Doha, 2 January 2021 - Qatari rider Faris Saad Al Qahtani has exhibited a brilliant routine astride Hidiene to claim the top spot in the medium Tour Individual Event as the Longines Hathab Qatar Equestrian Tour's seventh round kicked off at Al Shaqab Indoor Arena.
This was the first occasion the popular tour staged a round at the state-of-the-art equestrian facility after the Qatar Equestrian Federation hosted all six previous rounds this season.
Al Qahtani grabbed the honours astride the Al Shaqab-owned eight-year-old mare after completing the fastest routine (29.49 secs) among a 44-strong line-up to get richer by QR7,500.
Verona, guided by Mohammed Khalifa Albaker, spent a time of 31.05 secs to complete the same task. Albaker, who is currently sitting in the second spot in the Medium Tour overall rankings with five more rounds to go, yesterday won QR6,000 in prize money as he went on to push his Medium Tour title hopes.
The third place yesterday was won by Salmeen Sultan Al Suwaidi who completed the round in 31.34 with Aslan 69. Al Suwaidi won QR4,500 after booking the podium spot.
Lamm Addiction Z, with Rashid Towaim Al Marri in the saddle, finished fourth while Frenchwoman Cyrine Cherif, the leading show jumper in the Medium Tour standings, completed the top five with Brennus Villelongue at the Al Shaqab Arena.
Medium Tour winners were presented awards by Omar Al Mannai, Vice-Chairman of the Longines Hathab Organising Committee
Meanwhile, in the Medium Tour team event, Team Limited Edition Cars captured the top honours following impressive performances of Albaker (Verona, 31.05 secs) and Mohammed Saeed Haidan (Miss Chili 32.48). They won QR15,000 finishing the task ahead of second placed Team Al Kass (Al Suwaidi/Aslan 69 and Nasser Al Ghazali/Hurry Up) and Exxonmobil (Cherif/ Brennus Villelongue and Jassim Al Jaham Al Kuwari/ Sandro Girl).
Earlier, the Small Tour competition which offered a total of QR20,000 in prize money, was won by Mohammed Nasser Al Qadi who completed a flawless 54.07-second routine with Vlacido.
The victory lifted Mohammed to the second spot in the Small Tour standings as he added QR5,000 to his account.
Gibria-B, with Hamad Nasser Al Qadi in the saddle, was able to finish the same task in 54.91 seconds, but he had to satisfy with the second spot on the podium. Hamad won QR4,000 in prize money. Cornett Des Forrets, guided by Khalid Ali Al Adba, completed the podium with a run which was completed in 55.03 secs as an impressive number of 20 riders completed the Small Tour with no faults.
In the presence of Hamad bin Abdul Rahman Al Attiyah, President of the Qatari and Asian Equestrian Federations as well as the Chairman of the Longines Hathab Organising Committee of the Longines Championship, Al Mannai and Ahmed Salem Al Ali, Director of the Social and Sports Activities Support Fund Department, crowned the Small Tour winners.
The seventh round of the 12-leg series concludes today with Big Tour and Open Class competitions.
