“Those present at the show will confirm that this year’s edition was spectacular. The bar was set very high. And now it’s even higher.” These are the words Mirosław Kołodziej used to conclude his article from last year’s show in Tarnów, treating his readers to both curiosity and eager anticipation. And indeed, as promised, the organisers managed to reach for the stars – even further.

The hospitable Klikowska Ostoja Polskich Koni (Refuge for Polish Horses in Klikowa), the former princely stud farm of the Sanguszko Family, hosted the third All-Polish Arabian Horse Championship on the first weekend of July. It was here, in a land steeped in tradition and passion for Arabian horses, that Tarnów once again became the informal Arabian horse capital of Poland, the meeting place for breeders and enthusiasts from Poland and across Europe. It’s hard to find a better symbol of continuity, where aristocratic traditions of old meet modern standards and international renown.

This year’s edition had a unique, experimental character. For the first time, not one but two shows were held back-to-back: the European and the B-International. A total of 139 horses were entered in both events, of which 54 competed in the European show and 85 in the International one. Some of them competed in both shows, allowing them to be evaluated by different judges. Were the scores the same? Or did they differ significantly? Well find out soon enough.

The show was organised by the Polish Arabian Horse Breeders Association in collaboration with key partners, including the National Support Centre for Agriculture, Global Champions Arabians Tour, Klikowa Arabians Stud, and Strusinianka – a well-known chain of confectioneries and bakeries. The event was held under the honorary patronage of Jakub Kwaśny, Mayor of the City of Tarnów, and Łukasz Smółka, Marshal of the Lesser Polish Voivodeship.

Although this year’s edition had a new formula, several key elements remained unchanged: art exhibitions, a charity auction, riding competitions, friendly integration and – naturally – the most important heroes of this event: purebred Arabians.

By far the biggest success can be claimed by Michałów Stud, whose mares stormed through the championships, and the Głowacki Family’s private stud farm, whose yearling colt is surely destined to take over many a show ring.

For body and soul

The Pierogi Festival on Friday evening, as in previous years, introduced guests to the show’s atmosphere in a delicious and scrumptious way. This culinary highlight, sponsored by Klikowa Arabians owned by the Rzepka Family, provided an excellent opportunity for conversation and reminiscing over traditional Polish dishes. The whole experience was complemented by delicious liqueurs sponsored by the Podlesie Arabians of the Błaszkiewicz Family, owners of Strusinianka.

After a Saturday full of competition, working with horses in truly tropical temperatures, and cheering on one’s favourites, it was time for the Breeders’ Evening. It was not only a chance to relax, but also to bond with the community and have fun with live music.

Throughout the show, guests in the VIP tent were treated to artisanal sweets, exquisite in both taste and form. These were created by the aforementioned Strusinianka, a company with a proud 160-year baking tradition, helmed by Beata and Marek Błaszkiewicz. Fresh coffee effectively alleviated fatigue, even if only for a moment, as the tight schedule undoubtedly took its toll on many attendees.

Horses and artists – a tryst with beauty

Since the first edition of the All-Polish Arabian Horse Championship, art has been an integral part of the event. Artists who reflect the beauty, nobility, and elegance of Arabian horses in their works once again created a number of remarkable artworks especially for the show. The VIP tent featured both paintings and ceramic works that uniquely showcased the majestic beauty of the purebred Arabian. As in the previous year, Beata and Marek Błaszkiewicz of Podlesie Arabians sponsored unique, handcrafted ceramic medals featuring a head of an Arabian horse. Their creator was Tomasz Mrozowski, a veterinarian and artist in one.

Among the works on display, a watercolour by Małgorzata Świertok was a must-see! Her illustrations, combining oriental symbolism with the theme of Arabian horses, graced the cover of this year’s catalogue, as was the case in previous editions. The original watercolour and a ceramic sculpture by Tomasz Mrozowski were donated to the show’s charity auction, supporting a worthy cause.

Images created by Magdalena Muraszko-Kowalska and the artist known as Erna Polak were presented as awards to class and championship winners. The group of artists also included photographers – artists of the lens who capture what’s fleeting, often invisible to the eye: emotions, moods, the harmony of movement and light, and joie de vivre as well as presenters, breeders, judges, and children who flock to the show in Tarnów. Thanks to their work, we can relive these special moments again and again. Among them were Ewa Imielska-Hebda, Patrycja Makowska, Karolina Misztal, Sylwia Iłenda, and Auriane Schwanen. Sylwia, also known for her pastels, this time created hand-painted pendants for special guests, small works of art featuring images of Arabian horses painted on stones. This meeting of horse and art was no coincidence. The uniqueness of Arabian horses has inspired the greatest of artists and writers for centuries.

Charity auction – a quarter million złoty!

A beautiful tradition, which the Polish Arabian Horse Breeders Association has made an integral part of the All-Polish Arabian Horse Championship, is the charity auction, the proceeds of which support children in foster institutions in Tarnów. Since it was held for the third time, it’s high time we took our calculators out. Let’s have a look at some rather impressive numbers.

In 2023, EUR 17,250 was raised, equivalent to PLN 76,500. A year later, the result was even better, with EUR 21,000 raised, or PLN 90,600. This year’s edition brought in EUR 18,400, or approximately PLN 80,000. This totals an impressive quarter million Polish zloty! This year, proceeds will go to the Janusz Korczak Care and Educational Facility in Tarnów.

Nine breedings were donated to the charity auction. The highest price, EUR 4,500, was paid for the breeding to Exagon OS (Cyclone OS – Strastya OS / EKS Alihandro), offered by Monika Siecińska-Jaworowska of Andryjanki Stud. Breedings to Amaar (RFI Farid – Adiya / WH Justice), Medan Al Shaqab (Farhoud Al Shaqab – Abha Myra / Marwan Al Shaqab), and E.S. Harir (AJ Dinar – TF Magnums Magic / Magnum Psyche) also generated considerable interest. The Rzepka Family of Klikowa Arabians, Katarzyna Ostrowska of St. Roch Arabians, and Mariusz Nagórka will soon be expecting offspring from these famous sires.

The artistic highlight of the auction, as was the case last year, was the original watercolour by Małgorzata Świertok. The work went for €2,000 and will adorn the walls at Podlesie Arabians.

The same price was achieved by a breeding to the stallion Amaar (RFI Farid – Adiya / WH Justice), offered by Marek Rzepka from Klikowa Arabians. Two works by Tomasz Mrozowski – a sculpture of the head of an Arabian horse and a ceramic medal – achieved a total of €1,700. Their new owners are Mateusz Jaworski and Hekmat Al Shareif from the United Arab Emirates. An unusual item at the auction was a wooden walking stick with a silver horse head embellished with amber stones, which was purchased by Bogdan Maślanka for €200.

Equestrian duets and the first steps of future handlers

Ridden classes are another permanent fixture of the All-Polish Arabian Horse Championship. Although there were few pairs participating in these competitions this year, the participants deserve even greater respect for their courage and commitment.

On Saturday, the Polish Historical Costume class (4 pairs) was held, and on Sunday, the Traditional Arabian Riding class (5 pairs) – both expertly judged by Weronika Sosnowska. In both cases, the same pairs competed for first and second place: Karolina Ziobro on Purytanin (Kabsztad – Pustynna Malwa / Ekstern), bred at the Michałów Stud and owned by Marcin Ziobro, and Hanna Dziża on Cygarro z Gór (Portel – Cirila z Gór / Pentagram), bred and owned by Wacław Sajdak.

On Saturday, Karolina Ziobro emerged victorious, taking first place, while Hanna Dziża was second. On the next day, the tables were turned, with Hanna Dziża taking the top spot. Third place on the first day went to Agnieszka Helbik-Kuśmierz riding El-Salem (Piaff – El-Zachra / Machmuth Nur), bred and owned by Arkadiusz Nierodkiewicz, while on Sunday it was Adam Dębiński with his chestnut stallion Paristan (Psytadel – Parusa / Poganin), bred by Józef Pietrzak.

Sunday also saw the amateur presenters’ class, offering a chance for potential future professionals to try their hand at showing horses. Six pairs participated and Karol Makowski took first place presenting his grey mare, Psyche Adelajda (Psyche Ull – Psyche Diana / FA El Shawan), bred at Chrcynno-Palace Stud. Róża Skorupowska took second place with the Janów-bred mare Pobelloia (Erantis – Pasawa / Pogrom), owned by Bogdan Maślanka. Dominika Zaucha placed third, presenting the grey gelding Wonder KL (Aja Angelo – Wieża Nimf / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred at Klikowa Arabians. Some might remember that Wonder KL is the Gold Gelding Champion from last year’s show in Tarnów who had a full set of 20s for movement.

It’s show time – and make it double!

Two shows in two days? Now that’s quite a challenge. The agenda was packed full, and the pace was at times dizzying. Despite the logistical hiccups, everything was completed down to the last detail, though it was impossible not to realise we were racing against time a couple of times.

The European Show began on Saturday morning and continued until lunchtime. The International Show classes began immediately afterward, but due to time constraints, the last two classes were moved to Sunday morning. At noon on Sunday, the championships began – first of the European show, then the International.

Thanks to the partnership agreement signed last year by the Polish Arabian Horse Breeding Association with Global Champions Arabians Tour, class winners again received vouchers to participate in one of the series’ events, this time held in Prague. The voucher includes free entry for the horses to the show and free stables.

This year’s judging panel was also international. The European Show was judged by Kathleen Ohlsson (Sweden), Amira Safady (the Netherlands), and James Swaenepoel (Belgium). The International show was judged by Cedes Bakker (Netherlands), Scott Brumfield (USA), Bérengère Fayt (France), Zico Guardia (Brazil), Joanne Lowe (Great Britain), Mohamed Oussidhoum (Morocco), Caroline Reid (Great Britain), and Jonas Salzmann (Kuwait).

EUROPEAN SHOW

Yearling colts ready to start

A small class of yearling colts (five horses) was the first to blaze a trail in the Tarnów show ring. Exit UMM (Exagon OS – Aja Estelle / Aja Angelo), a colt born in southern Sweden at Moëll & Moëll Arabians and currently residing at Barakah Arabians in Denmark had the highest score of 91 points. His owner, Mia Hvid-Wraae, also successfully bid for a breeding to Morion at the charity auction.

Second and third places went to Pustynny Książe (Wadee Al Shaqab – Paradna / Equator), bred and owned by Anna Janas-Naze, who scored 90.67 points, and Pianisto KL (Lyric EA – Pianissa KL / Ajman Moniscione), bred and owned by Klikowa Arabians, with a score of 89.67 points. In the championship, Exit UMM once again proved his status and won the gold medal. Pustynny Książe and Pianisto KL swapped places on the final podium.

Cornelia from Janów on top

A little while later, the yearling fillies competed in two classes, with a total of 11 contenders. Pieszczota (Belmari – Pericola / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred at Białka Stud took lead in class A, proudly standing out with her large eyes and impressive movement. She scored 91.42 points, clearly outpacing her rivals. This improved her score from last month at the Junior Spring Show in Białka (89.33 points), as this time she performed significantly better. She didn’t lose her form or composure throughout the championships, claiming the Yearling Filly Silver Champion title.

In Class B, three out of six fillies were daughters sired by the Michałów-bred stallion Ptolemeusz. The best of them, and the best of the entire class, was the charming grey Cornelia (Ptolemeusz – Cedora / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred in Janów Podlaski, who scored 92.13 points. In the championship, she was awarded the title of Gold Champion by a unanimous decision of the judges. Right behind her in class, with a score of 90.75 points, was the bay El Elsza of Sinus (Ptolemeusz – El Elwa of Sinus / Wadee Al Shaqab), a filly bred and owned by the Sinus Arabstuteri from Sweden. El Elsza joined the abovementioned ladies as she won bronze in the Yearling Fillies Championship.

Six ’20s’ and unanimous gold

Following the youngest participants in the show, it was time for junior horses. The future silver and bronze medallists of the Junior Mare Championship were in Class A of the 2-3-year-old mares. These were Parabella, a daughter of Prometeusz out of Pregoła by Vitorio TO, bred by Janów Podlaski Stud and owned by Klikowa Arabians, and Perida.

The bay Parabella stood out with her very correct body, lovely and quite unique grey coat, and her movement which was full of youthful vigour, for which she received three scores of 19.5. A total score of 91.83 points secured her victory in class. However, she did not take silver in the championship. The medal went to Janów’s Perida (Picasso Di Mar – Paolila / Pogrom), who placed second in the same class with a score of 91.67 points. The gold medallist, meanwhile, emerged from Class B – and with real panache. Białka’s sensational Ejna (D Kaheel – Elwimia / Ascot DD) captivated the judges, earning a whopping six “20s”: three each for type and movement, for an impressive score of 92.22 points. The jury was once again unanimous in choosing the gold champion.

The gold medal in the Junior Stallion Championship went to Marek Rzepka’s family-owned Klikowa Arabians Stud. Poker Move KL (RFI Unique – Plivia / Kahil Al Shaqab) won the 2-year-old stallions class with a score of 90.92 points. Białka’s Etyl (Haash OSB – Elzamira / Glorius Apal) left Tarnów with the silver medal, having earlier won the 3-year-old colt class in impressive fashion. He particularly dazzled with his movement, receiving a full set of 20s, for a total of 91.91 points . The bronze medal went to the snow-white colt Palissander SW (Raoud Al Bidayer – Pilarosa / Al Adeed Al Shaqab), bred by Suweco Stud and owned by Adam Ochmann and Polia Arabians. He placed second in his class with a score of 90.67 points. Also worth mentioning is Monarchio (Star Farid – Minerwina / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred by Wojciech Parczewski and owned by Bogdan Maślanka. He advanced to the finals from third place in his class with a score of 88.92 points, gaining in the championship the favour of two judges, who nominated him for bronze.

FA Estymacja with the highest score of the entire event

In the senior mares class, a total of 15 contenders competed for the top honours. Undefeated in both Class A and the championship was the grey Estymacja FA (Empower – Estema / Emerald J), bred by Krzysztof Goździalski of Falborek Arabians and owned by Joanna Wojtecka and Paweł Kozikowski’s JP Training Center. Estymacja FA boasted incredible movement and delighted the judges, receiving a full set of “20s” for (that’s right) movement, one “20” for type, and high marks for head and neck (2 x 19.5 and 19.75), giving her an impressive total score of 93.25 points – the highest of all the horses on both Saturday and Sunday. She left Tarnów as the Gold Senior Mare Champion.

Second place in her class and the Silver Mare Champion title went to Efora KL (QR Marc – Erigone / Ekstern), a mare bred and owned by Klikowa Arabians. She received 91.83 points for her performance. The bronze medal went to the grey Fogata (Muranas Jassehr – Formis / Esparto), bred in Michałów and owned by Paweł Syliwoniuk. Fogata placed third in the championship and second in Class B, receiving a score of 91.5 points. The judges awarded her the medal unanimously.

Senior Stallions – Ames JR reigns supreme

Among the senior stallions, Ames JR (Psytadel – Altara / Gazal Al Shaqab), a show horse with considerable experience on the red carpet, bred and owned by Janusz Ryżkowski, was unrivalled. This stallion boasts the title of 2019National Junior Champion Stallion, which only confirms his status. In Tarnów, Ames JR outclassed the competition, earning 92.67 points, including top marks for movement and, quite interestingly, very high marks for legs – three times 16 points. As we know, judges are generally reluctant to award such marks in this category.

Second place with a score of 91.42 points went to Encarino (Shiraz de Lafon – Eneria / QR Marc), bred by Janów Podlaski Stud and owned by Agata Pryciak. Ashton was third, a bay son of Pogrom out of Atanda by Eden C, bred at Edward Sieciński’s Andryjanki Stud, having scored 90.25 points. The championship standings remained unchanged: gold for Ames JR, silver for Encarino, and bronze for Ashton.

INTERNATIONAL SHOW

Unrivalled yearlings from Michałów

The yearling fillies competing in Classes A and B of the International Show presented a very even quality, but in each class, a representative of Michałów Stud clearly stood out. In Class A, the grey Zazzera, daughter of KA Nabras and the famous Zigi Zana by QR Marc, proved unrivalled. Zazzera, scoring 91.40 points, outshone her rivals – the other fillies were scored between 89.00 and 89.60 points.

In Class B, Epiforana (Mutabahi Al Hawajer – Espana / QR Marc) put on a real show, dazzling with her movement, earning four “20s” in this category and a total of 92.10 points. Her competitors received scores ranging from 90.20 to 91.20 points.

In the championship, the judges were unanimous – the gold medal went to Epiforana, and the silver to Zazzera. The bronze medal went to the beautiful Wiosenna Przygoda (KA Nabras – Wiosenna Róża / Empire), also from the stables in Michałów. This meant the entire podium belonged to Michałów! Moreover, two medallists were KA Nabras daughters.

Gellatto – the first step to great victories

In the yearling colts class, the undisputed hero was the bay Gellatto – a son of the award-winning stallion Nahil Al Khalediah and the mare Gratella by Morion, bred by Jan Głowacki. Handsome, with a beautiful head and neck, he stole the attention of not only the audience but also the judges, who awarded him a high score of 91.90 points, including four “20s”: one each for type and movement, and two for head and neck. In the championship, he unanimously took home the gold medal and the champion title. As it turned out, this wasn’t his only highlight of the day.

Aaron (KA Nabras – Anielka / Ekstern), this year’s bronze medallist from Białka, advanced to the finals from second place in Class A with a score of 90.40 points. He repeated this success in Tarnów, again finishing third.

El Soray LJ (Star Farid – El Soraya/Wadee Al Shaqab), bred and owned by Leszek Jarmuż, advanced to the finals from Class B. He placed in the Top Five in Białka, and this time he won silver, showing how his form was improving.

And I have a feeling that Gellatto, Aaron, and Białka’s gold medallist, El Primero, will be jostling for a spot in the final line-up once again. Their rivalry promises to be truly exciting, and… something tells me this is just the beginning.

The Janów-bred Elzoya does not disappoint and goes for gold

In class A of two-year-old fillies, the clear favourite from the start was the charming Elzoya, daughter of the excellent Euzona by Om El Belissimo and sired by Pianissima’s son, Prometeusz. This year’s silver medallist from Białka again did not disappoint the expectations of her enthusiastic home team from Janów Podlaski, earning 92.20 points. The judges awarded her very high scores: a full row of 19.5 points for type, head and neck, and movement. Class B was much more evenly matched. The contenders’ scores ranged from 90.70 to 91 points, with two mares achieving identical scores of 90.90 points. Unfortunately, neither managed to steal a place on the final podium.

In the three-year-old fillies class, four competitors lined up – two of them grey, the other two bay. The top two spots went to the latter. Cararra (D Zeidan – Calatina / Emerald J), bred by Marek Kondrasiuk and owned by Alicja Najmowicz, proved to be the best. Allow me to offer a personal note: Cararra is a mare with a very good head and neck, correct conformation, and great potential, so I’m rooting for her to reach greater heights. In Tarnów, she scored 91.80 points, including a full 19.5 for type as well as head and neck, along with four 19.5s and one 19 for movement. Second place in this class went to Michałów’s Pustynia Wiktorii (Dominic M – Pustynia Kahila / Kahil Al Shaqab), who scored 91.20 points. In the championship, the final podium perfectly reflected the class scored. Gold went to Elzoya, silver to Cararra, and bronze to Pustynia Wiktorii.

Białka repeats itself – same medallists, same emotions

Among the junior colts, there were no surprises – the results were exactly the same as they had been in Białka just a month earlier! The two-year-old stallion class was won by Palatyn PA (Morion – Prasada PA / Empire), bred and owned by the Parys Family at Dąbrówka Stud, with a score of 90.5 points. Palatyn PA didn’t look back, adding another gold medal in Tarnów to his gold from Białka.

The winner of the three-year-old stallion class was the grey Panier (EKS Farajj – Paprotnia / Elgast), bred by Lech Błaszczyk and owned by his grandson Marek Łukaszewski. Although he received a higher score than Palatyn, with 91.5 points, he was awarded the Silver Champion title. Third place in class and the bronze medal in the finals went to Fawoniusz (Wolare – Finga / Genetrix), bred and owned by Krzysztof Jagielski, who scored 90.10 points.

Michałów dominates in senior mares

The senior mares class was exceptionally strong. Thirteen contenders entered the ring, 12 of whom were scored (one was withdrawn due to lameness). Five of them achieved scores equal to or higher than 92 points, while the rest exceeded the 90-point mark.

