Białka Stud was founded by the Polish State in 1930 and initially served as a Stallion Depot, when finally in 1981, next to Janów Podlaski, Michałów and Kurozwęki, it joined the group of Polish state studs breeding Arabian horses. Already 10 years later, Białka became the first show step for all Polish Arabian youngsters by organizing the Junior Arabian Spring Show, which this year was held on June 3rd-4th for the 33rd time. For two years, the manager and breeder at Białka Stud is the extremely experienced in this field Hanna Sztuka. She has consistently been making Białka a place where breeding and equestrian traditions meet modernity.

The 33rd Junior Arabian Spring Show gathered a large group of participants, which together with the participants of the 1st Pure Polish Classic Arabian Horse how reached 120. Such a number at European shows is a rarity and proves the growing potential of Polish breeding, especially the private one. However, it should be remembered that we owe this stability in organizing shows both at Białka and the Polish National Show to the care and support of the state, which ensures their predictability and high level.

This year’s show in Białka gained a beautiful setting, starting from the main promotional theme, which was an oriental horse in stylized hussar’s tack, to live hussar shows during Saturday’s classes. The leitmotif of the shows was the cultivation of Polish tradition and showing the relationship between Arabian horse breeding and the history of the country.
The classes of the 1st Pure Polish Classic Arabian Horse Show, held on Friday afternoon, gathered an unexpectedly large audience, and thanks to the support of the sponsors, the competition was broadcast by Arabian Essence. The award ceremony took place on Sunday morning.

In the junior show, which started on Saturday, the exceptionally numerous yearling fillies category was divided into four classes, while the yearling colts classes were traditionally less numerous. It is noteworthy that the number of young colts decreases year by year. Both quantity and quality are not very high. The Junior Spring Show in Białka each year is the first show for young horses born in Poland and abroad – which are entered into the Polish Arabian Stud Book (PASB) – and the latter have been dominant among the winners of this competition for the last two years.

This year’s Białka show was particularly successful from the organizational point of view as well as the weather, which was perfect. The atmosphere of a summer picnic accompanying the event was felt everywhere. Some reservations were raised by the verdicts of the judging panel, as there were considerable discrepancies in the assessment of individual horses, but ultimately the titles awarded in the championship and Best in Show were completely correct, i.e. the most important point was preserved – the ranking matched. Both the winner of the title of Best in Show Female, Bianca of Sinus bred by Sinus Arabian Stud, owned by Adam Ochman, and Nisser Babel, Best in Show Male, bred and owned by Hekmat Al Shareif, are horses of excellent quality, in a perfect modern type, which will successfully win more laurels in show rings.

A large number of offspring from various well-known stallions from show lines was noticeable in the junior show, and the only novelty was the yearling offspring of Haash OSB. It is difficult to unequivocally assess the first appearance of these horses in Polish shows. Haash OSB, used on an unprecedented scale in Janów, aroused a lot of interest. On one hand, his progeny won most of the titles in the yearling categories: the Janów-bred fillies Ebonita, Wincedora and Eleganza took the entire filly podium, and Etyl bred by Białka Stud won the silver medal in the finals of the yearling colts, but on the other – the progeny of Haash OSB did not exist in the Best in Show competition. The unsatisfactory quality of Michałów’s horses was also noticeable, as in the yearlings category they fell below expectations and finally the only silver medal for this stud was won by El Medar, Morion’s son, whose progeny was hardly visible at this year’s show.

After the first successes of such horses as Ferrum, El Madera or El Medida, this year’s results of Morion’s breeding are disappointing. Undoubtedly, the use of the stallion Prometeusz, son of the Janów-bred Pianissima, at Klikowa Arabians was a great success. Their pupil Pravo KL won the yearling colts gold medal. Private breeders have once again shown that the quality of their breeding is constantly growing. They do not hesitate to buy good horses from other breedings, just like it happens in the world.

The organizers of this year’s show in Białka literally showered the participants with prizes, both in the 1st Pure Polish Classic Arabian Horse Show and in the junior show. The prizes were carefully prepared and thought out as a beautiful souvenir for the participants, and the in-kind prizes funded by the sponsors in the form of horse feed will surely please their owners.

