Construction and development on and around the Sharjah Equestrian and Race Club has caused the facility to be dropped from the upcoming horse racing schedule in the UAE, with the Dubai Racing Club looking to pick up the missing dates.Courtesy Al Ittihad newspaper

Patrick Cosgrave, left, was the top jockey at Sharah Equestrian and Racing Club last season. Construction in and around the facility has forced it to be removed this season's racing schedule.Mike Young / The National

Sharjah is absent from next season's horse racing schedule

Geoffrey Riddle

Sharjah Equestrian and Racing Club will not host any races during the 2012/13 season because of development and construction work around the track.

"They have decided not to be involved this year as they are developing the track and surrounding roads, and have some other construction to carry out," said Frank Gabriel, the chief executive of the Dubai Racing Club.

"We have lost their fixtures for this year, and some horses will have fewer opportunities, but we hope to absorb them into the programme."

Sharjah hosted 33 races over five meetings last season which were divided between thoroughbred and Arabian races, although the first meeting of the year was abandoned in November.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid was the champion owner last season with six winners, and Anthony Manuel and Pat Cosgrave were respectively top trainer and jockey.

The decision was announced with the release of the 2012/13 fixture list by the Dubai Racing Club yesterday. The list was approved by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, the Chairman of the Emirates Racing Authority.

It will not be the first time the Sharjah club has been without fixtures. There were no race meetings held there during the 2008/09 season but they followed with four race meetings the following season.

And in February 2011 the course were forced to abandon a fixture due to a power cut.

The season starts at Jebel Ali, which hosts 11 fixtures during the season, on November 2. Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club stages their first fixture two days later.

All races in Abu Dhabi will be run on Sundays and there will be 15 meetings throughout the season.

The first fixture at Meydan Racecourse will be on November 8 with the Dubai World Cup Carnival set to start on January 10.

It is the 10th year of the Carnival and it will culminate with the 18th running of the Dubai World Cup on March 30. Meydan experimented with four Friday fixtures last season, but this season races in Dubai will be held on Thursdays apart from four fixtures towards the end of the season, which are to be held on Saturdays.

SCHEDULE

Jebel Ali

November 2, 16, 30; December 14, 28; January 11, 25; February 8, 22; March 8, 22.

Abu Dhabi

November 4, 11, 25; December 9, 16, 23; January 6, 20, 27; February 3, 10, 24; March 3, 10, 17.

Meydan

November 8, 22; December 6, 22; January 3, 10, 17, 19, 24, 31; February 2, 7, 14, 16, 21, 28; March 2, 9, 14, 30

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