Abdul Rahim Helal Al Jenaibi, riding Super, won the second GCC Endurance Championship. This victory  came about out of the blue as Bashaar, the horse of   Ali Khalfan Al Jahouri was eliminated after coming up lame, despite finishing first. Thus Ali Khalfan Al Jahouri's bid for a hat-trick ended.

The two Al Wathba riders finished within seconds of each other, Al Khalfan crossing the finishing line first. He was thus preparing for his third successive triumph in a GCC Championship.

But, before he could present his own horse for the vet check, Ali Khalfan (who is also the trainer for the winning horse) took Abdul Rahim's horse Super and presented it to the satisfaction of the vets. But Bashaar, the 11-year-old grey gelding which had partnered Ali Khalfan in his two earlier GCC level triumphs, was found lame and eliminated. This has become Al Jenaibi's second major triumph this season following his win in the First Round of the Triple Crown in Dubai.

A total of 48 riders from the UAE, Bahrain,Qatar,Saudi Arabia and Kuwait took part in the FEI-CEI two star ride, run over a distance of 120kms. His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain and General Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Minister of Defence, attended the ride while King Hamad later graced the prize distribution ceremony along with Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Director General of the President's Office. Ali Khalfan led in the first two stages after which he dropped back and Sheikh Nasser moved ahead. However, in the fourth loop, Abdul Rahim, who also missed out in the second round of the Triple Crown when his horse got eliminated, did well to enter the final loop as leader. Ali Khalfan was in fourth and Sheikh Nasser in seventh.

Both Ali Khalfan and Sheikh Nasser mustered pace much above their average speed and did well to improve their positions but they seemed to have paid the price for that. "I expected one of the Al Wathba horses to win today. But the final loop was very competitive with Sheikh Nasser giving us a tough fight," said Abdul Rahim, who is enjoying his best-ever season.The 25-year-old said the pleasant climate also helped immensely. "I had some problems with the Ground Jury and was delayed by quite a few minutes and this proved costly," said Sheikh Nasser.

Earlier, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, riding Muneef, was in the leading pack of riders through the first three loops but retired after the fourth loop as his horse was found wanting. Other top riders who took part but made an early exit included Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa and Sheikh Majid bin Mohammed Al Khalifa. A total of 18 from the 48 starters completed the ride. The GCC Championship was organised by the UAE Equestrian and Racing Federation under the patronage of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Results

GCC Endurance Championship (Seniors) (Top six):
1. Abdul Rahim Helal Al Jenaibi (Super) 5: 14:05 .
2. Abdullah Khamis Ali Saeed (KHF Tersoro) 5:27:55 .
3. Ahmed Hassan Ahmed Al Hammadi (Balgownie Sandy) 5:27:57.
4. Matar Ali Al Hammadi (Travalla) 5:31:44.
5. Adnan Sultan Al Nuaimi ( Allura Park Star Minoan) 5:31:47 .
6. Yousef Ahmed Al Bloushi (Spoutnik) 5:37:20.

GCC Endurance Championship (Juniors)
1. Mohammed Abdul Aziz Al Hassan- Bahrain (Shagra 1) 4:23:07 .
2. Salem Mohd. Al Otaibi - Bahrain (Tawmarsh Tawmarsh) 4:41:40.
3. Layla Abdul Aziz Al Redha (Misty Reyn) 5: 07:45 .
4. Sheikha Najla bint Salman Al Khalifa- Bahrain- (Sager Gharesh) 5:45:07.
5. Hasan Saleh Mohd. Al Dhufairi (Eboni Al Arabi) 6: 13:39.