Visible promotional activities around the show in Białka resulted in the presence of the team of TVP (Polish Television), which followed the event for three days and prepared several educational reports and broadcasts in the agricultural programs of TVP 1, TVP 2 and TVP 3. The organizational efficiency and tradition of the place was the reason that it was in Białka that the Polish Arabian Horse Breeding Society organized the first Pure Polish Classic Arabian Show in the ECAHO “specific origin” format. The activity of PAHBS and the Pure Polish Classic Arabian Horse Show organized in Białka refer to the idea of combining beauty with bravery, where each horse taking part in the competition and who has been subjected to a racing training receives 1 point more to the phenotype score. This should be treated as an equal opportunity, as well as an incentive for breeders to send horses to the race track during the transitional period. Horses during racing training were also allowed to compete, for which a special class of 3-4 year old horses was organized (the age at which Arabians race on tracks in Poland), which was also possible due to the convenient date of the championship in Białka, at the beginning of the racing season.

The competition met with extraordinary interest and wishes of success, especially those who remember the successes of Arabian horses with Polish pedigrees. It was often cited as proof of the quality of Polish breeding that the sale price records of such mares as Kwestura, Pepita or Perfinka concerned mares of pure Polish pedigree, subjected to racing training.

The problems faced by the Arabian horse population in Europe are the globalization of breeding this breed, which has led to the tightening of pedigrees and the shrinking pool of stallions that give hope for breeding success. Many years of selection in the direction of a specific type and appearance of the head, with less emphasis on the features of build, including legs and movement, as well as health, led to problems with obtaining a good stallion.

Today’s Polish Arabian horses, undoubtedly deviating from the world’s contemporary type, preferred at Arabian horse shows, even presenting good movement combined with a harmonious conformation, cannot compete with show “products” from the Middle East. However, they can still delight, just like Janów’s Biruta by Ekstern, who – in the hands of Adam Ochman – deservedly won the senior mares championship and the title of Best in Show Mare in the 1st Pure Polish Classic Arabian Horse Show. In the same competition, Białka’s Palert (Alert – Pericola) won the Senior Stallions Championship and Best in Show Stallions. Palert is a good example of combining tradition with modernity. He has a very interesting bilateral Polish pedigree, but also full of Straight Egyptian genes, which results in interesting offspring – usually better than Alert’s. Among the junior stallions the winner was Ganges’ son, the chestnut Egizon out of Egiza, bred and owned by Białka Stud, who was not hindered by his intensive racing training. The Junior Mares Championship was won by Białka’s Chillia by Alert, who, like Egizon, will be seen racing this season.

In the junior fillies championship (1-2 years old), the winner was the beautiful daughter of El Jaheez WH, El Jazza KL, bred and owned by Klikowa Arabians Stud.
The 1st Pure Polish Classic Arabian Horse Show in Białka, although it showed a certain distance between horses with Polish pedigrees and horses with pedigrees saturated with foreign, often very valuable stallions, also made people aware of the need to protect the genetic resource displaced by global breeding. Therefore, protecting the Polish Arabian horse by using stallions and mares from old sire and dam lines considered to be Polish, as well as subjecting them to a test of stamina, is not only about maintaining the breeding tradition. This is primarily to protect the characteristics of Polish horses, including, above all, beauty, taking into account their bravery and health, and the necessary preservation of biodiversity in the globalized breeding world of Arabian horses.
The show in Białka was once again a very successful show, see you in the Zamość region next year!

Respect

The time has passed to ask “can we learn anything from the Qatari?” Today we have to ask what we should learn. Certainly, Polish breeding and the community around it are in a situation where we have to follow the example of others more and more often, because Poland is no longer a model for the world. According to the principle of never saying never, there is hope that it will not be irretrievable. The show in Doha, which ended last weekend, set new standards, also for its biggest competitor, the United Arab Emirates.

Thanks to the involvement of the state organization Qatar Foundation, the second edition of the show, called the Katara International Arabian Horse Festival, has become an event with an extremely high set of standards. The correct division of tasks and their efficient execution by friendly and professional people wearing “organizer” tags were visible to the naked eye.

The guests from Europe liked the rich decor of the stands, which at the same time was devoid of splendor and gilded handles. One should pay attention and even take an example from the level of aesthetics and visual aspect of the entire project. In their pursuit of continuous progress, the Qatari did not hesitate to make staff changes in their flagship stud, which is Al Shaqab Stud. For the second time in the history of the stud, the “immortal” Sheik Hamad was removed from its management in favor of younger, and at the same time talented managers.

