A Fine Day for Adbullah Al-Sharbatly: First Victories for Saudi Arabia

By Jumper News on 2024-09-27

Rabat, Morocco – September 26, 2024 – On Thursday, it was a Saudi who was in top form that dominated the premier day of the CSIO-W 4* in Rabat: Adbullah Alsharbatly (KSA) won the main Grand Prix Qualifier with Atome des Étisses, just hours after winning the first 4* competition of the day in the irons of Böckmann Lord Pezi Junior.

More than a qualifier, above all, this Wilaya Région Rabat Salé Kenitra Prize CSIO 4*-W was a trial for the World Cup Grand Prix in Rabat. Some riders “played the game”, others preferred to save their horses for the weekend’s two big events. Yet, the mix of strategies didn’t soften the battle; it was a difficult and beautiful challenge to the finish: the first three combinations finished within the same second, 32 hundredths of a second away from the first-place finisher and his compatriot Ramzy Al Duhamy (KSA) & Addressee. The two Saudis were flanked by France’s Simon Delestre and Olga Van de Kruishoeve.

Alsharbatly was, of course, delighted with this double, but “More than these victories, the most important thing is to be here in Rabat, to enjoy this incredible competition, and this fine organization. I’m proud to enjoy this beautiful competition in an Arab country, a competition of the highest standard that has nothing to envy of the top European events. I feel good here, just as I feel good with my horses, working with them. Every day, I start at six in the morning. It’s hard sometimes, but without this daily work, these results wouldn’t be possible. Stanny Van Paesschen also plays an important role in these victories. He’s a good person, a friend. He doesn’t try to modify my riding, but, through details, his goal is to get the best out of what I know how to do”.

Atome des Étisses won’t be his Grand Prix horse as: “He’s a horse that belongs to the Saudi federation, and I will ride him in the Nations Cup on Sunday. I will love to because he’s a very fast horse without giving the impression of being fast. In fact, Atome is a super horse, he’s very intelligent, very sensitive, and needs a lot of time to get him on his side. I’ve been riding him for a year and a half now, and the most important thing is to make a friend out of him because he’s a ‘cheval très compliqué’ as we say in France”.