In the 4-6-year-old mares class, the best performer was the bay Labonita (Dominic M – Lakonia / Chimeryk) from Michałów Stud. This beautiful mare with striking eyes and deep ganache, earned 92.30 points and deservedly qualified for the finals in first place. This is no surprise, as she is the 2022 Polish National Yearling Filly Champion. In Tarnów, she added the bronze medal to her collection, securing a spot on the podium for Michałów, which, after dominating the yearling fillies, once again swept all the medals.

The gold medal went to the milky grey Wildanova (WH Justice – Wilda / Gazal Al Shaqab), who is becoming more beautiful with each passing year. The mare dominated the ring, receiving a full set of “20s” for movement and a single twenty for type, giving her a total of 93 points and, if I’m not mistaken, the highest score of her hitherto career.

A slightly lower score was given to Poganinka (Dominic M – Lakonia / Chimeryk), who has a large fan base, as the judges awarded her 92.9 points. Poganinka has accustomed us to effortlessly flying through the ring, and this time it was no different: a full set of “20s” for movement and two more for type. In the championship, she joined her stablemates with the Silver Champion title.

Last but not least: Senior Stallions

Among the older stallions, the bay, charismatic, and in fantastic condition stallion Nisser Babel (Sinharib Babel – AJ Nasheeda / AJ Portofino), bred and owned by Hekmat Al Shareif from the United Arab Emirates, stood out with his exotic beauty. The stallion received 92.10 points from the judges and qualified to the finals from first place.

In second place with a score of 90.5 points was Elon KL (QR Marc – Erigone / Ekstern) from Klikowa Arabians Stud. This balance of power was confirmed in the championship: Nisser Babel took gold, and Elon KL silver. The bronze medallist was the winner of the 7-year-old and older stallions class, Petrus PA (Ekstern – Piwonia / Kahil Al Shaqab) from Dąbrówka Stud of the Parys Family, who received a score of 91.80 points from the judges. Interestingly, this class also included medallists from the European Championship held in the morning: Ames JR, Encarino, and Ashton. However, the different balance of power and the different judging panel prevented those horses from repeating their earlier success.

Best of the Best – Special Awards

To the great and well-deserved delight of his breeders and owners, Gellatto deservedly received the title of Best in Show Stallion. In addition to the Marshal of the Lesser Polish Voivodeship Trophy, he also received the special award for Best Head. Michałów’s Wildanova, in excellent form, was honoured with the title of Best in Show Mare and the Mayor of the City of Tarnów Trophy.

The Ganges Award for best horse in show with a racing career went to Elon KL from Klikowa Arabians. The title of best Pure Polish Mare was awarded to the grey Pantera, daughter of Ekstern and the mare Pampa by Gazal Al Shaqab, bred by Michałów Stud and owned by Bogdan Maślanka. Pantera earned a high score of 91.75 points in the European show, including twenties across the board for movement, and 90.50 points in the International Show. The title of best Pure Polish Stallion went to Piernat (Gaspar – Pogoria / Ekstern), bred by Andrzej Borkowski and owned by Agnieszka Dąbrowska, with his distinctive, extremely original flea-bitten coat.

A touching moment was the presentation of the Special Award of the Polish Arabian Horse Breeders Association – the Arabian Prometheus – to Anna Stefaniuk. This unique distinction is awarded to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to Arabian horse breeding in Poland. Anna Stefaniuk spent almost 40 years at the Janów Podlaski Stud, serving as Chief Breeding Specialist. The recipient of this prestigious award is also an international A-level judge.

The handlers weren’t overlooked either during the special awards ceremony. The Best Handler of the Show award went to Enrico Mearelli from Elegantica Training Center, who, together with his brother Nicola, recently joined the Michałów show team.

The show’s organisers never cease to surprise, and each year they reach for increasingly bold, often experimental solutions. They have already announced that in twelve months we will once again be treated to a powerful dose of excitement in Tarnów’s Klikowska Ostoja.

The only thing the growing number of participants and spectators could wish for is an even wider selection of horses in each class. However, with so many accompanying attractions and two shows taking place simultaneously, one might begin to wonder if two days is actually enough. Perhaps a three-day format, with the event starting on Friday, would be worth a thought? Such an expansion could give the event the character of a true Arabian Horse Festival, serving as an excellent prelude to the rapidly approaching Polish Arabian Horse Days in Janów Podlaski.

The third edition of All-Polish Arabian The Horse Championship organised by the Polish Arabian Horse Breeders Association made history. On 5th-6th July 2025, at the charming Klikowska Ostoja Polskich Koni (Polish Horse Refuge in Klikowa) in Tarnów, two shows were held back-to-back: B-International and European Show, all under the patronage of Global Champions Arabians Tour and with generous support of a multitude of sponsors and enthusiasts who had devoted the last few weeks of their time to making sure everything would be as perfect as possible.
The horses entered in the shows were judged by two different panels of judges. The European Show was judged by Kathleen Ohlsson, Amira Safady and James Swaenepoel, while the B-International – by Cedes Bakker, Scott Brumfield, Bérengère Fayt, Zico Guardia, Joanne Lowe, Mohamed Oussidhoum, Caroline Reid and Jonas Salzmann.

The organisers must have booked the weather well in advance, and it was actually too good, as is was at times scorching hot, especially on Sunday, and even avoiding the sun and staying in the shade wasn’t enough to prevent you from getting a tan. The large, spacious, and, as always, exquisitely furnished VIP tent offered a tempting array of catering, and the staff ensured no one would get thirsty too quickly on these hot summer days. Unfortunately, as is sometimes does happen at a show in such weather, I personally had the opportunity to appreciate the helping hand of the paramedics on site.

People outside the VIP tent had access to stands for the audience along the shorter wall of the arena and to tiny shops and catering stands around the building known in Klikowa as Hubertus, or the hunter’s lodge. On Sunday, unfortunately, and weirdly so, with an increased number of people in attendance, the number of stands decreased, leading to some being a bit disgruntled, which is indeed quite logical. One must admit, however, that not everything is within the organisers’ control, and some unpleasant situations do occur in spite of one’s best and kindest intentions.

In this year’s catalogue, we could find a total of approximately 150 entries, and the International Show proved to be more popular among horse owners. Some horses were, naturally, entered in both shows, as well as in the ridden classes or the amateur handlers class, others were withdrawn, so overall we saw more or less 100 horses. This number certainly is impressive for one show, for two – slightly less so. Nonetheless, let us hope that the smaller number of horses was, generally speaking, due to the necessity of choosing one of the shows, and in a broader perspective, undoubtedly, due to the difficult times all of us are facing these days. Just keeping a larger group of horses nowadays generates higher costs than it did a few years ago, and when you factor in preparing your horse(s) in a show training centre and the costs of participating in events… your spending will increase exponentially. I think we all would hate to see the Tarnów Championships disappear from our calendars, since in Poland, we have such a limited selection of events for purebred Arabians. Therefore, every opportunity to admire these beautiful horses is probably worth its weight in gold.

What’s encouraging, however, is the large number of new names among owners of the horses shown, which is linked to the growing interest in Arabian horses. In my view, this might be due to the fact that the show is organised outside of Białka and Janów Podlaski stud farms. Another reason is probably the broader promotion of these horses, which had been seriously insufficient for many years. Furthermore, the community itself could have been potentially a bit scary to newcomers due to its somewhat closed-off nature.

I think many would agree with me that the hot weather and the extremely tight schedule—many horses, two parallel shows with numerous classes and two series of championships to compete in, equestrian sports, and a charity auction – were quite exhausting even for the most seasoned of us. Half-jokingly, the horses entered in both shows had it worst, losing their strength and lightness on Sunday afternoon during the championships. Perhaps it’s worth considering a “one-day, one-show” formula, although this too might not guarantee the horses would get enough rest, but it would prevent some of them from performing for judges and the public three times in one day.

Despite these minor hiccups, which some may not have even noticed, the entire event will without a shade of doubt go down in history as a marvellous event considering all the pleasant, emotional, and touching moments. We all held our breath during the amateur-presenters’ class, when the chestnut Esmina ran away from Eliza Tarczyńska only to hide in her stables? And then, the moment when Eliza was honoured – that’s right: honoured – with a special Bravery Award. A trophy just for her so that she would remember her performance fondly in spite of stress.

We all felt like crying during the symbolic ceremony marking the return to Poland of Białka’s legendary multichampion Pesal? Surely Renata Kurzyńska did cry, and did many other – both in awe and in shock. And there were many more such moments. The awards for the best Pure Polish horses were also a very nice touch, and so was the aforementioned class for amateurs. The charity auction for a local foster home for kids in Tarnów was also a memorable moment – for those involved in its organisation, the donors and bidders, and, of course, the kids who will benefit from the bidders’ generosity. Good deeds return with greater goodness, and I think that supporting places like this is truly important on many levels, and I hope the Tarnów auction will serve as a model for others.

The auction, the breeders’ evening on Saturday with fun and games, the “pierogi and nalewki” festival (with dumplings and traditional liqueurs) on Friday evening which included this year delicious goat cheese, are permanent fixtures at the Tarnów show. In my humble opinion, the ambiance at this show is designed and intended to build lasting interpersonal bonds, to integrate and unite, rather than divide people within this small community of ours. A more integrated, friendly environment, and a welcoming atmosphere surrounding the event are a simple recipe for success. The very idea of “resurrecting” the Radom championship with participation of its creators was in itself an act of healthy cooperation – proof of the need to do something together, and subsequent editions of this “new-old” show as well as the way it is organised and experimented with, only reinforce my belief that this is in fact true.

Dearest Reader, as you must have already noticed, this year (which is quite unusual for me), you shan’t find any information about the show results in my article. I refer you to www.arabianessence.tv, where you can find videos from each class and all the results in full details. Please consider these observations of mine as a subjective report to be attached to numbers and facts. And… see you soon!

This will be another short story about my trip to see Arabian horse shows in Qatar. However, I would rather avoid discussing the horses, their scores and pedigrees, or the officials. Instead, I would love to take you on a trip with me and tell you about the atmosphere at the show, which is considered by many – on many levels – to be one of the best in the world, as well as touch upon GCAT, the city where it all takes place – Doha, and a bit about the country itself – Qatar.

After a week-long stay in Doha, watching closely the first show, that is Katara Arabian Peninsula Horse Show, busily processing hundreds of photos and creating my first short story, I was about to finish packing, basically almost ready to leave for Poland. Then out of the blue, I was asked if I might want to stay for the second part of the Festival, the much larger show, the upcoming Qatari leg of Global Champions Arabians Tour… Of course I wanted to!!!

Tour of the studs

A short break between the two shows was filled with an Arabian horse auction, followed by two days off, during which preparations for the next parts of the festival were underway. The first of the free days was when the trip to the open days of the studs took place. Usually they are simply impossible to visit so, together with Ewa Imielska-Hebda, we started our tour from the oldest stud in Qatar – Al Rayyan Farm, where its hospitable manager Grzegorz Gajewicz from Poland who has been working there for the past two years welcomed us.

After the arrival of all guests, the presentation of horses owned by this well-known stud began. Stallions were the first to be shown. And what a demonstration of strength and charisma that was! Despite the warm and very sunny day, the milky-grey stallions were bursting with testosterone. Then it was time for the mares and foals. This was no less exciting, although in a totally different way. The foals, which are not yet used to the presence of the public, sometimes rebelled, and the presenters leading them looked almost as if they were carrying them onto the showground and back to the stables to make room for the next horses to come out.

After the horse show, all guests were invited to enjoy some food and drinks. Tables were set up on the lawn, and all of us could debate about what we had just seen and experienced. We also met another Pole working at the stud, the friendly Patrycja Pakuła who serves as a vet there. After the visit to Al Rayyan, some of the guests returned to their hotels, because the next stud to which we were invited is already located far outside the city – in the desert. It was not easy to get there, but somehow we managed. Al Hamama is a relatively new stud, but can already boast significant successes, such as at this year’s KIAHF show. Here we were surprised by the collective prayer, which took place not in a dedicated tent, but in the audience in front of the showground. Some of the participants took part in the prayers, while the rest of us waited patiently for the presentation, enjoying the treats and drinks served, as well as the smell of agarwood, which in the Arabian Peninsula is called oud. Once the presentation began, what caught our attention was… the stud’s owner Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Saoud Al Thani was standing at the fence, waiting for each of the horses, patting them and treating them each to a tasty carrot. Now isn’t that sweet?

The third we visited was Al Waab Farm, located as far as 80 km from Doha, which does not often open its doors to visitors. That probably explains the crowds visiting. Attractions began as soon as we entered the lush green (!) areas of the estate, as right in front of the hood of the car ran a herd of… zebras! A bit further on, an antelope was grazing calmly… On the farm, there are pavilions with wild animals, but the harmless ones walk freely all over the multi-hectare green pastures. What to us seems most familiar are the aforementioned pastures, but to keep them green is actually a huge challenge concerning the weather in Qatar. After all, this is a country where deserts reign; no grass grows here, no meadows or forests. Just sand, rocks, and some more hot sand. Feed for animals, including horses, has to be imported, so imagine what an immense, really enormous undertaking it is to maintain a green farm with a huge number of animals.

The horses on display were delightful, especially since the owners of Al Waab do not exhibit horses at any events, nor do they show them anywhere outside their property. And they have some of the best Straight Egyptian Arabians. It was truly a feast for the eyes. When it was over, as we wanted to quietly leave the estate, we were stopped by kind gentlemen who declared it was not possible… Since the nights in the desert are cold and we were all already frozen, we were invited to a warm meal. And we were treated like royalty! It was a leisurely but very, really very busy and eventful day.

Return to Doha

The Katara auction was held at the showground. To my disappointment, most of the lots were embryos (some of which were destined for charity) and semen – you can’t really take photos of either of these, and only a few horses were shown. Faced with such a dilemma, we stayed at the auction only for a short while, and then we went to the old souq, a historic marketplace, to enjoy the colours, aromas, and atmosphere of the oriental city. Charming narrow streets full of tiny stores selling spices, pottery, ceramics, textiles, food, handicrafts and hundreds of products unheard of in our country, whose purpose we could only guess. It was a wonderful trip and another colourful, eventful day.

On the eve of the main show of the GCAT series, it turned out that we had a lot of work ahead of us – we had to organise all the photos we had taken earlier, describe our impressions so that nothing would be missed or forgotten, and prepare for the next event.

As I have already mentioned, my guide to Qatar and to the shows themselves was Ewa Imielska-Hebda, a well-known Polish Arabian horse photographer. As a person who, not for the first time, participated in shows in these parts of the world, familiar with the customs of such events, she was a constant source of knowledge for me, and I very much hope that I did not torment her with dozens of questions, also for advice. Ewa forewarned me that GCAT would be “more” of everything I could imagine. That it would be bigger, louder, more colourful, that there would be more crowned heads, princes and royal families, more magnificent horses, more glitter, and cameras, the incessant sound of shutters snapping pictures…

Indeed she was right!!! There were more tables, more people labelled “Media”, more people in the stands, and, well, more horses. The show began with a ceremonial performance by the representative orchestra of the Qatari police. Once again, it caused goose bumps all over my body. The orchestra mid-performance presented a rather complicated marching choreography – the more impressed the audience was with their ceremonial dance. This time it was not the last time I saw the orchestra during the event. They would show up and play fanfares before each announcement of the class winner. The show included not only Straight Egyptian horses, but all the best Arabian horses from around the world. Polish-bred horses were present too, four of them to be precise: Monserat, Echo Anastasia, Eragon Zalia and Equator. Unfortunately, due to the large number of horses entered in the show, Polish Arabians did not qualify for the championships. This is because the regulations stated that if more than 180 horses were entered, only the first three from each class would go further to the championships, and our horses, without exception, were among the top, but outside the first three of their categories.

The last day of the show was reserved for the championships and medals, and a lot of excitement. Starting with the youngest, subtle fillies and ending with the proud senior stallions, we could watch the most beautiful, most desirable horses in the world. Hunting for the perfect photo was an incredibly difficult task. This was true for the official photographers – who were in the ring during the show though only during the decoration of the horses – as well as for the rest of the photographers. Later, backstage, over dinner, we talked a bit about it, complaining together about the mass of people with cell phones who would come very close to the horses, making it impossible to take pictures with cameras. However, it wasn’t bothersome enough to wipe the smiles off the faces of media representatives of all sorts, especially since it was time for the festive conclusion of GCAT Doha.

Let there be light

The light show was extraordinary, the sky lit up with hundreds of tiny lights covering on drones, fireworks and the sound of the drums of the aforementioned orchestra. At the showground, during a short break, in almost total darkness, a stage was built in the bling of an eye. The orchestra performed on this stage, and there was a dance show, which could perhaps be described as modern dervishes. This combination of sounds, lights, colours, and dance was truly breath-taking and made my body produce an unprecedented amount of endorphins. I stood and watched it entirely captivated, watching something so amazing for the first time in my life.

The show ended with the appearance of the GCAT logo above our heads. Hellishly tired, but indescribably happy, I returned to the hotel. To Poland. Back home. The shows in Doha will surely continue to energise me for a long time to come, because even now, as I’m writing this story, I can feel myself smiling.

And so the first two shows are behind us. Next stop: Oman!

In January 2025, I had the immense pleasure of participating in the Katara Arabian Peninsula Horse Show in Doha. I owe this trip to the courtesy of the editorial team of Polskie Araby and the organisers of this amazing Qatari show. The entire setting and the ambience, the exquisite horses, the falcons – beyond a shadow of doubt an unforgettable event.

From the very beginning, the event was extraordinary – before it started, really. At the airport in Doha, a driver was waiting for us. What surprised me was that he had my name and surname written down and spelled flawlessly, and believe me, this doesn’t happen often (even in Poland). It’s quite a long and complicated sequence of relatively random characters (especially for those who don’t speak any Polish).

My companions and I headed towards the men who were greeting us. They took our luggage and led us to the cars that then took us to the hotel. On the way, we were impressed by the cleanliness of the city – no garbage on the streets, nor any graffiti on the walls… Beautiful, clean architecture, which in its form beautifully combines Arabic tradition with cosmopolitan modernity.

Let’s see the horses

The next morning at breakfast, one could sense joyful anticipation. Who else would show up? Would we meet old friends? Cordial hellos, smiles, hugs, the “mandatory” coffee (the first of many on this eventful trip)… We waited for the party to begin.

We were driven to the show in elegant cars, and there were more good friends waiting for us at the arena. What surprised me a little was the cordiality with which the media veterans welcomed me, a relative newcomer. I immediately felt as if I had always belonged to that group of chosen ones who showed up with cameras at horse shows, never feeling out of place wherever life took me.

After the hellos in the lobby, it was time for the official opening. Before the horses appeared in the ring, a military band marched in at an even pace. The gentlemen played with such dedication and so beautifully that the people present got shivers down their spines from excitement. I know I did. After playing two songs from their repertoire and the Qatari anthem “Peace to the Amir”, it was high time for the heroes of the event, the purebred horses, to finally come out.

The first day was in its entirety about yearling horses – youngsters who are not yet fully familiar with shows, so sometimes their handlers had some minor problems with them. At such moments, it was clear who was friends with the horse they were showing, as well as which horses felt a bit afraid of what was happening around them. It was often nice to watch how the gentlemen – because here, as anywhere else, horse presentation is the domain of men – calmly waited for the “little ones” to calm down so they could get back to work. It was most visible when the music stopped and silence took over. There were several such moments during the day. The sound system was turned off for prayers, but the show itself was not interrupted. The silence was almost absolute, because in Qatar – unlike in Poland – no one runs around the arena trying to get the horses’ attention. The only sounds you could then hear were the horses – their steps, the clatter of hooves, their excited breathing, and how the handlers talked to them.

Suddenly one of the horses got spooked, rammed the rope fence, bolted onto the beach and then onto the wooden pier. There he stopped, and returned with confidence to his handler. The pair were rewarded with cheers and a moment later with applause, as they won their class.

More than just a show – a proper festival

Katara is a lot more than horses trotting around the showground. Next to the impressive facility, built especially for the event, there were pavilions and stands where you could admire the works of artists and traditional artisans, or buy “equine” cosmetics (as in inspired by horses). The most interesting for me were the live painting demonstrations. As someone who likes to pick a pencil or a brush, I admired artists who could work in such an intensity of emotions, noise and light… Painting dominated, but each of the artists present used a different technique, had their unique style, used different creative materials. You could even buy paintings painted on saddles.