One should not so much learn as copy the order that prevailed during the KIAHF. The guests were treated with respect and elegance. The media invited to cover the event had their rights and obligations, delicately but firmly defined by the organizer. For everyone living by the Vistula River, the behavior of the undoubtedly free media, but those coming from around the world, for example from the USA, Italy or Germany, must be encouraging. First of all, every participant, guest and journalist covering the event knew their place at the show, and deviations were not tolerated – an Egyptian journalist for entering the wrong sector was temporarily removed from the show. What the hosts pointed out to the media representatives was their role in reporting the event in such a way as not to disturb its course and not to disturb the guests, i.e. those for whom the event was organized, hence the recommendation to visit the designated this zones and at designated times.

Honesty is priceless

Thanks to very high financial prizes, it was possible to bring the best Arabian horses to the show. The image of fair competition was taken care of. It might seem that a certain expression of distrust towards customs often reigning at other shows, was inviting a huge number of judges. There were twelve of them in the ring at the same time! The presence in the main ring at the same time of ringmasters, DC members and (few in this case, only three) photographers meant that too often the horses that were to be the most important actors were lost in the crowd of people.

There were somewhat lengthy breaks between evaluation and decoration. Nowadays, when abacus can only be found in museums, such a delay in reporting the results must be surprising. It is hard to say whether it was the organizer’s fault, or rather the rituals of ECAHO. The announcement of organizing the World Championships in 2023 and 2025 in Qatar instead of Paris, which the organizers are extremely proud of, definitely brought a lot of liveliness to the atmosphere!

Meanwhile, the analysis of judging is also astonishing. The judges, as we know, can and have the right to see the same horse differently. However, the rating of Gall of Shanghai for movement, where one judge grants a maximum of 20 points, and another only 18.5 points, merits the question of what the whole judging is about. There are a lot of such “flowers” – in almost every case there are discrepancies of 1.5 points between grades. The scores for the body and top line of the class-winner stallion EKS Mansour ranged from 17.5 to 19 points. So did the mentioned EKS Mansour have an almost perfect (19 points) body, or just barely acceptable (17.5)? Unfortunately, we will not find out from the judges. The extensive evaluation system, entrusted to so many judges this time, does not help breeders and dilutes responsibility for the result. It ruthlessly selects the winners and indicates the losers, but is this type of demonstration ranking good for breeding?

Breeding impressions

Recognizing the Qatar show as one of the most important events of this type in the world, and thus the gathering of the best horses, causes a bitter reflection as to the place of Polish breeding among a number of other countries, both in terms of breeding quality, organization and number of shows. Two horses by Equator bred by Aljassimya Farm and one by Pesal – Girlan-Bey, bred by Michał Bogajewicz, and also Fuerte by Shaghai E.A., bred by Jan Dobrzyński. It is a pity, however, that the Polish-bred stallions mentioned here did not appear in the ring in the end.

We saw extremely strong classes of older horses, where at least one World Champion or All Nations Cup Champion competed in each of them, or even several in the same class. Choosing the winners had to be emotional. Due to the absence of the stallion Hariry Al Shaqab entered for the show, the duel was played out between E.S. Harir, representing Al Wajba Stud, and EKS Alihandro of Aljassimya Farm. The excellent E.S. Harir, in the elegant type of desert but strong horse, had to give way to EKS Alihandro, which not only presented a more masculine type with a clearly better neck, but also had his day, showing the audience his expressive strength and almost perfect build.

The son of EKS Alihandro, not the youngest (ten years old), EKS Mansour, took a very good third place. However, he does not seem to be able to repeat his father’s successes. He is also very showy, but too down-to-earth and with a different build and a more triangular neck.

The lack of suitable stallions in Poland, and thus the use of the same sires available abroad, is not confirmed here. In fact, there was no dominance of a specific, one sire among the horses on the podium in the championship, which is the best proof of the breeding competition. Only D Seraj introduced his three offspring there (including two with gold medals) as well as Marwan Al Shaqab and Excalibur E.A. with two offspring.

In general, Arabian stars disappointed a bit, because neither the offspring of Wadee Al Shaqab, Emerald J, Shanghai E.A. or RFI Farid was not on the podium of the championship. Was there a change of guard also among the best sires?

