown.
In the Medium Tour, leader Mohamed Khalifa Al Baker has a tough fight on his hands as he will try to stave off a late challenge for the title from Mohamed Saeed Haidan.
Al Baker enjoys a fourpoint cushion over Haidan going into the final round, but the latter has been in imperious from since the resumption of Hathab, having won the last two rounds. Ghanim Nasser Al adi is third in the standings but a 10-point deficit to al-Baker makes his job difficult.
In the Small Tour, Khalifa Abdulla Al Khaldi (188.5) has a seven-point lead. He is followed by Mohamed Nasser Al adi (181.5) and Mohamed Al Ghazali (178).
Today, the event begins with Small Tour class at 4pm, followed by Medium Tour at 6:45pm and Big Tour at 8:45pm.
Hathab Event Director Ali Al Rumaihi was delighted with the success of the previous two rounds and hoped that the final round too will be held without a glitch. He also praised the level of the riders in the last two rounds despite them competing after a long break.
“Hathab has been a huge success despite the difficulties in organising the last three rounds.
“The organisers have achieved its goals set for the championship, the riders have performed exceptionally, which only shows their development in the last three years,” Al Rumaihi said.
The Hathab series launched in 2017 carries a total prize of R1.5mn and is an initiative of HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President, atar Olympic Committee.
Hathab meaning ‘Canter’ in Arabic, the annual championship aims at improving the standard of horse riding among atari youths while encouraging the involvement of private stables and individual horse owners to grow awareness of horsemanship as part of atar’s history and tradition.
The vision for Hathab is to inspire atar’s next generation of international champions.
Longines, ExxonMobil and Salam World are the official partners of this tournament and it is open to all ataris and residents of atar.