The second day was about two- and three-year-olds, or junior horses. On this day, many more guests showed up, and the cheering from the stands became louder. The atmosphere of the show was getting hotter and wilder, despite the strong and chilly wind that accompanied us until the end of the day. Waiters were constantly bringing cold and hot drinks and snacks, making sure that the guests and spectators had all they needed. And believe me – we lacked nothing. The organisation of this huge was top notch.

This day made us realise how beloved grey horses are by the people of the Arabian Peninsula. Other coat colours were not as visible and you could probably count those horses on two hands. In this situation, it was quite easy to become a clairvoyant: “Who will win? The grey one!” And that’s okay, because the old Polish provers tells us: “Who never had a grey horse, never had a good one”.

The next day was all about senior horses and once again there were no surprises in terms of the coat colours of the winning horses. As always, I was most impressed by the senior stallions, boisterous and expressive. You can always count on these guys to do something that will look interesting in photos and later – after translating them onto paper with a pencil – in drawings. I was right!

Attractions aplenty

Championship reigned supreme on day four. However, before the show’s winners were announced, the stands were filled with crowned heads. There were also significantly more guests from outside Qatar.

Another attraction of the day was the opportunity to observe the finals of a falconry competition, which took place in one of the pavilions of the Katara Cultural Village. What surprised me (and probably the other guests, who were watching such a competition for the first time too) were the dynamics of the event. Although these are probably not the best words to describe the course of this event. Especially when compared to the pace and expression of Arabian horse shows, which we are used to.

All that transpired during the falconry show took place at a leisurely pace and in a most dignified fashion, without any loud music obviously. Each of the hooded birds was first presented to the Emir of Qatar, then slowly carried for the jury to see it, and then returned to its place. Sadly, we could not wait until the final results of the competition, because we had to return to the arena with the horses. And the way back also turned out to be a very nice experience. The ride at night through beautifully lit Katara was truly magical.

Prologue

In the championships that always crown shows like Katara Arabian Peninsula Horse Show, we always see the crème de la crème. It was no different in Doha: lots of grey horses, lots of people posing for photos with the prize-winning mares and stallions, a lot of photographers, artists and filmmakers running around in front of them, excited to take the best picture. The results? You can read all about them on Arabian Essence, so it would be pointless to prolong the (perhaps already too long) report. That wasn’t my job anyway. I’m the one who snaps photos and draws and paints.

I wanted to capture as much of the ambience and uniqueness of the show as possible from my very own perspective of a guest observing the event from the stands. It was a truly special time for me and I hope I managed to show at least a bit of the colourfulness and otherness of the Arabian world of purebred horses as compared to what we usually are witnesses to in Europe. I myself will certainly often return to my Qatari memories, both in my thoughts and on paper – with a pencil in hand, drawing the equine superheroes that I saw with my own eyes.

The five-hour-long flight from Warsaw to Doha allowed us to step into the fascinating world of the Orient. The exotic city of Doha inspired awe not only because of the phenomenal architecture to be seen everywhere, but primarily due to its omnipresent aura of serenity and kindness. Such extraordinary atmosphere surrounded the Arabian Peninsula Horse Show, which took place between 29th January and 1st February 2025 as an integral part of the fifth edition of the Katara International Arabian Horse Festival. The Festival, which ended on 8th February 2025, consisted this year of three events: the Arabian Peninsula Horse Show, the Katara Arabian Horse Auction, and Global Champions Arabians Tour, its most prestigious part.

The Katara Cultural Village Foundation in collaboration with the Racing and Equestrian Club and the Qatar Equestrian Federation organizes Katara International Arabian Horse Festival annually. The Festival is graced with the esteemed patronage of the Emir of the State of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. Professor Khalid bin Ibrahim Al-Sulaiti, General Manager of the Foundation pointed out in his message to the guests that the Festival is a tribute to the tireless efforts of breeders who devoted their lives to preserving the purity of Arabian bloodlines. Moreover, the Festival expresses the fact that Katara fully embraces its responsibility to preserve and promote heritage, with the Arabian horse standing as a powerful symbol of strength, elegance and loyalty.

The Arabian Peninsula Horse Show is a specific origin show open to Straight Egyptian horses registered or eligible for registration by the World Arabian Horse Organization (WAHO). 139 horses were registered for the show representing six countries: Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt. The horses competed in 12 classes for considerable prize money. Suffice to say that the owner of the winning horse in senior classes is awarded with 250 000 QR. Therefore, there is a lot at stake, although what ultimately matters is the prestige of being the owner of the best horse.

The Show itself takes place in a fairy-tale scenery created by a show complex erected at a huge expense upon the Katara beach to last only for the duration of the Festival. Yet, the organizers spared neither money nor effort in order to secure dazzling conditions for the presentation of horses. All premises were designed in sophisticated aesthetics drawing on Bedouin culture, combined with subtle shades of brown, beige and white, thus creating the effect of subdued luxury. Such scenery in conjunction with shimmering ultramodern skyscrapers looming on the horizon in a way symbolizes the underlying concept behind the event, namely the connection of a centuries’ long cultural tradition of Qatar with the challenges of the modern world. The entire place provided a grand and dignified setting arranged meticulously for the sole purpose being to admire the beauty of Straight Egyptian horses participating in the show. This year, the horses were evaluated over days by a panel of 14 judges, among whom there were Poles this time. It is worth mentioning that the organizers every year indicate a different colour as the dress code in place. This year, black attire was to be observed.

Day 1, Wednesday 29th January – the first day of the Arabian Peninsula Horse Show welcomed the guests with sunny, though somewhat windy weather and a comfortable temperature around 20 degrees Centigrade. The performance of Qatar Air Forces Music Battalion proved a beautiful and original element of the opening ceremony. Upon completion of the customary welcome speeches, the competition could begin in the starting classes of yearling fillies and yearling colts.

At this point, a slight remark needs to be made. While analysing the show, one has to bear in mind that we are watching Straight Egyptians, not Pure Polish Arabians. Therefore, evaluation criteria and breeding considerations are somewhat different. Due to their narrow gene pool, the Arabian horses classified as Straight Egyptian are very similar in appearance and conformation. These horses are characterized by their delicate, refined build and narrow chest. Delicate construction makes them susceptible to all kind of injuries, while rather frequent cases of disqualification during the show resulted mainly from lameness. Additionally, Arabian Straight Egyptian mares suffer from reproductive health problems; hence, each new foal is highly valued. Yearling fillies opening the competition already showed everything that is best in a Straight Egyptian Arabian horse, namely a small, exquisitely chiselled wedge-shaped head set upon a long, arched neck. Their large, dark eyes gain additional expression against the prevailing milky grey colour of coat, prevailing in that breed.

Of the yearling fillies competing in classes 1A and 1B, only one in class 1A was bay among the remaining grey fillies. And yet, after fierce competition, the victory in class 1A with 91.70 points went to her, the wonderful bay beauty QUMRIYAH (Naseem Al Rashediah x Kamar Ega) owned by Qatari Al Hamama Stud. It is interesting to note that third in the same class was a grey filly displaying a high potential for future, GJ MAJESTICA (Majd Al Qusar x Hadiye Al Shahania) owned by Al Nasser Stud from Qatar and bred by Glenn Jacobs. The same Glenn Jacobs known for taking photographs of Polish horses. However, not everybody knows that apart from being a photographer, he is also a highly successful breeder of Straight Egyptian Arabian horses. Unfortunately, movement remains the weakest point of yearling fillies. Nonetheless, according to judges, especially fillies competing in class 1A seem promising, as more than half of them received notes above 90 points. From the group of 11 yearling fillies competing in class 1B, the victorious one proved to be the truly charming ANHAJEEAH AL SHAQAB (Naseem Al Rashediah x Mashhoorah Al Shaqab) from Al Shaqab Stud in Qatar.

18 yearling colts competed in classes 4A and 4B. Also here, one bay colt stood out against the grey crowd, though without success. In class 4A, the public was absolutely taken by the grey colt SAIF AL WADI (Naseem Al Rashediah x Nefertiti Al Wadi) belonging to Saudi Al Wadi Stud. During his presentation, that charismatic colt freed himself from the handler, whereupon he started to walk in a highly dignified manner away from the show ring towards the adjacent pier leading to docked boats. After a while, Saif Al Wadi decided to turn back out of his own free will. Walking slowly and majestically, he then appeared again at the side of his handler as if nothing had happened. No intervention was undertaken, as everybody awaited calmly and respectfully for the colt to finish his walk. This manifestation of Saif Al Wadi’s independent character met with enthusiastic acclaim from the public. The judges were equally impressed viewing the beauty and charm of the Saudi colt. Saif Al Wadi received a total note of 91.43 points, thus winning his class. In the second class of yearling colts 4B the unquestionable number one proved to be the astounding grey D SADN (D Labbad x D Asfoorah) owned by Dubai Arabian Horse Stud from the United Arab Emirates. D Sadn achieved the highest note of the day, being 92.57 points. Myself, I was greatly captivated by the movement and charisma of the Qatari colt IBN AL NAIF (Ansata Nile Echo x Al Jood Al Naif) belonging to Al Naif Stud.

Day 2, Thursday 30 January – the second day of the show proceeded with the competition of junior fillies and junior colts, ergo horses aged 2 and 3 years. According to the regulations applicable during the show, age groups are determined by the date of birth, with the year starting on 1st October and ending on 30th September for the junior classes (fillies and colts as per the Middle East breeding season) and starting on the 1st of January and ending on 31st December for the senior classes (Mares and Stallions).

The cold and violent wind raging during the second day of the show failed to disrupt the rivalry of junior horses. Junior fillies of class 2A initiated the competition. Of the 15 fillies registered, 2 were absent and 2 were disqualified. Of the 11 fillies competing in class 2A the grey GHAYA EL ALYA (Quemar Al Zaman Al Waab x Ghezlan Al Waab) representing Al Hamama Stud definitely stood out above the rest. Among a varied group of competing fillies, as confirmed by dispersed notes, Ghaya El Alya could boast with an exquisitely shaped small head of excellent proportions and harmonious build. Deservedly, she won her class with the note of 91.50 points. Class 2B that followed surpassed the level of the previous class. The high note of 92.07 points as well as victory in class 2A was awarded to a filly of stunning beauty, BAGHA AL FARIDA (Baarez Al Farida x Sheroukh Al Farida), owned by the Egyptian Al Farida Stud. My favourite filly in that class was MAYAN AL NASSER (Shagran Al Nasser x Reema Al Nasser) of Qatari Al Jaham Stud attracting with her splendid movement and charm.

The competition of junior colts gave them an opportunity to manifest on the ring their personality, charisma, but also their striking femininity. One gets the impression that these junior colts have a strong potential to show much better movement than was actually the case. The obstacle often seems to be the lack of cooperation and coordination between the horse and the handler. This phenomenon was highly noticeable during the show. 11 horses were registered in class 5A, thereof only 9 entered the competition. One chestnut colt and one bay colt added diversification to the prevailing grey colour of the participants. However, only 3 colts manage to receive notes of 90 points and above. Victory in class 5A with the note 90.93 went to SH SAHER (Motair Al Baida x PSE Razeelah) from Alshaya Stud in Kuwait. The last class of the day, i.e. class 5B, took place after nightfall, lighted by a breath-taking illumination worthy of the Tales of One Thousand and One Nights. Like in the previous class, only 9 colts competed of the 11 individuals registered for class 5B, as 1 was absent and 1 disqualified. Generally, horses in that class displayed fluid, dynamic movement. Undoubtedly, most of them have a bright future ahead. The performance of MALEEH AL NASSER (Nasser Al Rayyan x Sarab Al Nasser) of Al Nasser Stud provoked an extraordinary explosion of enthusiasm and acclaim from the public. It turned out that the public and the judges were unanimous in their preferences. Maleeh Al Nasser won class 2B with a very high note of 92.07, thus outclassing his rivals. Personally, I was absolutely taken and charmed by the third junior colt in that class HAITHAM AL SHAHEEN (Fares Al Rayyan x Ghamer Al Shaqab) belonging to Al Shaheen Stud from Qatar.

Day 3 Friday 31 January – the third day of the show was marked by an increase of temperature in Doha, which seemed to bode heated competition. Of the15 senior mares registered for the first class of the day, a bevy of 13 milky white and dark eyed beauties entered competition in class 3A. During a joint presentation of all the competitors, one mare released herself from her handler, apparently driven by an urge for a solo walk. Fortunately, the handler quickly regained control of the situation, bringing in place the mare in his care by a calm gesture. The competitive level among senior mares proved very high, which found reflection in the notes awarded by the judges, attaining above 90 points for the majority of the mares in competition. The classes of senior mares revealed a known truth that the Arabian horses are late maturing. With age, the mares bloom, ultimately achieving the full spectrum of their beauty. The even and high level of competition inevitably made it possible only for an exceptional beauty to win the class. Indeed such was the case.

The winner of 3A with 92.29 points was the phenomenal SHEIHANA AL NASSER (Naseem Al Rashediah x Al Jazi Al Nasser) from Qatari Al Nasser Stud. On her heels was the extraordinary D’ANNAFEYYAH (Asfoor Al Waab x D Folah) owned Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, with the note of 92 points. A slight shadow was cast upon the rivalry in class 3B of senior mares due to the notice that one of the handlers received from DC a yellow card. Although 14 mares were registered for the class, only 11 entered the competition, of which 2 were disqualified. An undisputed victory in class 3B went with the impressive note of 92.64 points to the absolutely wonderful and unique NADRAH AL NASSER (Shagran Al Nasser x Jamila Nasser) representing Al Nasser Stud. The public showed Nadrah Al Nasser their admiration by applauding intensely her performance, when the mare impressed with her exceptional quality and fascinating movement. Another noteworthy senior mare came second in that class with the note of 91.79 points, i.e. LUJINA (Al Ayaal x Mashalla Aleha) x Mashalla Aleha) from the Kuwaiti Ashayel Arabian Horse Stud. It is interesting to note that according to the catalogue, the breeder of Lujina is Ali Ali Mahmoud from Poland.

After the dark, Friday was crowned with the competition of senior stallions in classes 6A and 6B. 10 senior stallions were registered in each class. Also here, one stallion gracefully escaped from his handler to receive in reward great applause from the public. The rivalry between senior stallions proved equally heated. It became apparent once again that with age, Straight Egyptian Arabian horses gain in beauty. 9 stallions competed in class 6A as one stallion was disqualified. Amongst a range of other excellent horses, one was especially catching the eye from the first moment on the ring. D MEMZER (Asfoor Al. Waab x Extreme Wonder) from Dubai Arabian Stud excelled due to his dynamic movement, captivating personality and exquisite head. He won his class with a note of 92 points. However, a real gem was yet to be discovered among the participants of the last class 6B of senior stallions. Born in 2018, GJ FAHEEM (Naseem Al Rashediah x Hadiya Al Shahania) seemed to declare from the very first moment on the ring: “Veni, vidi, vici”. The owner and the breeder of this brilliant stallion is Glenn Jacobs mentioned earlier. GJ Faheem is very difficult to describe. One has to experience GJ Faheem personally with own eyes in order to appreciate fully his exceptional charm and beauty. GJ Faheem became gold champion in the last edition of the show. This year, he won his class with the highest note of the show, being 92.79 points, thus placing himself in the role of the favourite for the highest prize this year.

As rivalry in classes has ended after 3 days of competition, it is now time for a few, general reflections. Undoubtedly, Arabian Peninsula Horse Show revealed the extremely high level and strength of the Straight Egyptian breed conducted on the Arabian Peninsula, as well as an incredible potential of that breed on a global scale. Those who consider with scepticism Straight Egyptian Arabian Horses would change their mind upon viewing the horses participating in the show. The judges were very severe in their evaluations, as no horse managed to reach a note of 93 points. The competition clearly pointed to the supremacy of studs from Qatar in breeding Straight Egyptian Arabian Horses, while the stallion Naseem Al Rashediah needs to be pointed out as the most successful sire of that breed.

Day 4 Saturday 01 February – the last day of the show emerged with beautiful sunshine and azure sky, creating a perfect background for the championships as the last chord of the Arabian Peninsula Horse Show. Rules for championships state that that if the total number of entered horses is less than 180, the top five horses from each class qualify for the championships. If the number of entered horses is more than 180, only the top 3 from each class qualify for the championships. This year, champions were to be chosen from a group of 5 top horses from each class, totalling 10 horses for each category. That day, the public was more than ever animated, eagerly awaiting for the winners to be crowned. There were no surprises, though. The best won.

The wonderful bay QUMRIYAH (Naseem Al Rashediah x Kama Ega) became the gold champion of yearly fillies, silver title crowned GJ MAJESTICA (Majd al Qusar x Hadiya Al Shahania) bred by Glenn Jacobs, and bronze went to the charming ANHAJEEAH AL SHAQAB (Naseem Al Rashediah x Masshoorah Al Shaqab. As can be seen, the entire podium of yearly fillies was occupied by the studs from Qatar: Al Hamama Stud, Al Nasser Stud and Al Shaqab Stud. Naseem Al Rashediah is the sire of the gold champion and bronze champion.

In the championships of yearly colts, gold covered the phenomenal D SADN (D Labbad x D Asforaah), silver was received by the mischievous SAIF AL WADI (Naseem Al Rashediah x Nefertiti Al Wadi), while broze title went to IBN AL NAIF (Ansata Nile Echo x Al Jood Al Naif). The podium was divided between studs from the United Arab Emirates (Dubai Arabian Stud), The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Al Wadi Stud) and Qatar (Al Naif Stud). Naseem Al Rashediah is the sire of the silver champion.

Supremely beautiful BAGHA AL FARIDA (Baarez Al Farida x Sherouk Al Farida) became the gold champion of junior fillies, the title of silver champion was awarded to the lovely GHAYA EL ALYA (Qamar Al Zaman Al Waab x Ghezlan Al Waab), and the bronze title was received by LATEEN AL DANAT (Naseem Al Rashediah x Mona Aldanat). Gold honoured the junior filly from the stud in Egypt: El Farida Stud, silver honoured the junior filly from the stud in Qatar: El Hamama Stud, while bronze is the success of Al Danat Farm from Kuwait. Naseem Al Rashediah is the sire of the bronze champion.

The favourite of the public, MALEEH AL NASSER (Nasser Al Rayyan x Sarab Al Nasser) became the gold champion of junior colts, silver title was awarded to MEJRIN AL SALAM (Motair Al Baida x Layan Al Salam), and the bronze went to AKM LUSAIL (Shaheen AA x Aishaa). Gold and bronze graced two studs from Qatar, Al Nasser Stud and AKM Arabians. Silver podium is the success of Al Salam Stud from Kuwait.

In the midst of flashing photographers and a large international audience, the judges finally decided on the titles in the last, most exciting classes of senior mares and senior stallions. Yet, nothing could threaten the position of favourites, so final results came as no surprise.

Unquestionably, the highest step on the podium among senior mares was occupied deservedly by the supremely beautiful, NADRAH AL NASSER (Shagran Al Nasser x Jamila Al Nasser). As expected, silver medal was awarded to the exceptional D’ANNAFEYYAH (Asfoor Al Waab x D Folah), while the lovely LUJINA (Al Ayal AA x Mashalla Aleha) became the bronze champion. The following studs were proud of the trophies received: Al Nasser Stud from Qatar, Dubai Arabian Horse Stud from the United Arab Emirates and Asayel Arabian Horse Stud from Kuwait.

The championships of senior stallions constituted the final icing on the cake. There could be no doubt as to the stallion most worthy to occupy the first place. During the competition, that stallion gained widespread admiration and the highest note of the show. No other could become the gold champion of senior stallions but the exceptional GJ FAHEEM (Naseem Al Rashediah x Hadiya Al Shahania), owned and bred by Glenn Jacobs. Congratulations. Behind him as silver champion came BASHEER AL WAAB (Sinan Al Rayyan x Amaal Al Waab) bred by Sheikh Abudullah bin Khaled Al Thani, while the bronze title went to the charismatic D MEMZER (Asfoor Al Waab x Xtreme Wonder). Success could be celebrated by El Alya Stud from Qatar and Dubai Arabian Stud from the United Arab Emirates. Yet first and foremost the owner and breeder of the gold champion deserved to celebrate. This great achievement of Glenn Jacobs was awarded with prize money amounting 250 000 QR. Naseem Al Rashediah is the sire of the gold champion of senior stallions.