It is worth emphasizing that the only one-year-old colt by Sham El Arab, Bahi Aljassimya, after winning his age class, also won gold in the championship. A surprise was the performance of Stanisław Sławiński’s stallion, Gall Of Shanghai, who, although in a strong type, entered the championship, starting from the senior stallion class from third place (91.28 points).

The power of Qatar

The organizer ended the event with a strong accent, which makes one realize the achievements and the current dominant position of Qatar in Arabian horse breeding in the world. It is enough to mention the stallions that were shown to the public in a special gesture of presenting the family of world champions. Five of them entered the Doha ring: Marwan Al Shaqab, Kahil Al Shaqab, Hariry Al Shaqab, Wadee Al Shaqab and QR Marc, only the last of which is not of Qatar breeding.

The Katara Festival shows what this event is supposed to serve – it is a fight to be the best and most important in the industry. The gathering of the best and most titled horses (the show turned out to be better lined-up than the one in Dubai), excellent setting and organization make KIAHF, next to the show in Menton, one of the most important shows in the world.

So here we have prestige and position on an international scale, and an impressive prize pool that attracts the strongest. We have a high-quality local breeding farm, very strongly supported by the state, thanks to which new studs are created, and new enthusiasts want to acquire Arabian horses, which serves the entire industry and local business.

In Qatar he thinking is global. At the end of this year’s edition, we heard comments about plans for the future and what should be improved in the next edition of the Festival. Meanwhile, we in our country have an absolute lack of forward-thinking. There is no responsible person in Poland whose knowledge and commitment would help make decision-makers aware of how important it is for the country, its position and prosperity to support and develop horse breeding. What in Poland destroys state breeding, i.e. its politicization, is the source of success in Qatar. So it is more about the quality of the political decisions with which the Qatari apparently have no problems, and which lead Qatar breeding to world heights. So recently, in the 90s, when Arabs were only rediscovering what Arabian horses are, we were a model for Europe and the world. Learning from the Americans, we were the best at it. Unfortunately, over the last two decades we have squandered these achievements, and today we do not even know whether the annual event in the form of the Polish national championship and the auction in Janów Podlaski will be held.

Comments for polskiearaby.com:

Tom Schoukens (Schoukens Training Center, Belgium):

Katara is a perfectly organized show. This festival is a very important and positive impulse for our entire industry. There are rare occasions when there are more than one previous world champion. Here we have a whole range of them from the past years. It’s quite unique, it sets the show at a very high level. At the moment, only the shows in Dubai, Menton, Aachen and Paris can match the horse level at KIAHF.

Fahad Aldubikhi (manager of Ajmal Stud, KAS):

Many of the shows in the Middle East are of a high standard. But this one is unique in many ways, a crème de la crème in the world of shows. We, as Ajmal Stud, came with only one horse, the mare D Haddeyah by FA El Rashe. She won her age class and won the Junior Mare Gold Medal. It is a great success for us, almost every judge chose her for the gold medal. Six months ago, we planned where our star would take off. Before coming to Qatar, she managed to win the January A-class show in Saudi Arabia, the PSAIAHF.

Malika Mohammed Al-Shemi (Media Manager of KIAHF, Qatar):

Our plan was to organize a show that was bigger, better and stronger than last year. We have certainly managed to implement this plan. Despite the fact that the world is raging pandemic, this year we managed to organize two large screenings and two auctions as part of the festival; art and horses. This year’s horse exhibitors managed to represent 11 countries. The plan is for the show to develop in the following years and become a bigger and bigger venture. We are proud that we managed to sign an agreement on the organization of the World Championships in 2023 and 2025 in Qatar during this year’s festival. As for Poland, it is an important partner and we do not reject the possibility of organizing a show in Poland one day as part of the Katara Festival. Your country is a serious partner for us in terms of the quantity and quality of Arabian horse breeding.

The two-week festival in Qatar is undoubtedly an important event that will be permanent in the Arabian horse show calendar. A horse auction was held this year as well. This event has a separate day in the KIAHF calendar.

The sale was successful with 38 lots sold, including 24 stallions, 3 breedings, 9 mares and 2 embryotransfer rights. Unlike during the show, the auction had an unfettered, almost family atmosphere, with guests and clients walking and mingling with each other like at an Arabic Souq. The auction was conducted efficiently by a young, bilingual Qatar auctioneer. The presentation of each horse was accompanied by well-chosen music and a light show. The aforementioned play of lights and music is of great importance throughout the entire event. It introduces a modern style and atmosphere full of positive energy.

The horses selected for sale were generally of good or even high quality. They could easily be a part of any Arabian stud in the world. Thanks to this, most of them found buyers.

The breeding gems of the auction were not the horses themselves, but breedings to stallions that are difficult to acquire: FA El Rasheem, AJ Mardan and Gazal Al Shaqab, and the offered embryos. Particular interest was aroused by the embryo from the World Champion and the dam of champions, the founder of the best female family at Dubai Stud. FT Shaella (Shael Dream Desert – Soul Pretty TGS) started a dynasty whose genes are considered to be one of the most desirable and inaccessible in the world.
The right to the embryo from Maisa Al Shahania, sold for approx. 100 thousand euro, and the one from the aforementioned FT Shaella, for approx. 770 thousand euro.

KIAHF title show

The title show, which is the highest-ranking one in the ECAHO show pyramid, is the main event of the festival, which the Qatar people are organizing for the second time. Not only the number of horses entered for the show (234), but most of all their quality and rank make this show one of the most serious in the world, continuing last year’s spectacular success.

After the clear decline of the show in Paris and the cancellation of the last two editions of the All Nations Cup in Aachen, it is the Katara Festival that seems to set standards, dictate trends, create great business deals, where world champions change owners, and no amount is impressive.

Another show, at which breeders from the Persian Gulf have been competing with each other for several years, is the Mediterranean and Middle East Countries Show in Menton, France.

And there is plenty to fight for in Qatar! The financial prizes for medal horses in the senior championships are 1 million Qatari riyals (approx. 250 thousand euro) for the gold medal, 600,000 rials (approx. 150 thousand euro) for silver and 300 thousand riyals (approx. 75 thousand euro) for the bronze. In the junior category, gold is a win of 800 thousand riyals (approx. 170 thousand euro), and in the yearlings a medal made of the same metal is 250 thousand riyals (about 61 thousand euro). The amounts are impressive and at the moment it is a show with the highest financial prizes in the world. Among the participants of the senior stallions classes, such celebrities as the gold medalists from Paris: EKS Alihandro, ES Harir, Wadee Al Shaqab, Hariry Al Shaqab or the international show star, the stallion Cavalli, offered for sale at the Spartacus TO auction, for whom 140,000 Qatari riyals were offered, which did not satisfy the owner, and the stallion was not sold.

Polish bred horses were also participating in the show. In the junior mares Rose KAS (by Zeus EA), bred by Dawid Borowiec (Koronowo Arabian Stud), the colt Enzo Blacklord (by Wadee Al Shaqab), bred by Anna Janas-Naze, in the 4-6 year old mares classes Amirata (by EKS Alihandro ), bred by Janów Podlaski Stud, in the 7-10 year old mares Al Jazeera (by Kahil Al Shaqab), also bred by Janów, in the oldest mares class Wasa (by WH Justice), bred by Falborek Arabians, in the 7-10 year old stallions class Fuerte (by Shanghai EA), bred by Jan Dobrzyński and Gall of Shanghai (by Shanghai EA), bred by Stanisław Sławiński.

Such a big event could not take place without surprises. In addition to the world record for the highest bid so far for the right to collect an embryo from an Arabian mare, an extremely exciting point of the program was the signing by representatives of Parc des Expositions (officially the organizer of the World Championships in Paris) and the Katara Cultural Village of an agreement on the organization of the World Championships alternately in Paris and Doha in Qatar (2023 and 2025 Qatari editions).

The point of the program that nobody officially knew about, neither the guests, exhibitors, trainers or judges. The World Championship for Arabian Horses in Qatar is another event in the world championship rank (next to the FIFA World Cup in autumn 2022 in Doha). The statement by ECAHO, which appeared the day after the signing of the agreement in Qatar, is astonishing, in connection with the fact that the most important event in the ECAHO structures was handed over to the organization during the show season. ECAHO says that it is not aware of what has happened when the agreement was signed.

Such an important and numerous show is also an opportunity to analyze current breeding trends. Among the horses up to 6 years old qualified for the championships, several stallions distinguished themselves with their progeny. Leading the way is Excalibur E.A., the recent gold medalist of the Al Khalediah title show at KAS (spectacular score 95.20), who brought 7 of his progeny to the championship, including 3 from first place. D Seraj and Naseem Al Rashediah with 5 offspring each and FA El Rasheem with 4 also stood out.

Sahm El Arab, proven in Michałów’s herd, whose son competed in the yearling colts class for Al Jassimya Farm, entered the championship from 1st place.

The place of Polish breeding at such an important show is determined not only by the participation of Polish bred horses, but also by the offspring of stallions bred in Poland. And so, by Equator were shown only two horses, which is not a satisfactory result.

The most exciting classes on the third day of the show were two: 7-10 year old mares, won by the unbeatable and absolutely phenomenal Donna Molto Bella, owned by Al Jassimya Farm and the 11 year old and older stallions. In one ring, three gold medalists of the world championship presented themselves side by side, and so they took their places in this class in that order – EKS Alihandro (94.39 points), E.S. Harir (93.83 points), Wadee Al Shaqab (93.56 points). The fourth in this class was the also known and highly decorated Cavalli (91.33 points).

Great emotions in the championships were guaranteed!

During the finals, a cold wind blew up in the bay, reminding us that it was a “winter” show. However, the temperature prevailing in the breeding sector since the beginning of the championships has only increased over time.

We started with the yearling fillies. Certainly, the owners and fans who cheered them on were a strong encouragement, their shouts, whistles, and crowds of calling the names of their pupils and their trainers, heated the atmosphere.

The form of the championships, when all horses qualified from a given age group meet in the ring and are re-examined and compared by the judges, is also a spectacle for the audience, who eagerly confronts their favorites.

The finals were full of the best: Doha Stud, Al Nasser Stud, Al Saqab, Al Waab, Al Naif, Mudhar Stud, and of course the more and more difficult to beat Dubai Stud from the United Arab Emirates. The more interesting what the next, more important title show will bring. It promises to be enormous emotions and a fight for very large financial prizes. It is worth mentioning that during the international show that begins this Wednesday, gold medals in the mares and stallions championships will be awarded 240 thousand euro each!

Coming back to the Arabian Peninsula show that ended yesterday, in the championships the medals went mainly to Qatari horses, their national anthem was heard by far the most frequently. Only two studs stirred in the medal pot – Dubai Stud (UAE) and Al Bawady Stud (Egypt). In the case of the former, each of the three horses qualified for the championship won a medal (gold in the yearling fillies and junior stallions category, silver in the junior mares). The Egyptian Al Bawady stud presented only one mare at the show, winning the senior mares silver medal.

Full results of the championships under this link:
https://www.arabianessence.tv/events/katara-int-arabian-peninsula-horse-show-2022/417/

The Katara Festival is an event in a time that flows differently in this part of the world. It’s not the time here, but the guests that are the most important. The rich and distinguished decor of the VIP sector and the theater of lights put the audience in a unique mood.

Maybe it is partly due to these colorful beams of light, flashing in various configurations around the ring, perfectly suited music and surrounded by fishing boats docked nearby, that the participants of the show have the impression that they are part of an important spectacle, the main actors of which are Arabian horses.

For the organizer, the priority is that the invited exhibitors, their horses, judges, guests, journalists representing the industry media, diplomats and the royal family participating in the festival, feel the satisfaction of being part of such an important event for Qatar breeders. – “We breed high-quality Arabian horses, we are proud of them and the whole world should know about it,” you hear during conversations with local breeders.

The show is watched, or rather celebrated, in comfortable and elegant armchairs, thanks to which the VIP sector looks like a multi-story box. A sophisticated menu is served during the show. The age classes for horses are spread over time so that visitors can find out during the day what the city of Doha, the capital of Qatar, has to offer. It is here that modernity and design intertwine with tradition, a great souq (Souq Waqif), craft shops and a multitude of regional products.

The main show ring is perfectly visible from everywhere. Guests can additionally watch the show displayed on individual monitors prepared on VIP tables. Only for the first show at the festival, Arabian Peninsula, 228 horses were entered. It takes three days to hold the age classes. Another day is dedicated to the championship. It is a truly Arabian celebration! After all, such an important show in Qatar takes place only once a year! The organizer’s ambition is to make it better every year. The pool of financial prizes is also growing.

Meanwhile, in the ring, during the last day of the classes, we watched the older mares. Experienced competitors whose appearance perfectly reflects the character of the Egyptian Arabian type, dry and female. Despite their age, they remain noble, as if time did not touch them, on the contrary – it worked to their advantage.

The symbolic representation of Egypt in the form of only one mare at the show turned out to be able to fight the “Egyptian” power of Qatar – with a minimal loss to the winner she reached the championship. In the championship, the full line-up of judges, unlike in the class, when several judges are rotating, may decide on a different order on the podium.

After the mares, the ring was taken over by the older stallions. Milky-white, full of charisma and type, as in Juliusz Kossak’s watercolors.

KIAHF is certainly an important show for the Arab world. It is a meeting place for many people related to the business and Arabian horse breeding. So you can hear a multilingual dialect; apart from native Arabic, English is dominant, but often you hear Italian, too. Buon giorno at almost every step. The Italians, whose breeding is not very high at all, used the advantages of their climate. In recent years, they have mastered the business in many fields. During the year, they organize several or even several dozen shows and have a dynamically developing breeders’ association. Sheikhs want to come there, train horses, shop. When we, Poles, were losing the advantage we undoubtedly had in this industry. We squandered the centuries-old tradition of Polish breeding, focusing on disputes and fights by people, for whom the fate of Arabian horses is indifferent. There was no person among the decision-makers who would direct people to what is important, hit the table with their hand and bring order. Arabs hold a responsibility for their traditions. They are also willing to use the experience and help of others, cooperating with specialists from many countries. However, the potential and strength of the Katara International Arabian Horse Festival are created in their country by their people, working together for an idea that connects people, not divides – for Arabian horses.

The stallion classes, even the younger ones, invariably arouse greater emotions than the mare classes, because they are the hope for breeding progress, and we hope to see future sires in them. Although at this year’s Arabian Peninsula Horse Show Qatari breeders brought their best in large numbers, the UAE (represented by Dubai Stud) would not let themselves be walked all over.

The 2 year old stallions class was won by D K’Hailan by Royal Colors, the only one of a different color, black among a field of grey stallions. In the 3-year-olds the winner was from Qatar (all stallions in the class were owned by Qatar), but bred in Italy by Gulia Sorentino. Most of the stallions shown today, although “typey” and generally eye-catching, unfortunately lose much in movement, which is hardly visible in them.

We must believe the judges that they see and know more than can be seen. After all, judges cannot be wrong. A satisfactory presentation is rare. Stallions spin circles around the presenters, mainly in gallop shortened by the limited length of the rope. Although there is no score for gallop, they are happy to use it in the ring. Only sometimes one can see fragments of trot in a straight line, which makes it possible to assess the correctness of gaits, but also the balance and reliable work performed by the presenter. Too many horses at the show have poor movement and too few are properly built, despite the fact that they cannot be denied a distinct Arabian type.

After the stallions came the senior mare classes. In the 4-6 year old class, two mares distinguished themselves with movement; Shahrazad Al Waab by Fares Al Rayyan, owned by Abdulla Saed MA Al Hajri from Qatar, which turned out to be victorious thanks to a largely good, active trot, but also the only chestnut (with a clear lack of harmony in the build of the body) in the group; Asmaa Juhayna by Nadeed Al Naif bred and owned by Abdulhadi Mana Al-Hajri, both from Qatar.

In general, mares made a better impression than their peer stallions, presenting a type of noble horse that its lovers can associate with the lightness of desert sands. Extremely feminine, unfortunately most of them cannot impress with their movement. Whether these beautiful mares could traverse the vastness of this desert with their gait and not get stuck in the sand up to their cannon bone is another matter. However, just like the phenotype – it is the Egyptian type that sets the standard of the Arabian horse’s beauty today, so the movement may be a matter of accepted standards and the horse’s purpose. Therefore, since the presented horses are not used, it is easy to look over the wrong movement. Therefore, “chasing” horses during the show on a rope becomes a visible formality. Therefore, there is also room for reflection on Polish breeding and its show direction. Maybe Polish breeding tries to chase the “Egyptian” one, which may seem not only difficult in view of the sublime beauty of these horses, which is pointless, at the same time squandering its own identity and remnants of utilitarian possibilities. Contemporary shows lead to diminishing the importance of movement, which in the judges’ opinions is all too visible and probably not a way to make progress in Polish breeding, for which movement and bravery was the most important thing for centuries. The charm of these animals is mainly due to movement that makes the audience rise up during many major world shows.

The fight has started on two fronts. For the high stakes on public health, Qatar is using all known means against the pandemic. Tests? Of course. Masks? Always and everywhere. Distance? Obligatory. Covid app on your phone? Must be green, it is impossible to move without it. At the show, however, the stakes are temporarily small – the first class presentations were held, hopes were awakened – but it is now that you can bury your championship chances.

The highly subsidized, although only a regional show for Straight Egyptian horses, attracted a large group of breeders. Participation is rewarded not only in the championship, but also in classes, up to 6th place. The lowest paid place in the yearling class is 3,000 QAR, the highest – in the senior stallions with 28,000 QAR, which in the championship increases to 250,000 QAR (60,000 EUR).

The horses exhibited at the show represent breeders from Kuwait, Egypt, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the UAE and, of course, Qatar, in general there are 228 of them. The most numerous is of course Qatar with 213 horses and just 15 from the other countries, with 1 symbolically from Egypt. The Arabian Peninsula Horse Show (ECAHO Specific Origin) was supposed to be an overview of Egyptian horses bred in Arab countries, which, however, due to such a clear disproportion of participants, was not entirely successful.

Dominating among the breeders from Qatar are; Aljassimya Farm, Al Shaqab Stud, Al Rayyan Farm, Doha Stud, Sh. Hamad Ali A TH Al-Thani (Mudhar Stud), Al Nasser Stud, Al Nawasi Stud and Jathab Arabians, which by no means exhausts the list of Qatar participants. It can therefore be assumed that the amount will translate into the scale of Qatar’s victory – serious foreign competition is Dubai Arabian Horse Stud (UAE) with 3 good horses, Alsayed Stud with 1 and Khaled Baagdoo with 3 (KSA).

In this regional show, intended for Egyptian horses, we do not find any traces of Polish influence, although due to imports, horses of European breeding also participate; Italian, Belgian, Austrian, German, Danish and Irish as well as American and even from Australia.

An interesting fact, however, is the participation under Qatari colors, bred by Dr. Hans Nagel, of the yearling chestnut filly named NH Lara, a property of the newly created, dynamically developing Doha Stud.

The competition – what distinguishes this show from the European ones – were mainly grey horses, in the number of 202, but also 5 black ones (there were also 11 bays and 10 chestnuts).

Therefore, although the name of the show – compared to the small number of representatives of the remaining Persian Gulf countries – turns out to be a bit exaggerated, the number of horses entered proves the scale of the challenge that the organizer had to face.

The hard work of the judges has started, each age class is judged by as many as 10 judges who came from different continents. The pressure is enormous, but there are so many in the ring that they cannot be wrong. So the best will win.

Katara International Arabian Horse Festival has just taken off. This comparison with the take-off of a jet or F1 is most justified in this case. Even the previous Festival was characterized by extraordinary care and elegance, but the event organized this year, according to the organizers’ assumption, is to be even more perfect, bigger, more luxurious and simply more beautiful.

The still young countries of the Persian Gulf compete with each other in many fields, but in the field of breeding and showing Arabian horses, the competition is full of seriousness and commitment, consistent with the importance of this branch of activity, which was given to it by the Arabs, in this case the Qatari people.

The setting of the show is in extremely good taste, full of splendor and glitz. However, it is not only the perfect organization visible from the very beginning, not only the decor and setting, but also the reference and respect for the discovered and cultivated tradition.

Thus, the Arabian horse in Qatar is a national matter and therefore there will be no compromises in the organization of probably the largest and the most important Arabian Horse Festival in this part of the world; the best horses, the best presenters, the best exhibitors and the most important industry media reporting this event. They do everything to impress the world and show what they have.

That is why Katara is not so much a show, but a series of events that accompany it in the Katara Cultural Village. KIAHF manages the time and place of each guest; in line with your wallet, on the eve of the Festival, at the opening of the pre-auction exhibition entitled “Arabian Horses in Art”, you can prepare for the auction of works exhibited there; prices, as befits great Arabians, are high!

The show itself, aimed at selecting the best horse in a given class, should probably satisfy every Arabian enthusiast. Industry stands are a nice addition, most often of reputable companies, operating strictly in the field of horse breeding. The stands gathered on the show avenue were placed in climatic tents, just like straight from the desert. Arab winter on display; almost 30 degrees Celsius. Despite the cold, it should be hot.