Dubai: Four years ago Saleha Al Ghurair gave up her prosperous architectural engineering practice to become the first Emirati woman to train endurance and race horses. Now, she is contemplating quitting a sport that she describes as being close to her heart, due to the lack of support she has received.
“My success, or lack of it, is not in question,” she says, despairingly. “I want to feel that, as the only Emirati woman in the sport of horse racing, I am wanted. I am respected, for what I do.
“I’m not waiting for any financial support. I spend my own money on my horses. I only wish there were more incentives for people like me. Incentives to keep my hungry for success.
“It’s nothing personal. This is my country, but there are no opportunities for people at the lower end of the sport,” she adds, at pains to stress her frustration.
“I have about 13 horses, all UAE-bred Arabians, that I train for myself and my family. It costs me over Dh60,000 a month to keep the operation going. It’s not cheap. But I do it because it’s the only thing I love doing. But what do I get in return?”
Al Ghurair says the biggest support she has received has come from His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
“His Highness Shaikh Mohammad gifted me the stable from which I train at Al Marmoom and fuelled the dream of a lifetime,” she says. “It was such a great gesture coming from such an important person as him. I am forever indebted to His Highness as he has been a huge inspiration for me, personally. It made me very proud to be an Emirati, and to be recognised as the first Emirati woman trainer.”
Al Ghurair ended her first season on a high note when she saddled two winners on the same card at Sharjah’s penultimate meeting in 2013. She also came close to having a runner in the Group 1 Dubai Kahayla Classic on Dubai World Cup night with Mh Al Wadi, but the UAE-bred horse could only finish ninth in the lead-up race, the third round of the Al Maktoum Challenge (Group 1).
“I’m a big supporter of UAE-breds,” she says. “They represent the country. I was one of the happiest people at Meydan when AF Mathmoon created history by becoming the first locally-bred horse to win the Kahayla Classic.
“That has always been my dream, to have a runner in the race and, Inshallah, perhaps even win it one day.
“But I am realistic, more than anybody, that you need a very good horse to do that… and a good jockey as well. That’s equally difficult. Because jockeys are not easy to book. Most jockeys only want to ride horses that they think can win. They don’t care about the others,” she said.
“I’ve come to a point where I have to decide next year weather it’s worth it at all. I’ve been doing this all by myself and what do I get in return. Nothing. I’m sure it will hurt, but I may have to quit in the end.”
