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UAE horse racing season kicks off on Friday

Dubai - The right-handed horseshoe-shaped Jebel Ali Racecourse will host 11 meetings

The sound of thundering hoofs and kick backs of dirt.
It is that time of the year again when the UAE indulges in the sport that it loves so much - horse racing. And, another new season gets underway on Friday with a lot of promise of some exciting contests to come over the next five months.
First up, the action begins at the uniquely shaped right-handed horseshoe-shaped Jebel Ali Racecourse, which will host 11 of the 62 race meetings to be held across five venues.
Friday afternoon has six races on the card with the feature event being the Shadwell Farm Handicap, to be run over 1000 metres, the third race on the card.
And it is a strong field with 13 set to take the starting gates with UAE Champion Owner Shaikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum having four runners in the field - Rafeej, Mubtaghaa, Greeb and Mushir.
Rafeej is trained by Musabbeh Al Mheiri, who also has Mubtaghaa and Mushir. The seven-year-old Rafeej, a 1200m course winner last March, will be ridden by stable jockey Fernando Jara.
Trinity Force is a strong contender and the five-year-old Chestnut Gelding will be the mount of Tadhg O'Shea, who will be contesting in all six races in the afternoon.
And it is set to be a hectic weekend for the UAE Champion Jockey, with him also electing to ride in six races at Sharjah on Saturday.
The charge of Ali Rashid Al Rayhi, Trinity Force's last run was at Meydan in March this year, where he finished eighth, under jockey W Smith. And Trinity Force's previous win in 10 starts was in July last year, in a race run over 1200 metres.
O'Shea was confident of Trinity Force's chances and reckoned that the five-year-old could add to his two wins.
"He is a nice horse who has been working well. He will improve for the run but it is an ideal race to get him going and to try the Jebel Ali surface. He might prefer a bit further in time but he goes there in good heart," O'Shea told the Emirates Racing Authority (ERA) website. Veteran horse trainer Dhruba Selvaratnam has Sholaan and Gobooll, both owned by Shaikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
"My horses will improve for a run this season, I think. They are both ready for an outing but may just need it to put them spot on," Selvaratnam said.
Meanwhile, Satish Seemar's runners are the 2011 Jebel Ali Sprint winner Spin Cycle and Midlander.
The afternoon begins at 2.15 p.m with the Commercial Bank of Dubai Handicap.
james@khaleejtimes.com