4 days in the company of beautiful Straight Egyptian horses bred on the Arabian Peninsula proved an unsurpassed aesthetic experience, as the breath-taking beauty and sweetness of these horses is unquestionable. It needs to be underlined that not only huge funds, but also enormous effort is put by the breeders of the competing horses to achieve such wonderful results. That effort is seen as a way to honour the ancient cultural heritage connecting horses with the inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula. For them, breeding horses is a passion and the pursuit of a long-time strategy. The organizers of Katara International Arabian Horse Festival aim to provide a global platform that offers knowledge and expertise about purebred Arabian horses, enabling horse owners to exchange this knowledge and expertise with one another, contributing to their development and growth. The task of promoting the beauty of these horses, along with the accompanying breeding tradition also aims at elevating the status and significance of purebred Arabian horses around the whole world. Undoubtedly, the State of Qatar is an questionable leader in spreading the true belief in the power the Arabian horses on a global scale and in a global perspective.

At his point one has to express great admiration for the organizers, who made their utmost to take the best care of all the guests invited. The Organizing Committee of Katara International Horse Festival displayed the highest level of professional prowess and efficiency. All organizational aspects of the event were perfectly coordinated, which secured smooth operation at all levels, as well as full comfort and satisfaction to all the guests admiring the beauty, strength and elegance of Straight Egyptian Horses from the Arabian Peninsula. Last, but not least, one cannot forget about the extremely touching kindness, courtesy and willingness to help shown to the guests not only by the organizers, but also by every single inhabitant of Qatar met on the way. Leaving the hospitable thresholds of Qatar, we will remain with the message that the breeding of Straight Egyptian Arabian horses is immanently linked with the tradition and the feeling of national identity of that country, as expressed in the motto: “Breeding for heritage”.

Last year’s World Arabian Horse Championship in the capital of the State of Qatar, Doha, for many marked the end of an era: after four decades of the world’s most important Arabian horse show being hosted by the global capital of luxury, good taste and fashion, the Championnat du Monde du Cheval Arabe was moved to the Arabian Peninsula. All the irrational fears and doubts that the crowning event of the season would never return to the city on the Seine proved greatly exaggerated, and the horses presented this year far surpassed last year’s horses in terms of quality and diversity. As for the champions, one thing is certain: surprises rarely happen in Paris.

In December, the World Arabian Horse Championship returned not only to the French capital, but also to the Porte de Versailles Exhibition Centre in the 15th Arrondissement of Paris, which borders the 7th, where one is bound to find the Eiffel Tower, the Rodin Museum, the Hôtel National des Invalides with the tomb of Napoléon, and (last but not least) Musée du Quai Branly, dedicated in its entirety to indigenous art and cultures. Next door, in the 14th Arrondissement, there is Montparnasse, one of the most famous Parisian quartiers, home to countless bars that attract both tourists and locals. And so, the residents of Paris and tourists visiting the city alike got a gift for the Feast of Saint Nicholas in the form of an Arabian horse show, the apogee in last year’s series of events, which could easily and quickly (in Parisian terms) be reached by public transport. Therefore, the crowds visiting the Salon du Cheval and the Championship were not surprising at all. What was rather surprising, however, was the astonishment of the organizers of the Paris Horse Fair that the interest in the purebred event was so huge. In spite of the annoying drizzle, the queue Porte de Versailles seemed endless, and the corridors between the halls dedicated to equestrianism and Arabians were regularly blocked. But these are technical matters, let’s focus on what we’re really interested in.

Feminine Friday

A quick glance at the six female classes and among the 64 names in total, many of them well-known celebs, as many as 15 Polish-bred and/or owned horses (almost a quarter!). This must have made quite an impression on the guests from Poland, especially since many of them are show veterans and “graduates” of the All Nations Cup, the European Championship, Polish Nationals, Global Champions Arabians Tour or Prague Intercup. We saw all of them but two: Anagramma and Wencedora, and those in attendance did well despite rough competition.

In the Yearling Fillies Championship, we saw El Lyrica KL (Lyric EA – Erskina / Kahil Al Shaqab) from Klikowa Arabians and Sana OS (Exagon OS – Panamera OS / Psytadel), bred by Gestüt Osterhof and owned by Lubochnia Arabians. The following ladies qualified to the Junior Mare Championship: Bianca of Sinus (Fadi Al Shaqab – Ballena / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred by Sinus Arab Stud and owned by Polia Arabians, Wildonara (Paris – Shanghai E.A. / Wildona) from Michałów Stud, Ebonita (Haash OSB – Etruzja / Pogrom) from Janów Podlaski Stud and Bella Rose (Star Farid – Bogini Marajj / Marajj), bred by Paweł Redestowicz and owned by the Jahazi Family from Iran. Moreover, at the end of her class, Bianca of Sinus, who had one of the highest scores of the Championship (93 points) received the special award for Best Head in Class.

In the Senior Mare Championship, we had the pleasure to see the Michałów-bred Emarella (Sahm El Arab – Emandorella / Eden C), owned by Aljassimya Farm, Echo Anastazja (Psyche Keret – Echo Aurora / Eternity Ibn Navarone D), Pila (Abyad AA – Piba / Gazal Al Shaqab) from Janów Podlaski, Poganinka (El Omari – Pentra / Poganin) from Michałów and Pustynna Noc (WH Kaneko – Pustynna Rosa / Ekstern), ex-Michałovian and currently owned by Budhen’s Stud in Belgium. Interestingly, Anastazja, while bred by Chrcynno-Palace Stud, this time competed for Ahmed Hamad Althumairi, her new owner from Saudi Arabia. Although none of them won any medals, which is obviously a pity, each of them can boast the title of World Championship Top 10.

Purebred Top Models

From the very beginning of Friday’s spectacle, we had many a horse to marvel at. For many, especially among the enormous and packed audience (the stands were so full, organisers would let people in only in small groups, having made sure there was room for everyone), it was the first opportunity to see some of the top models they had been following all year long. Such equine celebrities included Durrat Albidayer (Jyar Meia Lua – A Vision MI / Allegiance MI). This year she appeared in three shows, always perfectly prepared by her team at Privilege SFQ, and each time she left the show with gold in the Yearling Fillies Championship. And we are talking here about GCAT Cannes in June, the All Nations Cup in Aachen, and the World Championship. Cherry on top: in Paris, the Albidayer filly scored a full set of twenties for head and neck, which is hardly surprising.

The next star and the first to score twenties across the board for type was Aisha Al Sheikh (Jyar Meia Lua – Algamra / AJ Portofino) from Al Sheikh Stud, like Durrat also shown by Raphael Curti. Moreover, she scored seven more twenties for head and neck, and it is rather noteworthy that her class was of such high quality that twenties came aplenty. Two days later, the first three juniors in this class took the whole Junior Mares Championship, but more on that in a moment.

There was also no shortage of extraordinary personalities among the senior mares, especially in class 3B (the last we saw on Friday), in which, apart from Poganinka, we also saw Bint Hazy Al Khalediah (El Palacio VO – Hazy Al Khalediah / F Shamaal), bred by Al Khalediah Stables and owned by Al Jumail Stud. This was the first appearance of this phenomenal mare after nearly a three-year-long break, in top form, although clearly unaccustomed to the atmosphere of shows. AJ Kayya (AJ Kafu – Aja Caprice / EKS Alihandro ) from Ajman Stud could have been a bit of a disappointment for some… The breath-taking Reigning Queen of GCAT gave the impression of a fatigued, yet diligent student. Her performance was top notch, but unfortunately she seemed tired from her constant travelling and training. A quick glance at her calendar and we’ll see that less than 3 weeks earlier she was in hot and sunny Riyadh, and right after her triumph in the GCAT ranking, she ended up in cold and humid Paris. She deserves a vacation. The aforementioned Poganinka, on the other hand, was beyond compare when it came to movement, not only in class, but of all the mares – close to perfection, as if taken from the definition of the ideal Arabian horse.

Masculine Saturday

There was no shortage of Polish horses in the male classes either, which were held in their entirety on Saturday. There were six Polish stallions out of 48, which is exactly one in eight, and we saw five of them, as Michałów’s Partes had been withdrawn. Besides, class 4A, in which he was supposed to compete, must’ve been unlucky, because less than half of the horses listed in the catalogue presented themselves in front of the judges and the audience. In the following classes it was much better and Polish fans of Arabians could cheer both live and on-line on Janów’s very own Comoros (HL El Ganador – Cedora / Kahil Al Shaqab), Monarchio (Star Farid – Minerwina / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred by Wojciech Parczewski and owned by Bogdan Maślanka, Pheniks Al Miro (D Zeidan – Psyche Lejla / Pogrom) from Evopegasus Stud, Pinito (EKS Alihandro – Piniata / Eden C), owned by Flaxman Arabians, and Paris (Kahil Al Shaqab – Palmeta / Ecaho), owned by Polia Arabians. Fun fact: the last two boys were both born in the stables at Janów Podlaski.

Comoros, Pinito and Paris qualified for the championships, and just like their colleagues from the female classes left the French capital with World Championship Top 10 titles. For some, simply being in Paris with their equine friends was a dream come true and an adventure of a lifetime. Bogdan Maślanka spoke in this spirit about Monarchio’s performance which was quite thrilling. First they made our hearts stop, only to show us how important is the relationship between horse man based on respect and trust.

Front page celebrities

Saturday started on a high note, as the first to shine that day at Porte de Versailles was AB Bandar (D Seraj – Priscilla OS / Poseidon OS) from Abhaa Arabians. He received twenties for type, movement and head and neck, an omen of excitement to come until the last class of senior stallions was over. In the second class of yearlings, we were all witnesses to a clash of young titans, as after several months, the grey Afreen Al Shaqab (D Mezyan – Siwar Al Shaqab / SMA Magic One) from Al Shaqab Stud once again challenged the bay Aesar Alwajba (AJ Radman – LR Altagracia / Excalibur E.A.) of Al Wajba Stud. They had to compete again the next day, also with the third in their class, the dark grey colt Azzaam Al Amal (EL Galal Baahir ZA – Arabesca Scarlet Moon ZA / Sidi Scorpio ZA) bred by Al Amal Arabians and owned by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Saoud Alqassimi.

One of the most anticipated stallions of the show was Baz Aljassimya (Exxalt – MD Mirka / AJ Thee Luca), bred by Aljassimya Farm and owned by Akmal Stud, who appeared in the same class as Fajer AA (Shanghai E.A. – Fadwa AA / Fadi Al Shaqab) from Ariela Arabians. It immediately became clear at the beginning of the class that one of them would go for gold. Both had proven themselves in recent years formidable showmen who can steal the show. Furthermore, their clash was something that had been expected for a long time, as these two veterans of, among others, GCAT had so far missed each other at various shows. Baz’s owners also had the ambitions to repeat his gold at the World Championship, which he won two years ago as a yearling. What else do these two have in common? Well, both are gold All Nations Cup medallists, so stakes were undoubtedly high. Ultimately, they shared twenty-three 20s, and the defending champion turned out to be better by 0.64 points.

The competition of senior stallions, who are only seniors in name, as their age category starts at 4 years old, was to be equally exciting. The stallion EKS Farajj (Ibn Farid – EKS Bint Helwah / Laheeb), bred by Willy Brown’s Elkasun Arabians and owned by Haras Royal De Bouznika, is a rare sight at shows these days. Last year at the World Championship in Doha, he was the Senior Stallion silver medallist, so expectations and ambitions were through the roof. Especially since we didn’t see him anywhere for 11 long months until he won gold at the El Jadida show in Morocco, where he currently lives. To say that he was unrivalled would be a grave understatement. In his class, of course, he was first, receiving the highest marks from the judges for type, head and neck, and movement, deservedly so. It was a pleasure to watch him present himself in front of the audience, full of vigour, in excellent humour, rested and relaxed. Not tired at all from the arduous intercontinental travels, he was clearly enjoying himself.

In the second class of senior stallions, in addition to the Polish-bred Paris, there were HL El Ganador (HP Shakir TE – Lonco Baby Maria / HP Emir), bred by Familia Dutch Matthei and owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud, and D Seraj (FA El Rasheem – Ladi Veronika / Versace ) from Dubai Arabian Horse Stud. Also entered was AJ Kafu (Shanghai E.A. – AJ Kahayla / QR Marc) from Ajman Stud, but he last participated in any show at the Dutch leg of GCAT, so he must be preparing for the 2025 season. We saw the first of them a few months ago in Aachen, where he won gold, but we hadn’t seen D Seraj since the first days of February… His performance was all the more exciting, and he was perfectly prepared and he was the first in the class with the highest score of all stallions this year – 93.71 points.

La crème de la crème à Paris

Sunday was devoted entirely to the championships, and before each of them, a chamber orchestra of the French Republican Guard would play fanfares. The longest performance separated the mares from the stallions, and in addition to the large orchestra of dragoons of the Republican Guard, an all-male choir performed for the guests of Porte de Versailles, making the experience all the more momentous. Especially since in the championships we had the pleasure of seeing once again all the “pure-blood” nobles, whom we admired so in their respective classes. And as I mentioned at the beginning: in Paris, they don’t really like surprises a lot. With the exception of only the Yearling Fillies Championship, in each one the winners were the winners of the highest scores in their age categories.

The first to be held was the Yearling Fillies Championship, which was won by Durrat Albidayer almost unanimously (only one of the judges had a “minority report”). The fight for silver and bronze was between the highest-scoring yearling D Rowa (D Seraj – D Danat / SG Labib) from Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, who took silver, and Royal Futurista (AJ Radman – HK Sweet Musique / HDF Luciano), bred by Cindy McGown & Mark David and owned by Al Wajba Stud, who won bronze. The GCAT multi-medallist Sultana Al Thamer (Dominic M – Weaam Al Jassim / Emerald J) this time lost to her more experienced colleagues.

The Junior Mares Championship was basically a rerun of Friday’s class 2B. All three medals were awarded to three-year-olds from this class: Aisha Al Sheikh (almost unanimous gold), D Najlah and D Raseel. Interestingly, in a way, the Dubai mares are “twins” as they have an identical pedigree: D Seraj – Elle Flamenca / Ajman Moniscione, and they were born just nine days apart. Bronze medallist D Raseel is less known than her titled sister, but she is developing beautifully and we will probably hear more about her quite soon.

In the Senior Mares Championship, the fight for gold took place between AJ Kayya and Bint Hazy Al Khalediah with the former ultimately taking it home. Now she can finally have time-off after an exhausting season, during which she won a total of eight medals of the noblest of colours. One should also keep in mind that she is a two-time World Championship bronze medallist, both as a yearling and a junior mare in 2021-2022. And the bronze was awarded to the well-known in Europe mare Basandra Settimocielo (Ajman Moniscione – MA Scarlet / Hadidi), bred by Maria Annaratone Ferraroni and owned by Ajman Stud. Also Emarella caught the eyes of the judges and their attention as I mentioned earlier, and one of the judges even thought she should win gold.

After three female championships, it was time for the stallions. As in the case of junior mares, among the yearling colts, the fight for medals turned out to be wholly within only one class, 4B. The order was identical as in class: Afreen Al Shaqab – unanimous gold, Aesar Alwajba and Azzaam Al Amal. So there was no surprise, although some of the audience certainly kept their fingers crossed for AB Bandar, who had the same number of points in his class as Azzaam. But oh well, great men’s favours are uncertain as the saying goes, and three votes for silver and two more for bronze were not enough to secure the title of reserve champion.

As we approached the last of the championships, excitement grew. There was no doubt that Baz Aljassimya and Fajer AA would once again face each other in the Junior Stallion Championship. What we didn’t know, however, was who would win what, although it could be assumed that Baz, who was in near-perfect form, had better prospects. And so he did – unanimously – as did Afreen three quarters of an hour earlier. Fajer finished with the bronze medal, and the silver, to the surprise of the audience, went to the little-known but quite intriguing Nesj El Jameel (EKS Farajj – Nesj El Yuliah / Ajman Moniscione), bred by Nesj Arabians and owned by Al Jumail Stud, who won his class by 0.07 points beating STA High Voltaj (Taj Raheem – Rose CME / Lark MCA), bred by Marion and Andreas Maschke and owned by Al Wajba Stud.

Everyone know the saying “to save the best for last”… As in each of the previous championships, the Senior Stallion Championship also boasted a phenomenal group of horses, including the previously mentioned celebrities, each of whom had a chance for triumph and eternal glory. For Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, this was their last chance to win gold – they had already won medals of the other two colours, but not gold, not yet at least. They were in luck! The judges decided that D Seraj was the best and in fact worthy of gold. The fate of the other two medals was uncertain until the very end, because both EKS Farajj and HL El Ganador left their individual classes with an identical score: 93.29, except that Farajj scored better for type, and Ganador higher for movement. Cosmic equilibrium, wouldn’t you say? Ultimately, type narrowly won over movement…

What comes after Paris?

One thing is certain. The attention of the Arabian horse world will shift more strongly to the Middle East. Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates will now enjoy huge interest. Thanks to modern technology, we can always keep up to date with what is happening in every part of the world, even should we have to pull an all-nighter. There will undoubtedly be no shortage of reasons to be thrilled. In our part of the world, life will slow down a bit, as “winter is coming”, although the foaling season is about to begin in a couple of week, so we’ll be experiencing a different excitement altogether at home. And next year, we will meet at the World Championship for the second time ever in history in the Qatari capital of Doha, in a formula never seen before.

Global Champions Arabians Tour took the world of Arabian horse shows by storm. Interest in GCAT was huge from the very beginning, from the moment the series was announced in early December last year, but at the time few people could fathom what was really in store for us. Meanwhile, a year later we got both a sequel in a refined formula and a spin-off on the other side of the Atlantic. What else could one wish for?

The events making up this year’s Global Champions Arabians Tour stirred up emotions from the very start, not only in the Middle East and Europe but all over the world. It was no different in Poland, and some even dreamt of a Polish show under the GCAT banner. For now, this remains a dream. But that’s okay, because at the beginning of December, the organisers made two announcements public that shook the world of purebred horses. Still, let us stay for a short while in…

2024

The first event with GCAT in its name took place just two months after the announcement of the series, and it was the Katara International Arabian Horse Festival – a prestigious event with a world-renowned reputation. For five days in the capital of the State of Qatar, Doha, festival guests had the pleasure of admiring some of the most extraordinary Arabian horses in the world, which did not change until the grand finale. There was also no shortage of horses bred in Poland, such as Michałów-bred Emarella (Sahm El Arab – Emandorella / Eden C), owned by Aljassimya Farm, and Wildona (Shanghai E.A. – Wilda / Gazal Al Shaqab), owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud. The former even won the bronze in the Senior Mares Championship.

Less than three weeks later, the sophomore event in the series took place – this time in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, and at the turn of March and April we were guests in exotic Muscat, the phenomenal capital of the Sultanate of Oman. The following two shows took place around mid-June and mid-July, respectively in the European capital of cinema on the Côte d’Azur, Cannes, and in the cradle of the Longines Global Champions Tour, the highly regarded international horse jumping competition, the Dutch town of Valkenswaard. The last European leg took place at the beginning of September, on the largest chariot racetrack of the ancient world in the Eternal City on the Tiber, Rome. And the recent finale in Riyadh secured for years to come the place of GCAT in the global calendar of events with Arabian horses in the lead role. If one were to sum up these events in two words, one would have to say: brilliant splendour.

The organisers of all seven shows set the bar very high this year. Probably everyone at least once asked themselves questions like “What will they surprise us with in Cannes, Rome or Riyadh?” – anyone, that is, who followed the entire series or took part in any one of the events. Because GCAT, as the organisers emphasised at every turn, was not just about horses! Of course, they play the first fiddle, but apart from them we have an entire extended symphony orchestra in the form of handicrafts, theatre, music and cuisine – from artistic Arabic pottery to neo-baroque Italian opera. Shall we then take a look at what we already know about what awaits us in…

2025

We first got to know the schedule for the second edition of Global Champions Arabians Tour, which will once again take place in the Middle East and Europe, with the first event in half a month, in the first week of January. This time, in the United Arab Emirates, we will meet in Ajman, not Abu Dhabi like last year. Perhaps the organisers are also planning shows in other emirates too in the coming years, such as neighbouring Sharjah?

From there we will go to Doha, then to Muscat and then back to Riyadh. Each time there will be a long enough break to catch our breath of about a month between the shows, all of them taking place at the beginning of the month or the first half of it. Four Arabian episodes in, we’ll cross, just as we did last year, the Mediterranean Sea and we will cheer on our favourites in Cannes (mid-June), Valkenswaard (second half of July), London (mid-August) and Prague (early September).

