DUBAI // For the first time since the Tapeta surface was replaced by dirt, the Meydan racecourse will see some potentially Dubai World Cup Carnival candidates in action on Thursday night.
The six-race card meeting is made up of three Listed prizes for the thoroughbreds and a Group 2 for Purebred Arabians.
The thoroughbred events have been upgraded from conditions events to offer Dh205,000 for each of the three races run over the distances of 1,200 metres, 1,600m and 2,000m. “The upgraded thoroughbred races make this the most interesting meeting of the season to date,” said Martin Talty, the international manager for the Dubai Racing Club.
“We will see some progressive horses in action that have the potential to earn a place in the Dubai World Cup Carnival,” he said.
“There are a number of horses who we last saw on Dubai World Cup day, while of particular interest is The Taj in the Garhoud Sprint, who is already a course and distance winner.
“Meanwhile, Surfer, a 2014 Dubai World Cup runner, will attempt to win back-to-back Dubai Creek Miles.
“It’s interesting that many horses that competed well in last year’s Dubai World Cup Carnival, are using these Listed races as stepping stones to this year’s carnival.”
The Taj, trained by Doug Watson for Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid, is the choice of the owner’s retained jockey Dane O’Neill from five that have been entered in the owner’s silks.
“We were delighted with both his starts this season,” Watson said. “He was a good second first up and built on that with a smooth win last time. He has a penalty for that which makes life harder but he is in great form and should run a big race.”
Satish Seemar has two entered with stable jockey, Richard Mullen, choosing to ride Surfer, who was third in the Group 1 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 last season. Apprentice, Marc Monaghan partners stable companion Gold City, having his first start since a career best fourth in the Godolphin Mile on Dubai World Cup night.
Pat Dobbs, the stable jockey, is onboard Storm Belt, already a winner at Meydan this season.
“It was not an easy choice for Pat,” Watson said. “The fact Storm Belt has already won on the course was probably the crucial factor and we hope both run well.”
The six-race card kicks off with the Mazrat Al Ruwayah for the Arabians in which Areem starts as a warm favourite.
The six-year-old bay son of Mahabb, trained by Majed Al Jahouri, is a four-time UAE Group 1 winner for owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed.
apassela@thenational.ae
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Brief scores
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
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Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
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THREE
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SPECS
Engine: Two-litre four-cylinder turbo
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Pathaan
Sheer grandeur
The Owo building is 14 storeys high, seven of which are below ground, with the 30,000 square feet of amenities located subterranean, including a 16-seat private cinema, seven lounges, a gym, games room, treatment suites and bicycle storage.
A clear distinction between the residences and the Raffles hotel with the amenities operated separately.
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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The specs
Profile of Whizkey
Date founded: 04 November 2017
Founders: Abdulaziz AlBlooshi and Harsh Hirani
Based: Dubai, UAE
Number of employees: 10
Sector: AI, software
Cashflow: Dh2.5 Million
Funding stage: Series A
The biog
Hometown: Cairo
Age: 37
Favourite TV series: The Handmaid’s Tale, Black Mirror
Favourite anime series: Death Note, One Piece and Hellsing
Favourite book: Designing Brand Identity, Fifth Edition
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying