An unprecedented 10th UAE jockey’s championship title in the bag, Tadhg O’Shea - the all-time leading rider with 670 winners - is ready for a new and busy season that gets underway in Al Ain on Friday.
The Irishman is booked on all seven races at Al Ain, all six at Jebel Ali on the next day, and five out of six at Sharjah on Sunday. That’s par for the course for the busiest jockey in the UAE.
O’Shea is returning to action after an excellent season in which he rode Group 1 winner Switzerland at the Dubai Golden Shaheen on the Dubai World Cup night.
The champion jockey was humble, saying he was “very fortunate” to ride in all seven races at Al Ain.
He’s in the saddle of five Purebred Arabians for his main patron Khalid Khalifa Al Naboodah and all trained by Ernst Oertel, one for Ajban Stables and one for the champion trainer Bhupat Seemar, in the only thoroughbred race on the card.
“It’s a busy weekend to start with and, fingers crossed, I can ride some winners, hopefully,” O’Shea told The National on the eve of the season opening meeting.
“My main goal every year is to stay healthy. Of course we are here to ride as many winners as we can. We are all back to scratch and all back to zero. Let’s hope we have a very good season.”
O’Shea was challenged for the title by Antonio Fresu, but the Irishman drew clear towards the end of the season to finish with 68 winners - 10 more than the Italian.
“From December onwards, Antonio and I pulled clear of the rest of the field. It was quite tight week in and week out.
“It meant a lot to me because a lot of people told me it was Antonio’s year. I’m sure he will have his year but I wasn’t ready to let go of my championship just yet.”
O’Shea expects this season’s jockey’s title to be close with Fresu, Richard Mullen and Ray Dawson among the leading contenders.
“Antonio will be very strong and obviously Richie Mullen is always a danger and Ray Dawson had a very good first season,” said.
“There is plenty of competition out there with a lot of good riders here. For me, this time of the year is quite exciting with a lot of horses that haven’t run in the Emirates.”
O’Shea is onboard Oertel’s AF Musharek in the silks of Al Naboodah in the opener, and rides the unraced Rabih Al Reef for Al Abjan trainer Abdallah Al Hammadi half an hour later.
Seemar’s Royal Touch making his debut in the UAE is an interesting one for O’Shea in the solitary race for thoroughbreds.
The former Godolphin inmate and Dubawi gelding returns to the racetrack for his first run in more than 19 months.
O’Shea's remaining rides are AF Saleet, Masar, AF Al Baher and AF Thayer, all trained by Oertel for champion owner Al Naboodah.
AL Ain card 2022-23 season opener
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Maiden Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,400m
6pm: Handicap (TB) Dh50,000 (D) 1,600m
6.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
7pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (D) 1,800m
8pm: Conditions (PA) Dh85,000 (D) 1,000m
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
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How to get there
Emirates (www.emirates.com) flies directly to Hanoi, Vietnam, with fares starting from around Dh2,725 return, while Etihad (www.etihad.com) fares cost about Dh2,213 return with a stop. Chuong is 25 kilometres south of Hanoi.
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Kingfisher Secret
Anonymous, Penguin Books
THE SPECS
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 275hp at 6,600rpm
Torque: 353Nm from 1,450-4,700rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Top speed: 250kph
Fuel consumption: 6.8L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: Dh146,999
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Clinicy%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Prince%20Mohammed%20Bin%20Abdulrahman%2C%20Abdullah%20bin%20Sulaiman%20Alobaid%20and%20Saud%20bin%20Sulaiman%20Alobaid%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Riyadh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2025%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20HealthTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%20raised%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20More%20than%20%2410%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Middle%20East%20Venture%20Partners%2C%20Gate%20Capital%2C%20Kafou%20Group%20and%20Fadeed%20Investment%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Stage 2
1. Mathieu van der Poel (NED) Alpecin-Fenix 4:18:30
2. Tadej Pogacar (SLV) UAE Team Emirates 0:00:06
3. Primoz Roglic (SLV) Jumbo-Visma 0:00:06
4. Wilco Kelderman (NED) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:00:06
5. Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) Deceuninck-QuickStep 0:00:08
SHADOWS%20AND%20LIGHT%3A%20THE%20EXTRAORDINARY%20LIFE%20OF%20JAMES%20MCBEY
%3Cp%3EAuthor%3A%20Alasdair%20Soussi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EPages%3A%20300%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EPublisher%3A%20Scotland%20Street%20Press%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EAvailable%3A%20December%201%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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.
Match info
Liverpool 3
Hoedt (10' og), Matip (21'), Salah (45 3')
Southampton 0
THE SPECS
Engine: 4.4-litre V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 523hp
Torque: 750Nm
Price: Dh469,000
RESULTS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E6pm%3A%20Baniyas%20%E2%80%93%20Group%202%20(PA)%20Dh97%2C500%20(Dirt)%201%2C400m%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EWinner%3A%20AF%20Alajaj%2C%20Tadhg%20O%E2%80%99Shea%20(jockey)%2C%20Ernst%20Oertel%20(trainer)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E6.35pm%3A%20The%20Pointe%20%E2%80%93%20Maiden%20(TB)%20Dh82%2C500%20(D)%201%2C200m%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EWinner%3A%20Awasef%2C%20Pat%20Dobbs%2C%20Doug%20Watson%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E7.10pm%3A%20Palm%20West%20Beach%20%E2%80%93%20Maiden%20(TB)%20Dh82%2C500%20(D)%201%2C400m%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EWinner%3A%20Long%20Kiss%2C%20Jose%20da%20Silva%2C%20Antonio%20Cintra%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E7.45pm%3A%20The%20View%20at%20the%20Palm%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh87%2C500%20(D)%201%2C200m%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EWinner%3A%20Ranaan%2C%20Tadhg%20O%E2%80%99Shea%2C%20Bhupat%20Seemar%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E8.20pm%3A%20Nakheel%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh105%2C000%20(D)%201%2C400m%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EWinner%3A%20Raaeb%2C%20Antonio%20Fresu%2C%20Musabah%20Al%20Muhairi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E8.55pm%3A%20The%20Club%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh95%2C000%20(D)%201%2C900m%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EWinner%3A%20Qareeb%2C%20Sam%20Hitchcock%2C%20Doug%20Watson%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E9.30pm%3A%20Palm%20Beach%20Towers%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh87%2C500%20(D)%201%2C600m%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EWinner%3A%20Falsehood%2C%20Adrie%20de%20Vries%2C%20Musabah%20Al%20Muhairi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A