After these eight events, the series will return to Qatar, where the World Arabian Horse Championships will be held for the second time on December 3-6, 2025, combined with the GCAT finale. Especially for this occasion, the co-organisers have created the GCAT Supreme formula. The final show will be reserved for the victors of the previous shows of the European-Middle Eastern series and the newly created…

GCAT Americas

In case one couldn’t get enough of Global Champions Arabians Tour, they must’ve let out a cry of joy last week. Right after the World Championship, GCAT organisers officially announced the five South and North American shows at an Instagram-streamed press conference at the New World Center in Miami Beach, with their own Atlantic rankings but the same values, including, of course, a strong emphasis on integrity, culture, and tradition.

“The launch of the Americas circuit represents a bold step forward for GCAT. It’s a testament to the growing global appreciation for Arabian horses and their unique qualities. We are thrilled to bring this celebration of excellence to the Americas and build lasting connections across continents.” This is what Faleh Al Nasr, Chairman of Global Champions Arabians Tour, said about GCAT Americas during the press conference.

GCAT Americas will be inaugurated in the second half of February, between the shows in Doha and Muscat, in Scottsdale, Arizona. This place is well-known to Arabian horse enthusiasts, including those from Poland. It was here that Perfirka in 2016 and her daughter Perfinka in 2024 won the titles of Senior Champion Mare, both hailing from Białka Stud. And it was here that the unrivalled Pogrom bred in Janów Podlaski successfully reached for the title of Senior Champion Stallion.

The American Arabians Tour will then move to Miami Beach, Florida. The date of this show is not yet known. It will probably take place between the events in Riyadh and Cannes (or St. Tropez, the final decision on which of these coastal cities on the French Riviera the show will take place in hasn’t been made yet), which would suggest late April, but we will have to wait for confirmation from GCAT on that.

From there, we will cross the Caribbean Sea as the middle part of GCAT Americas is to take place in São Paulo. Formula 1 fans may know the city as the birthplace of Felipa Massa, but it is primarily the cultural capital of Brazil, and the Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo attracts South American classical music fans no less than the Musikverein and the Vienna Philharmonic. This part of GCAT is scheduled for the first half of July, a week before Valkenswaard.

Then, a week after the show in London, we will move to the Canadian state of Manitoba, thus remaining within the Commonwealth of Nations. The Canadian leg of GCAT will take place in a city little known on our side of the Atlantic, although with an interesting history. The city of Brandon lies on the prairie on the Assiniboine River, which played a large role in the Canadian fur trade, which European colonists took over from the indigenous people of America. At one time, the fur trade even financed the Christianisation of present-day Canada, and the Jesuits, among others, made money from it.

The GCAT Americas finale will be hosted in the world’s capital of gambling, Las Vegas. But this city has also long been associated with purebred horses, and Polish-bred horses have achieved much success here. Perhaps the greatest of these is the Breeders Cup won in 2009 by Michałów Stud thanks to two marvellous mares: Emandoria and Embra. They won the Senior Mare Championship and Reserve Championship then. In any case, there will be a small problem with the American finale… as it is scheduled for the very same weekend as next year’s All Nations Cup in Aachen

At the Miami Beach press conference, Cindy McGown, CEO GCAT Americas, highlighted the significance of bringing the GCAT formula to the Americas: “The Arabian horse has a deep-rooted legacy here in the Americas, and GCAT’s presence will only amplify the admiration and respect these remarkable animals deserve. This Tour is a unique opportunity to unite communities through the shared passion for these extraordinary horses and their incredible stories.”

Coming back now to the Qatari GCAT Supreme, for which we have to wait almost an entire year, the winners of all GCAT shows in both Americas are also invited to the capital of Qatar. Considering the wealth of local breeding and pedigrees that are exotic from our Eurocentric perspective, next year promises to be very interesting.

When a new series of events for Arabian horses titled Global Champions Arabians Tour was announced a year ago, few expected that the individual stages would be organised on such a grand scale. Obviously, no one had the slightest doubt about the quality of the horses we would see over the year, but the setting of each event had to surprise and satisfy even the most demanding guests of Arabian horse shows. The GCAT finale in the capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was nothing more than a testament to brilliance and splendour.

After the seventh and final leg of Global Champions Arabians Tour, the 2024 series is over. The series started in early February in Doha, the capital of the State of Qatar, from where it moved to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates that same month. From the Persian Gulf, at the turn of March and April, we moved to the Gulf of Oman to Muscat, the capital of Oman, after which we said goodbye to the Arabian Peninsula for over six months and flew across the Mediterranean to Western Europe. In June, the series visited Cannes on the Côte d’Azur, in July popped in to Valkenswaard in the southern Netherlands, and in September we celebrated the beauty of purebred horses in Rome. In mid-November, we returned to the Arabian Peninsula and witnessed the grand finale in Riyadh. Enough chronology. Let’s focus on the common denominators of these events.

Polish accents

Although GCAT did not visit Poland this year, there were quite a few Polish accents at each stage of the cycle. For a long time, there were two “graduates” of Michałów Stud in the female ranking: Emarella (Sahm El Arab – Emandorella / Eden C), owned by Aljassimya Farm, who won medals in Doha and Muscat, and Wildona (Shanghai EA – Wilda / Gazal Al Shaqab), owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud. Polish private-bred horses were also present at GCAT; in Brabant, among the older stallions, one could see Calateon (Vitorio TO – Calatea / Ekstern), bred by Marek Kondrasiuk and owned by C&S Arabians.

Polish judges were also present at each of the seven events, and each time there were two of them: Alicja Poszepczyńska, Anna Stefaniuk, Anna Stojanowska, Jerzy Białobok, Łukasz Goździalski and Tomasz Tarczyński. Furthermore, each of the invited judges from Poland judged at least twice, and there was also Jerzy “George” Zbyszewski who represented the US as a judge. And there’s more. The official photographer of the entire series was Ewa Imielska-Hebda. Also among the presenters, one could find Paweł Kozikowski, well-known to Polish fans of Arabians, who in Riyadh showed, among others, the French-bred stallion Wortex Kalliste (Shanghai EA – Mirwanah Kalliste / Marwan Al Shaqab), bred by Kalliste Arabians and owned by Ahmed Althumairi, as well as Jurij Samoilenko, who showed in the Netherlands horses from the stables of GT Arabians and the Grabów nad Pilicą Arabian Horse Stud.

Culture and traditions that go beyond horses

The mission of Global Champions Arabians Tour, according to the announcements of the creators of this series from a year ago, was to promote not only the beauty of purebred Arabians but also the traditions of each of the countries in which the series was to take place. The organisers took that pledge to heart and guests attending the shows, both on the Arabian Peninsula and in Europe, could enjoy art, craftsmanship, music and even avant-garde theatrical performances in between classes and championships. Caterers, in turn, did their best to surprise guests with extraordinary culinary experiences.

For example, anyone who has ever been to Arab countries must have come across popular drinks served hot or chilled in this part of the world. And something just like that awaited thirsty guests of the event in Riyadh, where the temperature in November rarely drops below 25°C when the sun is up. The names of the individual blends reflected the ambience of the show: “Sahara Night” (black grapes, blueberries and cloves), “Emerald Oasis” (lemonade with kiwi and spearmint), hayyak (rose water lemonade with pomegranate juice), jizani (mango, oranges, sweet pepper and chilli flakes). The cherry on top? On tables decorated with ice sculptures in the shapes of horses, one could find both fresh and candied fruit, while fans of cinema could try spiced popcorn.

The artistic programme was also beyond sumptuous. The military orchestra officially welcomed the guests on the first evening, and the orchestra, consisting of musicians playing classical and Arabic instruments, said farewell to the guests. Moreover, the orchestra closing the show was accompanied by an illuminated drone show, which in the cloudless Riyadh sky formed intricate patterns, including a running horse and the Global Champions Arabians Tour logo. Then the orchestra was surrounded by a galloping group of equestrians in traditional Saudi robes. In the middle of the closing ceremony, there was a fireworks show, which was undoubtedly an attraction (and a surprise) also for the residents of Riyadh. At the end, the winner of the “Horse of the Tour” title, AJ Kayya (AJ Kafu – Aja Caprice / EKS Alihandro), led by Glenn Schoukens, ran into the ring, having previously won the Senior Mare Gold Medal at each of the seven GCAT stages. The winner of the perfect GCAT score and her owners from Ajman Stud, headed by Sheikh Ammar bin Humaid Al Nauimi, were personally presented with the award by Prince Abdullah bin Fahd bin Abdullah Al Saud, Chairman of the Saudi Arabian Equestrian Federation and Chairman of the committee organising the show in Riyadh. But we shall return to the winners later.

Crème de la crème

The comeback of GCAT to the Arabian Peninsula meant the return of classes with more than 10 horses. While we are more accustomed to the slightly intimate classes that dominate shows in Europe, in Arab countries it is not uncommon for classes of up to 20 horses to be shown. In 16 classes, we saw a total of 204 horses out of 237 entered for the show, which is an average of 13 horses per class. For comparison, at this year’s All Nations Cup in Aachen, the largest class of 4-6-year-old mares had 14 entries and only 11 horses were presented.

Returning to Riyadh, what a shame and pity that we did not see in the 11-year-old and older stallions class the stallions Equator (QR Marc – Ekliptyka / Ekstern), bred by Michałów Stud Farm and owned by Abdulaziz Saleh Alrajhi, and EKS Alihandro (Marwan Al Shaqab – OFW Psylhouette / Padrons Psyche), bred by Willy Brown and owned by Abdulaziz bin Ahmad Al Saud, who were unfortunately absent. Undoubtedly, both the class and the championship that followed with their participation would have looked completely different! But let’s move on to the championships.

The yearlings of Riyadh

In the yearling fillies and colts classes held on Wednesday, 13th November, the would-be medal winners entered the championships from the first places, and deservedly so. In the Yearling Fillies Championship, Sultana Al Thamer (Dominic M – Weaam Al Jassim / Emerald J) from Al Thamer Stud took gold, although it was not her highest-scoring performance. She received 91.64 points from the judges – more or less in the middle of what she could, as she scored 91.07 in Cannes and 92.21 in Valkenswaard. The debutant Marwaa Alaoon (Hilal Alkhalediah – Marsoulat Alkhalediah), bred by Mhummed Altmmi and owned by Abdullah Alotaibi, won the silver medal, while the bronze medal went to another debutant Sandi RS (Ghaith Al Zobair – ZG Iklil / BS Raeed), bred and owned by Fahad Al-Khanfari Al-Qahtani.

It was similar among the yearling colts, with the first two medals won by both class winners. Afreen Al Shaqab (D Mezyan – Siwar Al Shaqab / SMA Magic One) from Al Shaqab Stud won gold, silver went to D Borkan (FA El Rasheem – D Ajayeb / RFI Farid) from Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, and bronze to Sinan Al Bahya (AJ Redan – AJ Saray / Marwan Al Shaqab), bred by Ajman Stud and owned by Abdullah Alotaibi. Let’s focus for a moment on the bronze medalist. He appeared at GCAT for the second time this year, as he made his debut in Muscat. Although he qualified for the championship also then, in March he performed much worse than two weeks ago. Kudos to the team of trainers for preparing him for the show, improving his condition, and helping him grow into a magnificent showhorse. And now let’s get back to the silver colt from Dubai. His score of 93.29 points was the second-highest on the first day of the finale, and above all his best in the entire series. His previous record was 92.93 from GCAT Abu Dhabi, and if he hadn’t “fooled around” while trotting, his score might have been even higher. It doesn’t change the fact that he won the GCAT 2024 stallion ranking and the Best Male award went to him.

The juniors of Saudi Arabia

At the end of the first day of the show, both classes of two-year-old mares were also held. Shahbrys HVP (Royal Aasad – Rebecca HVP / Magnum Chall HVP), bred by Agropecuaria Vila Dos Pinheiros and owned by Turki Alothman, despite a great performance in her class and a high score, won no medal during Saturday’s championships. Gold went to Shahalel Al Shaqab (Na-Mous Al Shahania – Siwar Al Shaqab / SMA Magic One) from Al Shaqab Stud, who won twenties across the board in class for type as well as head and neck, which gave her 93.50 points. It was her triumphant return to the GCAT ring after the massive premiere in Doha, where she was also awarded gold. No wonder, because led by Raphael Curti on a loose rope she charmed with her allure and calmness, never losing her spirit until the end, and when the judges were all done, a proverbial grin from ear to ear emerged on the presenter’s face. Silver and bronze medals went to two three-year-olds from Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, who showed themselves on Thursday, 14th November: D Najlah (D Seraj – Elle Flamenca / Ajman Moniscione) and D Sanayen (Wortex Kalliste – D Seeneyyah / FA El Rasheem). The first of them repeated the feat of Shahalel, winning all twenties for type and head and neck, but showed worse in movement, while the second had the best movement, for which she received a couple of twenties from the judges.

Both classes of junior stallions, i.e. two- and three-year-olds, took place on the second day of the show, on Thursday. Saturday’s championship was primarily a duel between two two-year-old stallions: D Shakhar (D Shakhat – D Shamkah / FA El Rasheem) from Dubai (92.43 points) and LR Anselmo (RFI Unique – LL Almudena / Bey Shahdow TGS), bred by Estancia Las Rosas and owned by Al Wajba Stud (92.29 points). Ultimately, the gold went to the latter, who, although he’d received 0.14 points less, simply proved to be a better mover. The bronze medal was a surprise because it was awarded to the horse that only came third in the three-year-old class, Adhm Sarm (Royal Asad – Bandahleeza ZB / Emerald J) from Sarm Stud. The intensely black Saudi colt is a show veteran on the Arabian Peninsula, and while his score wasn’t the highest, what immediately struck anyone who had the pleasure of seeing him was his self-confidence and his remarkably natural ease. Glenn Schoukens knew exactly how to bring out the best in him, and so this pair of dapper gentlemen won the bronze medal with effortless grace.

Seniors worthy of a Kingdom

Thursday evening and Friday afternoon, 15th November, were marked by senior mares and stallions, and purebred stars and celebrities ran into the ring time and again. Some of them came to Riyadh to fight for medals, titles and places in the ranking, such as the aforementioned AJ Kayya, Basandra Settimocielo (Ajman Moniscione – MA Scarlet / Hadidi), bred by Maria Annaratone Ferraroni and owned by Ajman Stud, or E.S. Harir (AJ Dinar – TF Magnums Magic / Magnum Psyche) from Al Saqran Arabian Horse Stud. Others came to “stir up trouble”, make changes in the rankings, or prove their position as archmasters in the world of Arabians, such as Xxpectations (Excalibur EA – MC Psynammon / Psymadre), bred by Families Butler & Collins and owned by Khalid Alroweidan, or Alexxanderr (Excalibur E.A. – AR Most Irresistible / ML Mostly Padron), bred by Frances Butler & Brandi Carson and owned by Khalid Alsayed.

In the Senior Mares Championship, AJ Kayya won the gold medal for the seventh time in a row, giving her 140 points in the mare ranking, the most perfect of all scores that no one else came close to. The second-best mare D Najlah had 128 points, and the best of the stallions D Borkan “a mere” 122. Her success was determined by a great performance, a full set of twenties for type and head and neck, exceptional movement and stunning charisma. The silver medal was awarded to Basandra Settimocielo, who could boast one of the highest marks for movement (although not half as perfect as SMG Ivana (Elle Narcisse – SMG Idaliha / Magic Magnifique), bred by Smedgårdens Arabstuteri and owned by Khalid Alotaibi, who received a full set of twenties for flawless movement, the absolute best of all horses in Riyadh). The bronze medal went to the aforementioned Xxpectations, who was something of a revelation or epiphany at GCAT – the debutant easily and gracefully won the 7-10-year-old mares class in the final part of the series with a score of 92.29 points.

On Friday evening in Riyadh, stallions ruled supreme, the best of which we saw in the championship on Saturday evening. Many “new faces” entered by Saudi breeders showed up in the classes, with many of their big boys presenting themselves in a fashion way beyond decent. Other stallions were extremely pleasant surprises, including the 2019 European Champion, Wortex Kalliste. Ultimately, Alexxanderr, who had not been seen at GCAT since the event in Qatar, reached for gold. In class, he had only twenties for type and head and neck, some of the highest marks for body and legs, and showed what it means to move. Also here, Raphael Curti didn’t even bother to hide his smile. With such unexpected competition, E.S. Harir, visibly tired after numerous shows and travelling from one continent to another in a short time, was left with a silver medal. Although it was already known after Rome that he would not be first in the male ranking, he had had a chance for second place immediately after D Borkan, but “only silver” this time made him drop to 4th place. In any case, he undoubtedly gained a group of ardent fans, which in itself is a huge success. Third in the championship was Amaar (RFI Farid – Adiya / WH Justice), bred by Al Juman Stud and owned by Sheikh Hamad Falah Al-Thani, a stallion last seen at GCAT in Oman. Shown in class by Giacomo Capacci, he was second-best immediately after Alexxanderr.

Mustaqbal means future

What awaits us in the future? A week after the finale in Riyadh, registrations launched for the opening event of the 2025 series in Ajman in the United Arab Emirates. A total of nine shows are planned for next year, including in new locations: London and Prague. The organisers will certainly surprise us many more times with both their unique take on national traditions and additional attractions. The fact that they set the bar very high for themselves this year works against them. But as we know, fortune favours the bold, so we can’t wait to see what mustaqbal brings.

Time doesn’t stand still. Before we knew it, over two weeks had passed since the 40th edition of the All Nations Cup. Have the emotions subsided? Not necessarily – appetite comes with eating, and since the Polish Nationals in Janów Podlaski, we have already been to the Interup show in Prague and the All Nations Cup in Aachen. This means that the European Championships are fast approaching, this year in Lier, Belgium, but ere we visit Flanders, let’s stop for a moment in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Let’s NOT start with horses though

Each of us encountered the name Aquisgranum quite early in primary school during history lessons while discussing the early Middle Ages. Every child well prepared for a quiz knows that this was the capital of Regnum Francorum, the Kingdom of the Franks, where Charlemagne performed a miracle, legally resurrecting the Roman Empire. However, before Pepin the Short, the son of the most outstanding European majordomo Charles Martel and the ambitious father of Charlemagne, fell in love with the local thermal springs and whose son was crowned Emperor of the Romans by Pope Leo III, a lot happened in the territory of the current state of Nordrhein-Westfallen…

The first settlement in these areas dates back to times of the Celts. Local Celtic tribes left numerous burial mounds here, several dozen of which were discovered at the beginning of the last century. It is possible that already then, at the turn of the Bronze and Iron Ages, the locals were able to appreciate the health properties of hot sulfur springs. Perhaps they even worshiped their god of health, Granos (or Granus), to which the ancient Romans referred when they named their newly founded colony Aquae Granni. The spa properties of local springs are still popular today, and some older Germans call their city Bad Aachen, which means nothing less than Aachen-Spa.

Anyone who comes to Aachen and does not devote even a moment to the city, limiting themselves only to their hotel and the show, will miss a lot. Cathedral of St. Saint Mary, Mother of God is the burial place not only of Charlemagne himself, but also of Otto III, “a friend to the Polanian State”, who in the year 1000 came to Gniezno on a pilgrimage to the grave of St. Adalbert of Prague, martyr and missionary to the Prussians. In the neoclassical Elisenbrunnen pavilion you can taste sulfuric curative water, while a bike ride aroudn the city will also allow you to discover two preserved medieval city gates, of which there were originally four. The city can also boast a very interesting offer of pubs and restaurants.

Despite such a rich history and tradition, Aachen is increasingly associated with horses, not Carolingians. No wonder, considering the fact that horse shows and equestrian competitions under the banner of CHIO, i.e. Concours Hippique International Officiel, have been organized here for exactly 100 years. These four letters hide an extremely prestigious event combining jumping, dressage, driving, eventing and even vaulting… For over four decades, one of the most recognizable purebred Arabian horse shows has been held here – the stage on which Polish horses have won the some of the most important titles more than once.

Now about horses

At the end of September, the weather this year was not too kind to those visiting Aachen. For three days we were accompanied by unpleasant, strong winds, passing rains and even one powerful cloudburst with hail. There were as many as 27 horses out of 118 entered in this year’s All Nations Cup catalog with the suffix PL attached to them. All you need to do is perform a simple mathematical operation to know that horses of Polish breeding, Polish ownership or our breeding and ownership accounted for as much as 23% of the all those entered. Ultimately, as happens at every show, fewer of them danced in front of the judges, but they still formed a large group. In the stables you could meet another Polish mare, who, together with her owner, took part in sports competitions co-creating the Arabian horse festival, which is undoubtedly the All Nations Cup.

Aachen for beginners

As at almost every major European show, we didn’t have to wait long for Polish-bred horses. The third to perform in front of the gathered audience, in the first of two classes of yearling fillies, was the bay Ghaila AO (Morion – Ginevra / AJ Mardan), bred and owned by Adam Ochman (Polia Arabians), shown by Paweł Kozikowski. It was only the third show of this young, extremely charming filly, and after a successful performance in Prague at the end of August, where she won the bronze medal in the European Yearling Mare Championships, the stress of showing in a loud arena could have affected her here. After all, events organized at the Chuchle Arena hippodrome have a calmer atmosphere and take place outdoors, which means that many horses look completely different. Ultimately, the filly took fifth place in the class and did not enter the championship competition.

From an All Nations Cup perspective, it was a short day. It started just after 2 p.m., and by 5 p.m. it was all over. We saw two classes of yearling fillies, two classes of junior Straight Egyptian mares as part of the 5th edition of the ANC Straight Egyptians Specific Origin Show, and finally two classes of yearling colts. And the last of the classes held that day was the most spectacular from a purely Polish perspective.

Mateusz Tokarski and Comoros (HL El Ganador – Cedora / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred and owned by Janów Podlaski Stud, participated in this class. Mateusz left the warm-up arena calm and focused, unlike his playful companion, who was clearly in a good mood. Only after a while did he gain the presenter’s focus, which did not leave him until the end of the class. When they returned to the ring after a few minutes to make an individual presentation, Comoros showed a beautiful trot with a high-set tail. A subtle gesture from the Emirati ringmaster was enough for the pair to return to the preparation ring after the standing presentation. The judges assessed their performance very well, even awarding four 20s for movement, which gave him 91.83 points and first place in class, and therefore participation in Sunday’s championship. We couldn’t have dreamed of a better ending to the first of three days in Albert-Vahle-Halle.

Youth is a gift of nature…

Saturday morning brought another great portion of emotions. The first class of the day, i.e. two-year-old fillies, began with Artur Łojowski entering the ring, leading the grey Wildonara (Paris – Wildona / Shanghai E.A.) from Michałów Stud with a steady step. She is this year’s Polish National Junior Champion Mare. After a while, Mateusz Tokarski and the bay Ebonita (Haash OSB – Etruzja / Pogrom) from Janów Podlaski Stud, last year’s Junior Spring Show Yearling Champion from Białka, were the second to appear before the judges on the ring. Also absent from the class was Janów’s Wencedora (Haash OSB – Wiga / Om El Bellissimo), this year’s Junior Champion Mare from Białka. How did the first two fare?

Wildonara was extremely calm even when trotting and had a delicate aura of aristocratic haughtiness around her. Although this is probably only the impression of a viewer standing to the side. Undoubtedly well prepared, she was fully focused on following the presenter’s instructions. He was so focused on his work that he didn’t even notice when, at the beginning of the presentation, one of the judges stood half a step behind him, carefully looking at the front legs of the presented mare. The Dutch judge, Robbie den Hartog, was not disturbed by even the presenter’s whip, which hung in the air less than 30 cm from his ear. Wildonara finished the class with 91.42 points and advanced to the championship from second place. It is worth adding that the class winner, Dubai’s D Aserah (AJ Nofan – D Shihanah / FA El Rasheem), a young Middle Eastern multi-medalist, had only 0.04 points more.

The judges were less generous when assessing Ebonita, whose performance, although successful and scored 90.21 points, did not show all her assets or beauty in movement. Remembering her from other shows, for example last year’s European Championships, where she even received a twenty for type, or this year’s trip to Białka for the Junior Mare bronze, where she finished with a score of 91.63 points, one can assume that it was not her day. She finished her debut at the All Nations Cup as fifth in her class.

There was also a Polish accent in the next class: the two-year-old colts. Here we saw the colt Monarchio (RFI Farid – Minerwina / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred by Wojciech Parczewski and owned by Bogdan Maślanka, who is also his trainer and handler. The young Monarchio has managed to get us used to the fact that he usually performs better abroad than on the domestic arena. The bronze medal for junior stallions at the Dutch Eurozone Cup show and the gold medal won at the Czech episode of the Emirates Arabian Horse Global Cup in Prague gave hope for a place in the top five in the class. However, as his guardians said: he had other plans for that day and took a high sixth place. However, there are rumors from the Primastella Stable that the bay two-year-old has not yet said his last word.

In the three-year-old mares class, we again saw two competitors in red and white colors. First, the bay Bianca of Sinus (Fadi Al Shaqab – Ballena / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred in the Swedish Sinus Arabian Stud, currently owned by Polia Arabians, won the hearts of the judges and the audience, shown by Paweł Kozikowski. Her efforts brought the expected result and she received even two 20s from the judges for movement, but it was not enough to enter the championship and she finished the class in 4th place with 91.96 points.

The grey Abellia (Magic Magnifique – Axara / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred by Janów and owned by Flaxman Arabians, had similar “bad luck”, and these are the rules governing shows. Mateusz Tokarski showed her, thanks to which the mare could boast easy movement. And although she did her best, her high marks, including 20 for movement, turned out to be insufficient. The total number of points of 91.25 gave her only sixth place. Moreover, in the later female classes, the competition was even more fierce…

… but age is a work of art

Saturday afternoon marked the beginning of the death classes and that is not an exaggerated description. In just one class of 4-6-year-old mares, the catalog included as many as five representatives of Poland, Polish breeding or ownership: Babetta, D Leen, Echo Anastazja, Mamma Mia and El Medida. This year’s bronze medalists of senior mares from the Global Champions Arabians Tour in Rome and the Polish National Show in Janów, i.e. D Leen (D Seraj – D Maha / Eden C), bred by Dubai Arabian Horse Stud and owned by Lubochnia Arabians, and El Medida (Morion – El Medara) / Shanghai E.A.) from Michałów, were, however, withdrawn, which still meant that three fourths of the class were Polish mares.

The first Polish mare to appear was Babetta (Emerald J – Belinda / Kahil Al Shaqab) from the Janów stables, currently owned by Flaxman Arabians, shown by Koen Hennekens. Like each of the eleven pairs in this class, they had a successful performance, for which they received 91.50 points from the judges. Unfortunately, this result gave them only 6th place, despite four 20s for movement and decently high other scores.

Immediately after them, Paweł Kozikowski and the divine Echo Anastazja (Psyche Keret – Echo Aurora / Eternity Ibn Navarrone-D), bred and owned by Chrcynno-Pałac Stud and the Poszepczyński Family, ran into the arena. And here it’s time for a tear of emotion, because none of the other horses received louder applause this weekend in Aachen. The deafening roar of the Polish part of the audience, whistles and cheers surprised everyone present, and spectators and VIP guests from other countries watched the enthusiastic crowd with a mixture of admiration and horror. The atmosphere also spread to the slightly surprised presenter, who at one point even encouraged Anastazja’s fans with his hand to cheer even louder, which clearly encouraged her and brought a wide smile to Paweł’s face. Anastazja performed equally well in terms of correct conformation in the walk and standing position, which encouraged the judges to give more generous marks. At the very end, probably out of surprise, the line got tangled for a moment around the mare’s front right leg, but the experienced handler quickly dealt with it. The whistles and applause continued as the couple made their way down to the warm-up area. What’s more, Christian Moschini, who was sitting out this class, congratulated the couple. Apparently the Italian judge regretted that he could not judge this amazing mare.

How did the judges rate this couple’s performance? Two 20s and three 19.5s for type, a minimum of 19 for head and neck, the highest score of the show for legs and… a set of 20s for movement! When Eric Blaak, the presenter at the show, read the marks for movement again in the Albert-Vahle-Halle, there was a loud but short cheer, which for a moment scared away the mare D Jooreyah, who was present in the ring, for which Paolo Capecci even apologized to the judges. Echo Anastazja received 93.33 points from the judges and no one was able to beat her score, although her competitors did try – to no avail. She was led to the decorations from the warm up arena by an emotional Joanna Wojtecka, and behind them was a slightly dazed – not without a good reason – Paweł, who bowed to the audience with a broad smile on his face.

What comes after delight?

One of those who wanted to catch up or perhaps overtake Echo Anastazja was Mamma Mia (E.S. Harir – VA Magnifica / Magic Magnifique), bred by Tomasz Tarczyński and owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud. Frank Spönle did his best to charm the judges with the multiple gold medalist of the show, but after an excellent performance, which resulted in twenty for type and movement, they had to settle for 3rd place in the class with 92.54 points. It was a really strong class, in which none of the eleven mares had less than 90 points.

It was no different in the 7-10-year-old mares class – each of the presented competitors had over 90 points, and we saw as many as four Polish mares. There would have been five of them, but Platyna NA (Shanghai E.A. – Pantera / Ekstern), bred by Alicja Najmowicz’s Nana Arabians and owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud, was withdrawn. So who showed up?

The first bay was Wieża Orientu (Ganges – Wieża Mocy / QR Marc), bred by Michałów and owned by Flaxman Arabians, shown by Peter Wilms. Despite her age, she is a mare with limited show experience, but she works beautifully with people and gave her neck to Peter even more beautifully, as if under a spell. However, she finished the class in 8th place with 90.04 points.

The Janów-bred dark bay mare Pila (Abyad AA – Piba / Gazal Al Shaqab) did better, finishing her class in 5th place with 91.50 points. Mateusz showed her on a loose rope, without losing control over her for even a second. She repaid him with good humor and unforced obedience, carrying out his orders without stress.

At the end of the class, two Polish mares fought again: Poganinka (El Omari – Pentra / Poganin), bred and owned by Michałów Stud, as the penultimate one, and Wildona (Shanghai E.A. – Wilda / Gazal Al Shaqab), bred by Michałów Stud and owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud, who closed the class. The first one, confidently led by Artur Łojowski, who signaled at the very beginning to limit the applause, showed what he has best: movement. She trotted along in her white socks, and Arthur ran alongside her, smiling. No one had any doubts that the chestnut was in her element. No wonder the first thing the presenter did when she stood still was to pat her tenderly. She gave no less of herself in the standing position, which the judges appreciated with four 20s for movement, 16.5 for legs and one 19.75 for head and neck. With 92.21 points, she finished her class third and entered the championship.

Wildona was the one who tried to take away the highest score of the show from Echo Anastazja, which was attempted by Frank Spönle, who was clearly motivated to ensure that the snow-white mare, wearing the Swiss red and white colors, exceeded the threshold of 93 points. She was also better prepared than a few months earlier in Bruges. The judges deservedly awarded her four 20s for type and movement, but she was exactly a quarter of a point behind her biggest competitor!

In the last class of 11-year-old and older mares, we again had someone to cheer for. Two distinguished ladies of Polish origin, currently playing for the Belgian team, met there: Pustynna Noc (WH Kaneko – Pustynna Rosa / Ekstern), from by the Nida River and owned by Budhen’s Stud, and Euzona (Om El Bellissimo – Euzetia / Etogram), from by the Bug River and jointly owned by Elizar Arabians and Sea Horse. At the end of the class, the Michałów-bred Emandilla (Om El Shahmaan – Espadrilla / Monogramm) appeared in front of Polish and international fans.

The successes of Pustynna Noc may still come as a surprise to many. When Michałów Stud sold her a few years ago at the Summer Sale auction to Flaxman Arabians, no one expected that she would be a show mare. But Nathalie de Haes and her family noticed that “something” in her, and this year Ekstern’s flea-bitten granddaughter caught the wind and is doing great at shows. Let two silver medals at the Bruges Arabian Horse Event and the Elran Arabian Cup and a gold medal at the West Coast Cup speak for themselves. In Aachen, she was shown by Tom Schoukens, thanks to which she was relaxed, although perhaps excited about performing in an indoor arena, something she had not experienced during previous performances. This had a small impact on the scores from the judges, who nevertheless assessed her very honestly, awarding her three 20s for lightness and freedom of movement, but the 91.67 points she scored gave her only 4th place in her class. Let’s remember that the result that allows you to be in the top five in an Aachen class is already a huge success.

Euzona has been absent from shows for several years. Unsold at the 2022 Pride of Poland Sale, she was sold a year ago in the Flemish Maldegem at the STC Auction to Belgium, therefore she stayed with the Schoukens family for a longer time. She was shown by the second of brothers, Glenn, with whom she managed to score 91.50 points in a difficult class. It was a successful performance, very correct and even – it’s a pity that she didn’t get at least one twenty for her move, but let’s remember that she hasn’t had contact with the ring and the judges examining her from every side and from every angle for a long time. She took 5th place in her class.

Three 20s for movement like those of Pustynna Noc also went to Emandilla, who ran into the main ring in high gear. Applause for Artur Łojowski, who sprinted her full circle, not slowing down even for a second, so that the bay mare could show her flawless trot. In her case, the scores awarded for head and neck might have been disappointing for us, the viewers, but the judges certainly saw more from up close than the VIP fans or the fans from the stands. Ultimately, with a score of 90.96 points, she was 7th in the class, and the viewers could feel a little dissatisfied.

More ladies, less men

Out of a total of 27 horses of Polish breeding and/or ownership, there were as many as 21 mares, including five that were withdrawn. The remaining six consisted of the three colts discussed, one of them absent, one gelding and two stallions. Let’s start with the middle category.

There was also a Polish competitor in the two gelding classes: 6-year-old Passar (Atius O – Perkilla / Al Maraam), bred by Dębno Stud (Adam Lachera) and owned by the Saudi Yas Stud. This year he triumphed at the Dutch Arabian Masters in Tarnów and Ströhen, winning gold, silver and gold again, each time with Paweł Kozikowski. However, the competition in Aachen turned out to be so strong that he finished his class fifth, less than one and a half points behind the winner.

In the first of two senior stallion classes, there were three gentlemen, none of whom scored below 92 points. In this small group of horses, we had the pleasure of seeing the chestnut Pinito (EKS Alihandro – Piniata / Eden C), who was transferred from the Janów stables to Flaxman Arabians a few years ago. He is a show veteran who started his career as a yearling in Białka, but had to wait five years for his first medal and finally caught the wind while working with Peter Wilms. Although he took 2nd place in the class with a score of 92.63 points, and did not win a medal in the championship, it must be given to him that among all ten adult stallions he had the best movement at the All Nations Cup this year – a set of twenties! What’s more, the judges scored his legs the best out of all the horses – five times 16 and one 16.5! And no one will take this away from him.

In the last class, the Janów-bred Paris (Kahil Al Shaqab – Palmeta / Ecaho), currently owned by Adam Ochman’s Polia Arabians, performed. There is something about the fact that Polish horses can boast movement and usually have better legs than their colleagues from other countries… Paris in Aachen scored better than recently in Prague, which was enough for silver there, but here he didn’t really want to show his long neck to the judges and finished 3rd in his class with 92 points, which is still a very good result. There was a chance for 2nd place, immediately after the stallion HL El Ganador, but maybe next time.

Championships for the 40th time in Aachen

A total of eight horses of Polish breeding and/or ownership advanced to the final competition: Comoros, Wildonara, Echo Anastazja, Mamma Mia, Poganinka, Wildona, Pinito and Paris. The titles of champions went to two of them: Wildona and Echo Anastazja in the Senior Mare Championships, both of which first advanced to the finals after very good performances in their classes, which might’ve as well be called “deadly”… If you were there, you saw it!

Maybe it’s not quite a standard solution, but I’ll start with the Senior Mare Championship. Nine mares met there, four of which were Polish-bred. The judges needed the most time in this championship, and a careful observer could have noticed how some of the judges were wandering among the horses with a confused look, trying to choose the best three in their opinion. The fact that the bronze medal for Echo Anastazja was decided by Robbie den Hertog’s single vote for gold shows how incredibly divided their opinions were! Two judges chose Wildona for gold, but she also received two silver and one bronze, so she won silver in the championship. The gold went to the grey D Shahla (Marajj – FT Shaella / Shael Dream Desert), bred and owned by Dubai Arabian Horse Stud.

Now let’s go back to the beginning. The Yearling Mare Championships were dominated by fillies from the Arabian Peninsula. The gold went to the gold medalist of the Global Champions Arabians Tour from Cannes, Durrat Albidayer (Jyar Meia Lua – A Vision MI / Allegiance MI), bred and owned by Albidayer Stud. The silver went to Royal Futurista (AJ Radman – HK Sweet Musique / HDF Lugano), bred by Royal Arabians and owned by Al Wajba Stud. Interestingly, she won bronze at GCAT Cannes. The bronze medal in Aachen went to D Thaw (D Seraj – D Fannanah / Excalibur E.A.) from Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, who was also bronze at the Intercup in Prague recently, and gold at the GCAT show in Rome.

That Comoros had to return to Poland sans medal was indeed a disappointment, as he had the best scores among the yearlings in both male classes. Although five of the seven judges chose him for bronze, it was a few points too little, but for the Polish audience he was still the best yearling colt. The championship gold went to AB Bandar (D Seraj – Priscilla OS / Poseidon OS), bred and owned by Abhaa Arabians. Silver and bronze were won by the sons of the stallion Royal Asad: KH Habs (out of Dhma Alaainah by Wadee Al Shaqab) from Al Khawolid Stud and Ashgar Akmal (out of Akira AS by Titan AS) from Akmal Stud. Each of these three yearlings can boast similar “stage” experience as Comoros, having medals from the title show of the Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Arabian Horse Festival, the Belgian West Coast Cup or the Italian Montefalco in Tour, which makes the Polish Champion’s place off the podium even more painful.

In the Junior Mare Championships, the first gold during the All Nations Cup for Dubai Arabian Horse Stud was won by D Raseel (D Seraj – Elle Flamenca / Ajman Moniscione), a titled three-year-old who was silver in Aachen as a yearling mare. Last year, gold in Menton, this year silver in Aachen – this is how Alawiya Al Sheikh (Shanghai E.A. – Algamra / AJ Portofino) from Al Sheikh Stud ended her adventure in Albert-Vahle-Halle. The judges awarded the bronze to Reef AQ (Ghaith Al Zobair – Shikha Al Jbreen) owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud. As a consolation, we could say that young Wildonara’s honor was saved by her dam, Wildona.

The Junior Stallion Championships were quite exciting. Although no Polish colt appeared in it, the live view of the young and charismatic, already three-year-old Fajer AA (Shanghai E.A. – Fadwa AA / Fadi Al Shaqab), led to victory by the fearless Mussa Nijm, must have made an impression on everyone. And it was this young man from Ariela Arabians who received the noblest medal. He took the silver with him to the stable of RD Rajan (Polidoro FC – RD Quianna / Shanghai E.A.), bred by Rae-Dawn Arabians and owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud. He took gold with him in Valkenswaard, the Netherlands, in the summer. And the chestnut STA High Voltaj (Taj Raheem – Rose SME / Lark RCA) representing Al Wajba Stud won a bronze medal.

We have already discussed the senior mares, so let’s move on to the Senior Stallion Championships. It was no surprise that the gold medal went to Comoros’ sire, the stallion HL El Ganador (HP Shakir TE – Lonco Baby Maria / HP Emir) owned by Hanaya Arabian Stud. The USA-bred Pilatus PCF (Exxalt – Alexandria PCF / PCF Vision), performing in the colors of Amer Stud, took the silver, and the Emirati Sinmar Albidayer (Shanghai E.A. – Salwa Albidayer / Marwan Al Shaqab), currently owned by Xin Wang, won the bronze. The joy of the Chinese team, for whom it was their debut at the All Nations Cup, was enormous and uncontrollable, and it was nice to watch the riot of emotions, from excitement to tears, which they did not hide. This is the first time in the history of the All Nations Cup in Aachen that a horse owned by Chinese breeders won a medal.

Final remarks

The 40th edition of the All Nations Cup was different from the previous ones. The “Straight Egyptian” classes in the 5th edition of the specific origin show were intertwined with the classes of the title show, also in the championships. The German Championship had its final on Saturday between younger and older horses at the All Nations Cup. In the background there was an outdoor riding class that seemed to be known only to riders and horsewomen and their families and friends. One element had not changed for years. The music played at the opening of each class, and here the opinions are usually extremely divided: you either love this song or you hate it.

Looking at my notes from the show, I’d like to say one thing: a lot is bound to happen at the upcoming European and World Championships. This year we could take a closer look at hundreds of horses at a huge number of shows in Europe and beyond. Among the novelties we have the GCAT and EAHGC series, in which Polish horses also take part, and Poles are more willing to try their hand in what is unknown to them than ever before. Therefore it might get very interesting.

The European part of the Global Champions Arabians Tour series has come to an end. For those who were there, it will be an experience to remember. And those who weren’t there, grab your notebooks and add the following to your New Year’s resolutions: I’ll go to GCAT in 2025. The Italians without a doubt surprised their guests present at the show in Rome with glassful of Italian culture, two millennia in a nutshell, that most probably no one had ever poured before: a bubbly essence of Italy, as expressive as it was delightful. Against such a background, an epic group of horses trotted and held their heads high in the majestic Circus Maximus, while presenters took no prisoners, ruthlessly fighting with their protégés for gloriam aeternam.

Inizi orribili, or horrible beginnings

The fate of the Roman leg of GCAT for a moment found itself on the chopping block a few days before the show. The unpredictable, deranged even, weather that we are seeing this September also in southern Poland, took its toll on the organisers. The purebred Arabian community held its collective breath waiting for an official announcement from the flooded arena. When it finally came, all one could hear was a sigh of relief.

The end of August and the first week of September were a time when horses reigned supreme at the Circus Maximus – first as part of the Longines Global Champions Tour, and then the Global Champions Arabians Tour. Both events, celebrating show jumping and Arabian horses respectively, were merely separated by a few days, during which the organisers were to “update” the decorations on the ancient Roman arena. Three days before the grand opening of the Arabian horse show, a cloudburst over Rome, the likes of which had not been seen in the Eternal City for a long time, washed everything away. When the skies cleared, the organisers without hesitation or delay rolled up their sleeves so that on Friday 6th September at noon the first yearlings could run out onto the largest chariot racetrack in history. And a special thankyou goes to the Rome City Hall for their support on this occasion. Local authorities helped get the battlefield that the storm left behind under control.

Cultura italiana

Before the gladiators appeared in the arena, the guests coming to the event experienced their first taste of the emotions and cultural impressions that were to come. A military band dressed as grenadiers and royal guards played the Italian national anthem “Il Canto degli Italiani” and battle marches foreshadowing the clashes that would take place in individual classes. Those entering the VIP area and walking around it were greeted by characters symbolising various periods of history, elements of culture and individual regions of the Apennine Peninsula. There were carnival goers from Venice in their best attire, hiding their smiling faces behind traditional maschere veneziane, ancient deities, including the female incarnation of the winged Mercury, Roman legionaries, distinguished patricians, legates and consuls. The Italians’ attachment to folklore, traditional music and the Tricolore was simply ubiquitous.

There was also no shortage of other attractions either… We saw a Roman chariot with its driver in festive vestment. There was a fashion show – after all, Milan is, next to Paris, the most important European fashion capital… There were elements of ancient theatre and baroque opera, for which Italian culture is known all over the world – librettos for the operas of the greatest European composers were written in Italian for a long time, even if they concerned stories not necessarily related to Italy, although one could perhaps argue about Haendel’s “Arminio”. Even though Arminius was a prince of the Germanic Cherusci, he served in the Roman army (which he later defeated, earning the nickname of the liberator of the Germanic tribes in Tacitus’ “Annales”). Gioco della bandiera – the tradition of flag waving and throwing which dates back to the Middle Ages – definitely got the crowd’s attention. With their art, the sbandieratori express the pride of medieval guilds, as well as refer to the early use of flags as signals during warfare.

So much for soul food. And what did the artisans’ village located on the side of the arena have to offer? Paintings, perfumes, Italian vetreria – the highest quality blown glassware, or fashion inspired by Italian and equestrian motifs, both high fashion and equestrian sports clothes, some of it inspired by the first half of the 20^th century, and of course the kind of food one could eat: Italian biscotti, candy, chocolate cakes that Belgian maîtres chocolatiers would not be ashamed of, and obviously… gelati and sorbetti. It was impossible to leave the stands without overwhelming one’s senses, especially the palate…

One might wonder whether this was too much. But let’s face it… What else did we expect from Italians, whose pride in their multi-faceted tradition, culture and history dating back to the 8th century BC is so well known?

Gladiatores arenam intrant

We didn’t have to wait long for Polish-bred and owned horses. Already in the first class, two yearling fillies entered Circus Maximus, and the grey El Lyrica KL (Lyric EA – Erskina / Kahil Al Shaqab) led by Glenn Schoukens was actually the second horse to present herself to the audiences at this show. The dignified filly, already with some show experience (Silver Medal Yearling Filly at the Junior Show in Białka), bred and owned by Klikowa Arabians, looked very relaxed. A moment later, at Paolo Capecci’s side, we saw the also grey Sana OS (Exagon OS – Panamera OS / Psytadel), bred by Gestüt Osterhof and owned by Lubochnia Arabians. She, for a change, seemed excited to greet the crowds, which is not surprising considering she is the gold medallist of this year’s Vesuvio Trophy. And this is exactly how they presented themselves individually to the judges: the former an oasis of serenity focused on her presenter, the latter – full of unforced vigour, both charismatic and classy. Ultimately, El Lyrica was 4th in class with 91.43 points, and Sana took 2nd place, which gave both of them a chance to compete in the championships. Sultana Al Thamer took the first place in this class, receiving only half a point more – 91.93.

In the second class of yearling fillies, there were no horses representing Poland in any way, which does not mean that there were no Polish accents at all. This class was judged by Anna Stefaniuk, former main breeder of Janów Podlaski Stud and student of Andrzej Krzyształowicz. It was a very strong class, as evidenced on the one hand by the points awarded by the judges – D Rowa, Teha Al Shaqab and D Nafayes all received no less than 92 points, and on the other hand by their performances in the championships, but more on that in a moment.

Next came the two classes of yearling colts and we saw Tomasz Tarczyński in action for the first time judging at this show. He was one of the judges who had the pleasure to see Afreen Al Shaqab up close first, who presented himself from the best side in front of the judges together with the French presenter Raphael Curti. He is a young horse, already with a lot of experience, reacting great to the crowds, clearly pleased with roaring applause coming from the audience, and there is no sign of fatigue in him. With his dynamic performance, he outclassed his rivals, finishing the class with 20s for type and head & neck, as well as great scores for legs and movement. He returned to the stables with 93.14 points, second highest score of the day. The same number of points was awarded to the undefeated AJ Kayya, and only Shahbrys HVP scored 0.07 points more. It became clear that Afreen was in Rome for his fifth gold medal, having previously won them in Doha, Muscat, Cannes and Valkenswaard…

In the second class of one-year-olds, his biggest competition D Borkan charmed the crowds, but despite Paolo Capecci’s best efforts, he did not really want to show his moves. The judges gave him higher marks for head & neck, and also awarded twenty points for type, but he returned to the warm-up arena with “only” 92.36 points. The gold medallist from Abu Dhabi has much more luck with silver medals, and as we were to see the following day, it was true this time as well.

La forza è dei giovani…

The 2- and 3-year-old female classes were dominated by their winners: the aforementioned phenomenal 2-year-old chestnut Shahbrys HVP and the graceful 3-year-old grey D Najlah, who scored 93.21 and 92.93 points respectively. The judges were generous, giving out 20s for type and head & neck. The audience also reacted exceptionally lively to them from the very beginning. There was also a Polish accent among the female youth – or should I say “accentess”? In the second class, the bay Bella Rose (Star Farid – Bogini Marajj / Marajj) ran into the showground led by Nicolas Frere. Currently owned by the Jahazi Family from Iran, this 3-year-old filly is bred by Paweł Redestowicz. She is the 2022 Yearling Filly Silver Medallist at the Polish National Show in Janów Podlaski, and just recently she won bronze at the West Coast Cup in Koksijde on the Belgian coast of the North Sea. This time she went from third place in the class and almost 92 points to the championships. She even received a twenty from one of the judges for movement, but it was rejected (when there are at least 9 judges in each class, the highest and lowest scores do not count towards the overall result).

The same thing basically happened in the 2- and 3-year-old colt classes. Here too, the later championship winners dominated the scene. And here too, a Polish accent appeared – this time in the form of the 3-year-old colt Nisser Babel (Sinharib Babel – AJ Nasheeda / AJ Portofino), bred by Babel Stud and owned by Hamie Hamie Stud. We saw him for the first time at GCAT in mid-June in Cannes and two weeks later at the international B show as part of the Venice Land Cup where he almost unanimously won the gold medal in the Junior Stallion Championship. Six out of seven judges nominated him then for the title of the golden boy. At his second appearance on the Arabians Tour, he did slightly better and one of the judges even gave him an unfortunately rejected twenty for type. He also scored better for movement – and rightly so, as he showed a more than correct trot. Ultimately, he qualified for the championship from the 5th place, with 90.79 points (compared to 90.07 in Cannes).

… la prudenza degli anziani

It would be a shameful oversimplification to say that both the senior mare and stallion classes were a “one man show”. Yes, we have become accustomed to a few “big names” whose stars shine the brightest this year. The rankings are testament to this fact as they undergo merely cosmetic changes at most after each edition. It may be worth considering in future editions in how many stages of the series individual horses may partake. This way, the lower predictability of the rankings would make the series a lot more thrilling… Just food for thought.

There can certainly be no complaints about the level of the senior mare classes. Out of the 14 presented mares, only one received from the judges less than 90 points, and it was more like a temporary indisposition, because this not-so-successful performance happened to this year’s bronze medallist of the Trapani Arabian Horse Cup. Maybe this is due to her relatively small experience at shows and stress got the better of her? In any case, both classes of adult ladies were captivating, and the mares fighting for the right to compete in the championships were alluring. AJ Kayya did not surprise, winning 12 twenties (that’s after rejecting the lowest and highest scores), although she definitely did not show her best movement this time. The only two mares that really moved were the Swedish-bred and Kuwaiti-owned SMG Ivana and the Omani Alexandra RC – both were third in their classes.

The performance of the long-unseen DA Little Princess was a pleasant surprise. Last seen at the GCAT in Doha, she finished the B class of senior mares in 2^nd place. The Austrian-bred and Italian-owned signora, led by Giacomo Capacci, was relaxed, and the crowd gathered around her in the ring did not intimidate her. Anna Stefaniuk was also clearly delighted with her, and it seems that she shared a kind word with Giacomo, because his face suddenly beamed with joy.

From our Polish perspective, the performances of both Lubochnia Arabians-owned mares: D Leen (D Seraj – D Maha / Eden C) and D Dawaly (FA El Rasheem – D Danat / SG Labib), were undoubtedly noteworthy. They took second and fourth places in their classes, receiving 92.21 and 91.93 points from the judges, which guaranteed both of them participation in the championship. Cherry on top, they shared a few 20s for head & neck.

The second day of the Italian leg of the series began with a little less testosterone than we saw in France or the Netherlands. Although there were twice as many gladiators as in the truly intimate Cannes, there were half as many as in Valkenswaard, and on top of that the first class of senior stallions was very calm, with the exception of the bay Rhan Al Shahania. Giacomo Capacci whom we have just mentioned above led the noble stallion in an easy-going manner, allowing him to feel the beat of the arena, first jogging alongside him, before shifting into higher gear, and after a moment allowing him to trot majestically. Considering the almost inevitable shows of strength at such events in the stallion classes, it was an exceptionally pleasant sight. Charismatic Rhan, with his head held high, showed the judges what a great walk looks like, then bowed to the presenter to have his forelock combed and gave his stress-free best in the stand-up position. If we were to judge only the cooperation between man and beast, then out of the more than 70 horses shown in Rome, this pair would undoubtedly receive gold. It was an example not so much of cooperation, but of a partnership full of mutual respect.

In the second stallion class, which again was rather calm, the last to enter the arena was E.S. Harir. It was known from the beginning that in this class he would compete against the also grey Equiborn KA, shown by Tom Schoukens and owned by Budhen’s Stud. Harir, metres away from the entrance to the show ring, encouraged by Paolo Capecci and being on a relatively loose rope, gave an astounding performance of rearing. The seasoned presenter knew that in order to win another gold, he had to present his star student in such a way that no one would have any doubts that the snow-white stallion deserved it. Ultimately, the judges appreciated the efforts of this pair – Harir was the only one to receive twenties for type across the board, and thus had the highest score of the show: 93.64!

Campioni di Roma

The chestnut D Rowa (FA El Rasheem – D Rawyanah / Emerald J), bred and owned by Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, won the gold medal in the Yearling Filly Championship, probably to a little surprise. Two weeks earlier, she had won gold at Prague Intercup, so it seems that the Czech show was a two-in-one warm-up and rehearsal. At GCAT, we previously saw her in Cannes, where she was fourth in the championship, and before that in Muscat. In the Omani capital she won bronze, which could have been disappointing for the gold medallist of the Dubai International Arabian Horse Championship and Sharjah International Arabian Horse Festival. And now she is in her best shape ever. The silver medal went to the GCAT veteran, bay Sultana Al Thamer (Dominic M – Weaam Al Jassim / Emerald J) representing Al Thamer Stud. Emerald’s second granddaughter in this championship is the gold medallist from Valkenswaard, silver from Muscat and Doha, and bronze from Abu Dhabi. And the bronze medal was awarded to Teha Al Shaqab (Marwan Al Shaqab – Marbella PCF / Exxalt) from Al Shaqab Stud, for whom this is already her third bronze medal in this year’s series, having previously won them in Qatar and the Netherlands.

It was no surprise to anyone that the grey Afreen Al Shaqab (D Mezyan – Siwar Al Shaqab / SMA Magic One) from Al Shaqab Stud won gold in the Yearling Colt Championship. He came to the Italian capital to win his fifth GCAT gold and left the city of Caesars with a sense of duty well done. His biggest rival, the bay D Borkan (FA El Rasheem – D Ajayeb / RFI Farid) representing Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, returned to the stables after the championship with silver. The choice of the bronze medallist, however, was a surprise – the judges decided that the most deserving of the third place was the bay Samir DA (HL El Ganador – Savannah OS / RFI Farid) bred and owned by Danubius Arabians. In the first yearling class, he was second after a successful performance, but keep in mind: this was his debut at GCAT. He had already made his mark in the purebred Arabian community when he won silver and gold medals this year in Bruges and Ströhen respectively. After Rome, he is now the proud owner of medals in every colour.

The Junior Fillies Championship was tense, as it was not entirely clear until the very end who would leave Rome with a gold and who with a silver medal. All we knew was that two amazing heavyweights would put up a fight for the championship belt: the grey D Najlah (D Seraj – Elle Flamenca / Ajman Moniscione) from Dubai and the chestnut Shahbrys HVP (Royal Asad – Rebecca HVP / Magnum Chall HVP), bred by Agropecuaria Vila Dos Pinheiros and owned by Ajmal Stud. The former was the gold medallist from Abu Dhabi and Valkenswaard, and silver medallist from Doha and Cannes. The latter won the bronze medal in Doha, Abu Dhabi and Cannes, left Valkenswaard with silver and Muscat with gold! Ultimately, more judges chose D Najlah for gold. What is quite noteworthy is how the judges’ votes are almost equally divided between the first two fillies. D Najlah and Shahbrys HVP are always neck and neck, going head-to-head, and the victory in Rome as well as in previous editions is decided by single votes. And the bronze medal in this championship went to the grey TM Bella (TM Itaipu – TM Fahdeelah / Shanghai EA), bred by Jose Orlando & Teixeira Junior and owned by Aljumail Stud.

In the Junior Colt Championship, two youngsters were similarly neck and neck: bay Dubai-bred D Shakhar (D Shakhat – D Shamkah / FA El Rasheem) and grey Bandar Aljassimya (Picasso di Mar – Miznat Al Jassimya / Monther Al Nasser) from Qatar’s Aljassimya Farm. Bronze in Doha and Cannes, silver in Abu Dhabi, Muscat and Valkenswaard, and finally gold in Rome – that was the fate of D Shakhar. His rival, the GCAT gold medallist from Doha, Muscat and Cannes, had to settle for silver. Fajer AA (Shanghai EA – Fadwa AA / Fadi Al Shaqab), competing in the colours of Ariela Arabians, won his second bronze medal in a row having scored one previously in Valkenswaard.

The hitherto undefeated queen of GCAT, the grey AJ Kayya (AJ Kafu – Aja Caprice / EKS Alihandro) from Ajman Stud, won her sixth gold medal at the Global Champions Arabians Tour 2024. The Emirati beauty is the only recipient of exactly 120 points in the GCAT ranking out of a pool of 120. The silver medal was awarded to an absolute show veteran Basandra Settimociello (Ajman Moniscione – MA Scarlet / Hadidi), bred by Allevamento Settimocielo Maria Ferraroni and owned by Ajman Stud. Previously, this grey mare had won bronze in Cannes and also silver in Valkenswaard. Then the biggest surprise for the Polish part of the audience both on site and on-line came when the winner of the bronze medal in this championship was announced: D Leen! A triple grey championship indeed. Dobrochna and Przemysław Wawrzyńczyk, the owners of Lubochnia Arabians, with their family were moved to tears at the prize-giving ceremony. And as was the case of Samir DA, this was D Leen’s debut at GCAT even though she has a tonne of show experience to her name. Last year, as a junior mare, she won the silver medal at the All Nations Cup in Aachen and gold medals in Sopot, Palermo and Travagliato.

The Senior Stallion Championship featured all nine stallions we had seen in both classes earlier that day. The three gentlemen who made the biggest splash were the ones who drew the most attention: Rhan Al Shahania (Marwan Al Shaqab – Jwaaher Al Shahania / FA El Rasheem), bred by Al Shahania Stud and owned by Sheikha Reem Al Thani, Equiborn KA (QR Marc – Espadrilla / Monogramm), bred by NV Zoutekreken and owned by Budhen’s Stud, and E.S. Harir (AJ Dinar – TF Magnums Magic / Magnum Psyche), bred by Sheikh Abdulla bin Majid Alqassemi and owned by Al Saqran Stud. To make matters even more interesting: each and every one of them a veteran of several GCAT events and numerous other title shows. And while the gold for the snow-white Harir was fairly obvious (a minority report came in the form of one vote for Rhan), the outcome of the fight for the silver and bronze medals was not known until the dust settled. Ultimately, by a minimal margin of votes, silver went to Rhan, and bronze to Equiborn – largely thanks to the previously mentioned single vote for gold.

Impact on rankings

The rankings have become set in stone. The lack of restrictions on the number of shows a horse may participate in results therein that the top of the rankings remain virtually unchanged – for several editions now. In the ladies’ ranking, only D Najlah and D Nafayes swapped second and third places in the top 10.

The first four places in the gentlemen’s ranking seem to have frozen and it turns out that E.S. Harir currently has a very slim chance of going to the very top, considering that there is one last stage of GCAT left… He is one point behind the second D Shakhar (unchanged since Valkenswaard), and still 5 points behind D Borkan in the lead (3 less than in July). The rest of this ranking changed in favour of Rhan Al Shahania and Bandar Aljassimya, but this is only due to the absence of Aesar Alwajba, Mushwash Al Shaqab and AJ Kafu at this particular show. Equiborn KA, in spite of his sublime performance, is still 10^th –just as he was before!

There is also no chance of a shift in the presenters’ ranking – it is almost certain that the top five will remain as they are until the closing ceremony in Saudi Arabia, and (since Italians love football) the equivalent of Ballon d’Or will go to the Italian superstar Paolo Capecci.

Showdown in Riyadh

Thus the European incarnations of Global Champions Arabians Tour came to an end that was beyond spectacular. As football jargon comes in quite handy, we could joke that with the semi-finals over, it is high time for the final. The last stage of GCAT, in the heart of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in the city of gardens (that’s what Ar-Riyad means in Arabic) is less than two months away. We can already bet that, just like in the previous Arab editions, we will experience shades and hues of culture of the Arabian Peninsula completely unknown to Europeans. Our Eurocentricity has dulled our senses to the charms of Middle Eastern art, and GCAT allows us to discover them anew, throwing off the shackles of stereotypes and prejudice. We already know from Muscat and Doha, among others, how fabulous Arab handicraft and artisanship are, how rich the cuisines of individual nations, how proud the peoples of the Peninsula are of their music.

And the horses? They will be exactly like in all previous GCAT location: Apollonian and angelic.

The last show of the Global Champions Arabians Tour series on the Old Continent is about to start. The show in Rome closes the European part of the series before its glorious return to the Arabian Peninsula, the homeland of the purebred Arabian. Still, ere that happens, pure-blood gladiators will fight for championship titles and rank, and all this in a place where Arabian horses have never been before – the largest arena of Ancient Rome.

