ABU DHABI // Richard Mullen, the UAE champion jockey, made the most of a spare ride left by Wayne Smith to win the Group 3 Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup on-board Areem last night.
Smith rode Areem to an impressive win in the trial for this race three weeks ago but chose instead to ride stablemate Thakif, on the strength of his third behind the Qatari raider Kalino and the French-trained Sahabba in the €1.2 million (Dh4.7m) Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown last month. Areem was also runner-up behind Thakif in the same race 12 months ago when it was the National Day Cup for Purebred Arabians
“It was my first time on Areem and it proved to be a very nice spare ride,” Mullen said.
“Actually it was Wayne who put me on him because he had a tough choice with Thakif. Sometimes it happens, but for me, its was real nice to win a prestigious race in Abu Dhabi.”
Mullen had Areem quickly out of the gate and bowling along with his familiar front-running ploy. He soon had the field stretched out on the home stretch to win the Dh420,000 race by two-and-quarter lengths.
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Areem was chased home by Eric Lemartinel trio Abhaar, Abu Alabyad and RB Smokin Rich, with Thakif more than eight lengths behind in fifth.
“Areem has got such good cruising speed and I thought turning in I still had a lot at hand,” Mullen said.
“I thought if anything didn’t come to me at the furlong pole he had put the race to bed. He travelled well and had such good speed throughout the race, and it had to take a very good one to pass me.”
Nacer Samiri, the trainer of both Areem and Thakif, said it was a tough call for Smith and a lucky one for Mullen.
“If you ask me, there was nothing much to choose between the two horses,” said the trainer of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed’s Al Wathba Stables. “It was how the race panned out on the night. Thakif had to race wide outside horses. He was a bit unlucky but we can’t take anything away from the winner. Areem seems to have returned to the form that won him four Group 1 prizes.”
Christopher Hayes produced a blistering late run on the Dhruba Selvaratnam-trained Forjatt to clinch the Listed Dh380,000 National Day Cup for thoroughbreds from More Aspen and Ghaamer.
The seven-year-old gelded son of Iffraaj won the trial race three weeks ago but this was a much stronger field.
“He had to do a lot on the final 200 metres, but he’s genuine and tough, and did it very nicely at the end,” Hayes said.
Ernst Oertel, the two-time UAE Champion Trainer, saddled three winners under three different jockeys.
“It has been a wonderful evening,” said Oertel, who also saddled two winners in Sharjah on Saturday.
“We have got some very nice young horses but we are just taking our time.
“When you start a new stable it takes time to get everything to work properly. We are hopeful some of these runners will improve during the season.”
Oertel saidhis first two winners last night – AF Laja and AF La’Asae – will return for the two Prestige races, the Colts and Fillies’ Classics, in two weeks. “They were impressive winners.”
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
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The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Getting there
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town daily. Flights cost from about Dh3,325, with a flying time of 8hours and 15 minutes. From there, fly South African Airlines or Air Namibia to Namibia’s Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport, for about Dh850. Flying time is 2 hours.
The stay
Wilderness Little Kulala offers stays from £460 (Dh2,135) per person, per night. It is one of seven Wilderness Safari lodges in Namibia; www.wilderness-safaris.com.
Skeleton Coast Safaris’ four-day adventure involves joining a very small group in a private plane, flying to some of the remotest areas in the world, with each night spent at a different camp. It costs from US$8,335.30 (Dh30,611); www.skeletoncoastsafaris.com
The Internet
Hive Mind
four stars
Company%20profile
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What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
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- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
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Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
