In a country where a man might be judged by his horsemanship, it's no wonder that some of the best riders in the world come from Saudi Arabia. Khaled Al 'Eid rode for his country in the 2000 Olympic games, and proved himself to be a champion

 

Khaled Al 'Eid, Saudi Olympic medalist, has been riding since he was 10 years old. When European-style sport jumping came to Saudi Arabia in the early 1400'sH (1980's), his father, a breeder of Arabian horses in Riyadh, realized that the light, clever Arabian horses lacked the raw power of international show-jumpers. So he began importing thoroughbreds from Holland and Belgium, for national jumping competitions.

 

In 1410H (1990), Al 'Eid and his brother Fayad made up half of the country's first regulation-size, four-man international jumping competition team. Their first Olympic competition came in Atlanta in 1416H (1996), where Khaled, riding a bay Belgian named Eastern Knight, placed 30th.

 

In November 1419H (1999), as the Saudi team began to prepare for the Sydney Olympic Games, Al 'Eid renamed the horse Khashm al-'Aan in a discreet bow to Crown Prince 'Abd Allah ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, a supporter of the team.

 

In the 1420H (2000) Olympic, Al 'Eid, riding Khashm al-'Aan, was one of only four who completed his first final round perfectly, and then one of three to complete the second final round with only four faults. His time, the third-fastest, earned him the bronze medal, to the enormous pleasure and pride of his country.

 

You can learn to ride at the following places:

 

Nadee Alaghar Riding Academy

(Near Diplomatic Quarter)

Ladies on Sat/Mon/Wed

Men on Sun/Tues/Thurs

Contact: Stephen Lynch, Tel: 488 0954

 

Also ladies only is available at

International Equestrian Stables

Tel: 477 4941, Sat - Wed after 17.00hrs

Thurs 9.00 - 11.00hrs and 17.00 - 22.00hrs

 

Dirab Golf and Recreation Center

Contact: Bouchaib Al Jadiani

Tel: +966-(0)1-4593686

Fax: +966-(0)1-4583017

 

Source: Saudi Tourism