The UAE showjumping team head into the 2024 Paris Olympic Games with their eyes firmly fixed on a historic first equestrian medal.
To date, the UAE has won only two Olympic medals since their debut in 1984 at Los Angeles. Sheikh Ahmed bin Hasher sealed a shooting gold in double trap at Athens 2004 and the Moldovan-born Sergiu Toma bagged a bronze in judo at Rio 2016. Now the equestrian team have set their sights on adding a medal or two to that tally.
They have camped for more than two months in Europe, taking part in 10 competitions across England, Italy, and the Czech Republic, with both the individual and team Olympic events looming on the horizon.
The team is currently based in Dorking, England, with their team trainer William Funnell, a four-time Hickstead Derby-winner and European Championship team gold medallist for Britain.
“The training has been going well with a lot of international events along the way. The results have been great. We have competed in two team events and won bronze in both Gorla Minore in Italy and Prague in the Czech Republic,” Abdullah Al Marri told The National.
“The summer consisted of five competitions in Italy, four in England and one in the Czech Republic. The whole team performed well with some success and good placings in the lead up to Paris.”
The showjumping team competitions in Paris will be held across two days on August 1 and 2, followed by the individual event on August 5 and 6.
The team will fly to Paris for the official opening ceremony on July 26 and will return to Dorking as the horses will not travel for another three days.
“We have to travel back and forth due to this reason,” Al Marri said. “Thereafter, we’ll attend the competition venue for a familiarisation trip of the course on the 30th and the horses will have to go through an official vet check followed by a warm-up at the main arena the next day."
It is the first time that the UAE equestrian team have qualified for the Olympics since 2008 Beijing. They booked their passage by securing the last of two available team spots at the International Equestrian Federation-designated Olympic qualifier for Group F (Africa and Middle East) in Doha in February 2023.
Al Marri (who will partner the horse BBS McGregor), Omar Al Marzooqi (Enjoy de la Mure) and Ali Al Kirbi (Jarlin de Torres) are the three riders who will compete in both the team and individual competitions, with Funnell the chef d'equipe (team leader).
Their preparation has been exceptional with Al Marzooqi and Al Marri going in on the back of an individual silver and bronze respectively at the Asian Games in Tokyo. The duo were also members of the team that took bronze along with Al Kirbi.
Al Marzooqi was also the first Emirati to win a medal (silver) at the 2018 Youth Olympics in Argentina.
After such achievements, the expectations remain high with the UAE National Olympic Committee and the UAE Equestrian Federation. According to Al Marri, the mood in the camp is also at a peak with the preparations they have gone through.
“Overall, it’s been great and it’s time to galvanise the team spirit in general. We are all excited as the Games are getting closer,” Al Marri said as they continue with their preparation for the big day.
“We feel we have done all the preparation we can for the Games. We are working currently on the fine details and trying to work on what challenges we can expect at the Games when it comes to the courses that the horses will be eventually jumping.
“On the expectations, we know how difficult such events are and we also know things have to work for our advantage on the day of competition, but we are going with a lot of faith in our abilities to perform very well at that stage.”
Al Marri is full of praise for the unstinting support provided by the NOC and the federation, particularly the contributions of Sheikha Fatima bint Hazza and her Al Shira’aa Stables in Abu Dhabi in which Funnell also has a key role as trainer.
“We greatly appreciate the support we received from the UAE, the belief in us as athletes, and for providing us with the platform to be able to represent our country at the Olympics,” Al Marri added.
“As a third party support, Sheikha Fatima bint Hazza’s vision and contributions for showjumping in the UAE is really the key for what we have come this far. We want to complete a fairy-tale ending.
“We must also say a big thank you to the team behind us, the management, vets, farriers, grooms and the supporting cast. It takes a village to achieve what we are aiming to do, plus our special horses, they are the pillars of this operation.
“A shout out to our families, friends and supporters for believing in what we do and how much sacrifice is made by both sides.”
