Haya Khalid Al Hitmi competes astride Dusty during the Small Tour event yesterday.
Doha: Young equestrian sensation Haya Khalid Al Hitmi yesterday clinched her second win in a row in the Small Tour following a flawless routine with 18-year-old mare Dusty as the third round of the Longines Hathab Qatar Equestrian Tour – Season 5 got off to a flying start.
At the Qatar Equestrian Federation (QEF) Indoor Arena, the 13-year-old Qatari rider and her QEF-owned ride were more than three seconds faster (52.49 secs) than their closest opponent Khaled Muhammad Al Emadi who competed with Blue Boy.
Al Emadi and the 10-year-old Blue Boy also completed the round with no errors, but spent a time of 55.46 secs in the 100/110 cm class event which offered a total of QR20,000 in prize money.
Muhammad Jabr Al Nuaimi who guided Maffles in another error-free round, booked the third place after clocking a time of 55.78 secs.
Haya, who is competing in her first Small Tour after having previously taken part in the Futures Riders category, was elated with joy after her latest win which also earned her a prize cheque for QR5,000.
She described the round as a highly competitive one and pointed out that her victory came as a result of the continuous work with her coaches and thanks to her perseverance in training, in addition to her selection of a good horse.
Haya also pointed out that this year’s Longines Hathab Series is witnessing a large participation of Qatari female riders, and that the increase in the number of tournament rounds will have a good impact on raising the level of the riders. She thanked the organising committee for the tournament which is giving them the opportunity to participate in addition to providing all the necessary assistance.
Meanwhile, seasoned rider Rashid Towaim Al Marri enjoyed two podium spots in yesterday’s Medium Tour event.
He guided Mira V/D Roshoeve to win the medium Tour class in 53.77 Secs to seal the top prize of QR7,500 and then went on to book another podium spot by completing the round with Lamm Addiction Z in 55.16 to add another QR4,500 to his prize bag.
Miss Chili, ridden by Mohammed Saeed Haidan, came second in 54.11 secs.
Al Marri was also part of the ExxonMobil trio who emerged winners in the team event. Cyrine Cherif (Brennus Villelongue), and Saeed Nasser Al Qadi (Best Of Des Forets) made up the rest of the team.
Team Al Kass came second while Ahmed Alrayes Group booked the third spot in yesterday’s last podium.
