With a full day of contests dedicated to the best mares and stallions the Arabian horse world has to offer, day three of the GCAT Final in Riyadh had nothing to behold but golden champions filling the KAFD X arena.
The show started with the 7-10-year-old Senior Mares class, won by Xxpectations, owned by Saudi’s Khalid bin Zaid bin Aliq Alroeweidan of Nesma Stud, scoring 92.29 points. Some of her previous results include 1st place at the 2023 Saudi National Championships.
The 11+-year-old Senior Mares class followed with a win to the beautiful Basandrasettimocielo of Ajman Stud with a score of 93.57 from the judges—the highest-scoring mare of the show.
After winning 3rd place in the Muscat stage of the Tour, Wi Kanz, owned by Mazen Alfaidi, landed in 1st place with a 92.07 score to sweep the qualifying class of the 4-6-year-old Stallions.
Thirteen striking horses and their handlers entered the arena to contest the 7-10-year-old Stallions class, but only one would take 1st place. Owned by Khalid Alsayed, KSA, and winner of the 2022 Paris World Arabian Horse Championship, the local favourite Alexxanderr won the class, scoring 93.93.
To end day three of the qualifying rounds, the 11+-year-old senior Stallions serenaded the Riyadh crowd with their movements. E.S.Harir, owned by Kuwait’s Al Saqran Arabian Horse Stud, scored 93.50 to come in 1st and close the day.
In a special ceremony, the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ was handed to H.E. Sheikh Nawaf bin Nasser Al Thani, owner of Al Nasser Stud, Qatar, for his exceptional contribution to the Arabian horse industry.
Rafael Curti also received the ‘Action of the Year’ award for his display of sportsmanship during the first stage of the Tour in Doha.
Today’s final will reveal the ultimate winners of 2024—the Best Female, Best Male, and Best Handler of 2024—along with a special award for the Best Breeder of 2024. The Championships start at 15:45 local time.