Rome: the Eternal City

When people in the Far East speak of an “Eternal City,” they usually refer to Kyoto, the former capital of Japan, from where Japanese emperors ruled their vast domains for over a millennium. Westerners on the other hand use this centuries old nickname for the city of Rome. In his life’s masterpiece “Aeneid”, Virgil wrote: “Sit Latium, sint Albani per saecula reges, sit Romana potens Itala virtute propago”. John Dryden in his English translation rendered these thoughts very close to the original: “Latium be Latium still; let Alba reign, and Rome’s immortal majesty remain”.

The work was written in the times of Emperor Octavian, the glory days of the Empire, so there was nothing to suggest that in later centuries the city would change hands many times between various magnates and invaders, be pillaged by pirates, besieged or destroyed. Despite this, it survived even the greatest of storms and tempests, and the stones on which both Trajan and Adam Mickiewicz walked can still be seen on the Palatine Hill.

Rome like Chicago: the Windy City

Speaking of storms and tempests… At the turn of August and September, on the ancient Circo Massimo, the Italian part of Longines Global Champions Tour took place, the most prestigious show jumping competition in the world. As is the case of Arabians, for sport horses this is the last European leg of their cycle too. The Grand Finale will be organised in Riyadh, the capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. After the end of the event, it was time to prepare for the Global Champions Arabians Tour. The events are just five days away, but…

On Tuesday, 3rd September, the capital of Italy was hit by torrential rains hurricane-like winds, the likes of which Rome has not seen in a long time. Even the Arch of Constantine, one of the most beloved and most photographed attractions from the times of the Roman Empire, suffered damage. When the skies over Rome cleared, the city’s archaeological services quickly secured the stone and rubble broken off of the Arch, which had been treacherously struck by a powerful lightning bolt during a downpour. Capricious weather did not spare the Circus Maximus either. The decorations and tents were carried away by the wind and flooded by the rain. Nonetheless, the organisers did not wring their hands, but rolled up their sleeves even higher, because they have quite an event ahead of them.

Horses and games!

Paraphrasing the Roman satirist Juvenal, the author of the saying “panem et circenses”, meaning “bread and games”, we might as well say “equos et circenses”, because that’s precisely what we want from the Roman leg of GCAT: horses and games. For over a month now, we have been asking ourselves what sort of surprises do the Italians have in store for us? How will they choose to enchant us, while celebrating their culture and traditions, and how will they combine them with purebred horses? The Dutch set the bar cruelly high, throwing a “festa” that the Brazilians would not be ashamed of during the carnival, and so did the French before them, who toyed with art and convention with a Mediterranean-worthy ease. It is commonly said that Italian cuisine is the best on the Old Continent, and every Italian will proudly say that the best chef in the world is their grandmother. Not Massimo Bottura from Modena, whose Osteria Francescana boasts Michelin stars. So perchance, our Italian hosts are preparing a feast not only for our eyes? We’ll see soon enough…

Furthermore, we are now more than just used to a phenomenal quality of horses – rendering us dumbfounded. Breeders and owners of horses with top positions in the male and female rankings know that they have a lot to lose. In both cases, the situation is extremely tense, and the order in the top three could be decided by a trivial, seemingly insignificant, mistake of the presenter. Nerves will be eating away at our friends and colleagues from Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, Al Saqran Stud and Ajman Stud, present at the venue ,whose stallions and mares are as of now on top.
Will AJ Kayya remain undefeated? Will E.S. Harir beat D Shakhar and how close will he get to D Borkan? What Polish-bred horses, or maybe even -owned, will we see in the arena where chariots raced two thousand years ago? One thing is for certain. Just as the Roman screamed their heads off in Hadrian’s time, cheering on Diocles, one of the greatest charioteers in history (and certainly the richest), so too will we lose our minds on Saturday evening.

Global Champions Arabians Tour Rome – Friday and Saturday 6-7 September 2024 at Circus Maximus.

Livestream on Arabian Essence: https://www.arabianessence.tv/events/gcat-roma-2024/820/.

A hundred horses, flawless organization, a show that was buttoned up and the best that Dutch culture has to offer, including a love of bicycles, all under one roof, yet outdoors. GCAT Valkenswaard will remain in the memories of breeders, owners and lovers of purebred horses for a long time. And the blankets for the winners of the championships? The haute couture of Parisian catwalks does not live up to them.

Although it may not be entirely appropriate, I will venture a rather bold thesis at the very beginning: the Netherlands outshone France in terms of scale… The Dutch leg of the Global Champions Arabians Tour was as impressive as the Kingdom of the Netherlands: undeniably royal, and the omnipresent color orange did not let us forget that we were in a country ruled by the Oranje-Nassau dynasty, which celebrated its 480th birthday literally a week earlier (founded on July 15th, 1544 by William the Silent).

As in previous editions of GCAT, here too there were Polish accents, both equine and human. Out of 99 horses that entered the ring, we saw eleven of thirteen entered for the show of Polish breeding, as well as the stallion SQ Helal, who triumphed in Białka and Tarnów. The twenty-person panel of judges was co-created by Anna Stojanowska and Jerzy Białobok, as well as guests of the All-Polish Arabian Horse Championship in Tarnów from a month ago, Allan Preston and Scott Benjamin. We will soon see both of them at the Arabian Horse Days at the Stud Farm in Janów Podlaski – as judge and ringmaster. In addition, one of the members of the Disciplinary Committee at the Valkenswaard show was the president of the Polish Arabian Horse Breeding Association, Mateusz Leniewicz-Jaworski. Knowing the personal details and knowing that over 10% of the horses were from Poland, let’s get to the point. Especially since it’s really worth it!

In the former capital of falconry, horses rule

What is Valkenswaard famous for, called Valkeswird in the local Brabant dialect? Once for falcons, today for horses. In this area, several hundred years ago, Dutch falconers caught falcons, which were then sent to the most distinguished European courts – German, French, British. Historically, this art is close to Polish tradition, because Polish falconers were highly valued both in the country and in German and Russian courts. However, this tradition naturally disappeared with the progressive retreat from hunting, and was replaced by horses near Eindhoven.

In 2015, near Valkenswaard, just two kilometres from the Belgian border, Jan Tops, a Dutch Olympian from Barcelona ’92, where he won the gold medal in team show jumping, an entrepreneur and founder of the Longines Global Champions Tour, opened the Longines Tops International Arena here. This is how equestrian sports on an international scale came here, and this year there is a dazzling show of Arabian horses, a Lucullus feast for the senses…

Brabant adventures of Polish horses

We didn’t have to wait long for the representatives from Poland, because our yearling was the second horse we saw during these two days full of excitement. It was the grey, slightly girlish El Lyrica KL (Lyric E.A. – Ersikna / Kahil Al Shaqab) from Klikowa Arabians, a granddaughter of the stallion Shanghai E.A. She entered the ring confidently, led by Glenn Schoukens. It was obvious that she was relaxed, and the large beds of bright flowers, for which the Netherlands is famous, made little impression on her. The only thing that could “surprise” her was the 15-person crowd that suddenly appeared at her side during the “stand” assessment. She even received two 20s from the judges for head and neck, which unfortunately were rejected as extreme marks. With a high score of 91.14 points and 4th place in the class, she went on to the championship, losing just over a point to the class leader Sultana Al Thamer.

In the second class of yearlings, Polish fans of Arabian horses had someone to keep their fingers crossed for again. With number 025 on his back, Jurij Samoilenko ran into the ring, leading Doris Star (D Zeidan – Doris Fame / Enzo), Silver Champion Yearling Filly from Tarnów. The bay medalist from Klikowska Ostoja presented herself perfectly, she listened to her handler, whose calmness rubbed off on her – however, the judges did not appreciate her as much as three weeks earlier, and the mark of 20 for movement was rejected as… extreme. It was not an easy class, however, and in the end, the graduate of the Grabów nad Pilicą Arabian Horse Stud took 6th place (out of twelve horses!) in the class, which was won by the Dubai-based D Nafayes, well-known to GCAT fans.

The yearling classes were dominated by two colts who qualified for the championships from the first places: Afreen Al Shaqab and D Borkan – the first of whom received the highest marks for legs of all the horses presented this weekend in Valkenswaard… In these two classes, Poles at the Tops Arena and those watching the livestream could keep their fingers crossed for the colt who won silver in Deurne at the EuroZone Cup in May this year. On this day, Achilles Star (D Zeidan – Aidah Star / Magic Sourman), bred and owned by Tomasz Tarczyński, had a worse day despite the efforts of Jurij Samoilenko. He is still a very young horse, so with age will come experience, and with it, it is possible that more medals.

In the junior mare classes, we were supposed to see one Polish-bred filly each – the bay Kalanthe Dream GT (Magic Magnifique – Kalaluni / Emerald J), bred and owned by Gabriela Thiry (GT Arabians), and the chestnut Okana (Pireno – Orla Grań / Etnodrons Psyche), bred by Paweł Redestowicz and owned by Łukasz Kuzawiński. In the end, only Kalanthe Dream, an elegant two-year-old filly, trained by – and this is worthy of praise – her owner, appeared. She almost had a chance to show herself in the championships, but her rivals were outclassed by the Brazilian-bred chestnut Shahbrys HVP, who performed 3 minutes later.

Then came the junior stallion classes. In the first one, won by D Shakhar, we saw Monarchio (Star Farid – Minervina / Kahil Al Shaqab), bred by Wojciech Parczewski and owned by Bogdan Maślanka, and SQ Helal (FA El Rasheem – SQ Miss Enzo / E.S. Harir) from Al Saqran Arabian Horse Stud. The first one was presented by Bogdan Maślanka, and the second one was run into the ring by Glenn Schoukens. Although the two bay colts were separated by only 0.79 points, it was the Kuwaiti one that advanced to the championships.

Titanomachy

In the classes of older mares and stallions we saw as many as six bred in Poland, although Emarella (Sahm El Arab – Emandorella / Eden C), bred by Michałów Stud Farm and owned by Aljassimya Farm, was also entered in the catalogues.

The first of the two classes of older mares, with the highest score of the entire show – 93.64, was won by AJ Kayya and it was known from the beginning that it would be almost impossible to threaten her position. She came out second, immediately after the bay mare Babetta (Emerald J – Belinda / Kahil Al Shaqab). Bred in Janów Podlaski and owned by Flaxman Arabians, the bay four-year-old is the apple of the eye of her presenter and trainer, Koen Hennekens, who fell in love with her at first sight in the Janów stables before last year’s Pride of Poland auction. Since last year’s European Championship, he has been entirely responsible for her, and his work with her has already brought the pair a bronze medal at this year’s EuroZone Cup. In Valkenswaard, they took a strong 4th place, receiving, among other things, several twenties for movement and a total score of 91.71. Wieża Orientu (Ganges – Wieża Mocy / QR Marc), also bay and also owned by Flaxman Arabians, but bred in Michałów, did slightly worse. Despite almost 91 points, she did not enter the championship.

In the second class, in which Basandra Settimocielo triumphed with exactly 93 points, we saw two more bay mares from Poland, this time bred at Janów Podlaski Stud: Adyga (Kahil Al Shaqab – Amiga / Piaff) owned by C&S Arabians and Alsa (Kahil Al Shaqab – Alameda / Wachlarz) owned by Hanaya Stud. They performed one after another in front of the crowd gathered at the Tops Arena, led by Nicolas Frere and Frank Spönle. Both were breathtaking, but it was Alsa who showed better movement and a certain charisma that won over the judges and earned her a place in the championships.

The senior stallion classes were a theatre of several actors, the most outstanding of whom was the unbeaten this season, last year’s World Championship Gold Medalist E.S. Harir, who scored the highest among stallions: 93.5 points! He showed up last with the highest catalogue number 121 and it became clear that this time he came for nothing else but gold. Pinito (EKS Alihandro – Piniata / Eden C), bred by Janów Podlaski and owned by Flaxman Arabians, qualified for the championship in the first adult stallion class. Shown by Peter Wilms, he showed better movement than Saif Albidayer and Rhan Al Shahania, although both of them took higher places in the class than him, receiving higher points for type and head and neck. Calateon (Vitorio TO – Calatea / Ekstern), bred by Marek Kondrasiuk and owned by C&S Arabians, showed up in the second class. He had an excellent start, which the judges appreciated greatly, highly evaluating his movement. Unfortunately, as the owners admitted, he did not want to cooperate with Nicolas during the “stand-up” presentation, clearly preoccupied with something else.

Championships in orange

It cannot be said that any of the participants in the Yearling Fillies Championships were a surprise. Gold was won by Sultana Al Thamer (Dominic M – Weaam Al Jassim / Emerald J), bred and owned by Al Thamer Stud. She stumbled on five stages only in Cannes and left the championship without a medal. She won bronze in Abu Dhabi, silver in Doha and Muscat, and this time she finally won gold. Silver in the Yearling Fillies was won by D Nafayes (D Seraj – D Danat / SG Labib) from Dubai Arabian Horse Stud. This is her second silver after Cannes, and she had won gold three times before. Bronze, in turn, went to Teha Al Shaqab (Marwan Al Shaqab – Marbella PCF / Exxalt) from Al Shaqab, who repeated her achievement from Doha.

The Yearling Stallion Championships were a bit less obvious. The fourth gold in a row went to Afreen Al Shaqab (D Mezyan – Siwar Al Shaqab / SMA Magic One), who was not present only in Abu Dhabi. D Borkan (FA El Rasheem – D Ajayeb / RFI Farid) claimed his fourth silver, winning – exactly – gold in Abu Dhabi. The surprise was the bronze, which was not repeated by his winner from Cannes and Muscat, Aesar Alwajba. Instead, it went to Azzaam Al Amal (El Galal Baahir – Arabesca Scarlet Moon / Sidi Scorpio), bred by Al Amal Arabians and owned by Azzam Al Amal Partnership. This is his first medal in this GCAT series, and it certainly won’t be his last.

The Junior Mare Championship was fought out between the GCAT veterans. The second gold medal, with three silver medals, was won by D Najlah (D Seraj – Elle Flamenca / Ajman Moniscione) representing Dubai Arabian Horse Stud. The first silver medal, with three bronze and one gold, was won by Shahbrys HVP (Royal Asad – Rebecca HVP / Magnum Chall HVP) from the Brazilian Agropecuaria Vila Dos Pinheiros and the Saudi-owned Ajmal Stud. And the second bronze and silver in Abu Dhabi after Muscat was won by TM Bella (TM Itaipu – TM Fahdillah / Shanghai E.A.) representing the Qatari Aljumail Stud.

In the Junior Stallion Championship, we witnessed a comeback in great style. Its winner from Abu Dhabi, later the great absentee, RD Rajan (Polidoro FC – RD Quianna / Shanghai E.A.) owned by Hanaya Stud, returned for the gold. He made a huge impression on everyone in the class, deservedly winning 93 points and twenty points for type, head and neck and movement.

The winner of the silver medal, D Shakhar (D Shakhat – D Shamkah / FA El Rasheem) from Dubai Arabian Horse Stud, was no surprise. After five stages, this GCAT veteran has five medals – bronze, silver, silver, bronze and silver. Will it be another silver in Rome, or will he break through and reach for the gold? The bronze champion was a surprise, albeit a small one. This title went to the three-year-old Fajer AA (Shanghai E.A. – Fadwa AA / Fadi Al Shaqab) bred by Ariela Arabians, who returned home with silver at the Sopot Arabian Horse Show a year ago.

The hottest emotions were connected with the championships of the senior mares and stallions, but in both of them, the judges were one vote short of unanimous decision on who to award the gold! Will AJ Kayya (AJ Kafu – AJA Caprice / EKS Alihandro) from Ajman Stud receive the gold medal in the Senior Mares Championship for the fifth time in five stages of the GCAT? Yes! The undisputed queen of the GCAT 2024 also left Valkenswaard with the highest title. The silver medalist was Basandra Settimocielo (Ajman Moniscione – MA Scarlet / Hadidi), bred by Allevamento Settimocielo, owned by Maria Ferraroni and owned by Ajman Stud. Earlier in Cannes and Abu Dhabi, she reached for bronze. Aijana OS (Ajman Moniscione – Mikaella Pin / FT Wuotan), bred by Gestüt Osterhof and owned by Al Shaqab Stud, caused a surprise. It was her first appearance at the GCAT and it was a huge success – she received almost all twenty points for type from the judges!

The Senior Stallion Championship was held at the end as usual. There is no denying that E.S. Harir (AJ Dinar – TF Magnums Magic / Magnum Psyche) owned by Al Saqran Arabian Horse Stud is in the form of his life, although he is clearly tired from the shows and probably the intercontinental travels. Despite this, wherever he goes, he attracts the attention of the entire crowd. Gold medals in Doha, Muscat, Cannes and now Valkenswaard only confirm this. He is fighting for the first place in the ranking and has a great chance of getting it. The silver and bronze medals were shared between Pinito’s classmates: Saif Albidayer (Excalibur E.A. – Nesj El Markhisa / Marwan Al Shaqab) from Albidayer Stud and Rhan Al Shahania (Marwan Al Shaqab – Jwaaher Al Shahania / FA El Rasheem), bred by Al Shahania Stud and owned by Sheikh Reem Al-Thani. The former has only just begun his GCAT adventure, while the latter has repeated his result from Doha, and won silver in Muscat.

What do the rankings say about all this?

In fact, the only major changes in the rankings were in the handlers’ rankings. Tom Oben, whose horses were shown by his colleagues, was absent from Valkenswaard. As a result, he dropped to 7th place from 5th, which was taken by Tom Schoukens.

Sultana Al Thamer is climbing in the mare rankings, now in fifth. Emarella and Basmah Al Bidayer have dropped out of the top ten, while Almaha RC and Alexandra RC – both from the Royal Cavalry of Oman – have entered. Wildona has also dropped by a point and is currently in 18th place in the 20-horse field.

E.S. Harir is closing the gap with the first two in the male rankings, D Shakhar and D Borkan, with each show. Bandar Aljassimya has dropped from 5th to 8th place, which was taken by Aesar Alwajba. Mushwash Al Shaqab and AJ Kafu moved up a notch, while Equiborn K.A. jumped from 13th to 10th place. However, once again there was no earthquake.

Een nieuwe standaard van shows

It would be safe to say that the Dutch outdid themselves in preparing together with the organizers of the Global Champions Arabians Tour for the show in Valkenswaard. Live music from the stage, a souvenir shop inspired by the Netherlands with an Arabic twist, Dutch chocolate and special shows at the opening and closing – all of this made a colossal impression.

Suffice it to say that E.S. Harir ran into the ring when the air was orange like a monochromatic Holi celebration and confetti was falling from the sky. The embroidered, ornate horse blankets were works of art in themselves – emphasizing the Dutch attachment to tulip cultivation, pride in their national colors (white, red, blue and orange) and also white and blue Delft faience. Both Kayya and Harir in their champion horse blankets looked like heirs to the throne just before their coronation. There would have been a sceptre, and an apple – without a doubt!

Joie de vivre, Oranje!, bella vita

Before the Global Champions Arabians Tour returns to the Arabian Peninsula this autumn, we have one more European leg to look forward to – in a city to which all roads supposedly lead. On the sandy coast of the Mediterranean Sea in Cannes, the Qataris, together with the French, organised an intimate, artistic edition of GCAT. In cooperation with the Dutch, in turn, in green Brabant, they went for elegance and pomp, albeit with a wink, and such a fiesta would not be ashamed of during the annual King’s Day. In September, we will travel back two millennia, to the times of Ancient Rome.

The last European show of this year’s series will take place in a place that Robert Makłowicz would probably call “exceptional”: Circus Maximus! The history of this circus, in the original meaning of the word, dates back to the times of Tarquinius the Elder, the king of Rome from the turn of the 7th and 6th centuries BC. It was here that Pompey staged a fight between barbarians and twenty African elephants, and Julius Caesar organized lion hunts. Pliny the Elder claimed that the audience could accommodate up to a quarter of a million people at a time. However, this place became famous primarily for chariot races, an ancient version of traditional carriage driving, over a distance of 8 km.

The last games with chariots in the main role were held in the Circo Massimo, as the Italians call it, in 549 AD, during the time of the Ostrogothic king Totila. Later, the circus fell into oblivion and slowly disappeared from memory and the face of the earth. In recent years, various mass events, concerts and festivals have taken place in this ancient arena. In September, after 1475 years, horses will once again visit the Circus Maximus. What and how will the hosts in Italy surprise us? Will they manage to beat the Netherlands? We’re going to see what the future holds. We’ll see what the future brings.