25TH CISM WORLD MILITARY EQUESTRIAN CHAMPIONSHIP
Military showjumping riders representing Egypt, Bahrain Brazil, Ecuador, Estonia France, Hungary, Italy, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey and the UAE will be competing against each on courses designed by international Course Designer, Michel Ismalun.
REVIVING HISTORY:
Egypt has been participating at the equestrian events at the Olympic Games with individual ridders at the showjumping discipline. And in 2020 after a 60-year wait, the country was finally represented with a Team during in the Tokyo Olympics. Furthermore, besides the country’s rich history in Arabian horses, Polo, Endurance, Tent Pegging and Dressage are highly practiced and popular sports.
For years now and under the direct involvement of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, equestrian clubs and facilities have been up to professional revitalisation. Some of the projects that are currently on the scene include:
EGYPT OLYMPIC SPORT CITY
The multi-purpose venue with a capacity of 93,440 seats is set to become Egypt's new national stadium, replacing Cairo International Stadium in this role. It will be the second largest facility in Africa, second only to the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa. The arena is being built in the New Administrative Capital, a gigantic urban project under construction since 2015, aimed at creating a new metropolis from scratch, 45 km east of the country's capital, Cairo.
The stadium is being built as the centerpiece of a sports complex that will also include two large sports halls, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a hippodrome, a tennis complex, squash facilities, training pitches, as well as administrative, cultural and hotel buildings. It will be the largest complex of its kind in Africa and the Middle East. Its creation should enable Egypt to compete for the organisation of major sporting events such as the Olympic Games and the football World Cup. The equestrian venue has a total built-up area of 19,927 square meter, including 2 racing tracks.
The stadium will be equipped with an athletics track, which will be surrounded by three-level oval stands. The reinforced concrete structure of the stands will be surrounded by a steel tendon structure with distinctive high masts, responsible for maintaining the membrane roofing that will cover the entire auditorium. On the outside, the stadium will be crowned by a multi-shade blue and turquoise facade. The stadium was designed by SHESA Architectural Design. The main contractor for the arena is the Egyptian construction tycoon, Orascom Construction PLC.
MARABET CITY:
The project is valued at approximately 1.5 billion Egyptian pounds and spans 85 acres within the larger sports city development, which covers a total of 1,171 acres. Designed with a stable system that can house 1,100 horses, the Marabet also features the first fully equipped specialized technical school for horse breeding.
Adjacent hotel facilities will accommodate participants in local and international equestrian competitions. The city includes dedicated spaces for showjumping, dressage, tent pegging, racing tracks, and horse training, as well as a stone area for horses intended for export. Included also is a state-of-the-art veterinary facility, equipped with the latest global medical technology, will treat equine diseases. There will also be a designated area for the handling of certified veterinary medicines for treating horse-related illnesses.
For horse breeders, luxurious resorts will be available, and all areas of Marabet will be interconnected through an innovative aerial transport system. Additionally, the city will feature an international laboratory for managing and preserving horse breeds, alongside a prestigious academy for equestrian training and horse industry education.
THE ARABIAN HORSE OF EGYPT
The Arabian horse is one of the most prized and ancient horse breeds in the world, hailing from the Arabian Peninsula and famed for its distinctive head shape and high tail carriage, as well as its elegance and endurance.
In 1928, the Royal Agricultural Society, the predecessor of the Egyptian Agricultural Organization (EAO), sought to establish a permanent breeding farm for their pure Arabian breeding stock in Egypt. They found an ideal location far out in the desert of Ain Shams, today a bustling densely-populated neighbourhood. The stud itself was created from the descendants of Abbas Pasha’s breeding stock owned by Khedive Abbas Pasha Hilmi II, Prince Mohammed Ali Tawfik, Lady Anne Blunt and her daughter Lady Wentworth, the best of the best of the pure Egyptian Arabian horse, the foundation of the ‘Straight Egyptian’.
This unique line was almost lost twice. The first Arabians of this line arrived from the Arabian Peninsula in the early thirteenth century, imported by the Mamluk Sultan El Nassir Ibn Qalawun and Sultan Barquq. Then, in the early 1800’s, Mohammed Ali Pasha, the founder of modern Egypt, increased the fold with the purest Arabian lines from Arabia, which over time devolved to his grand-son Abbas Hilmi Pasha I. Upon his death his heir unfortunately had little interest in the breed stock and sold or gave away much of it, so lovingly and carefully bred and kept. Fortunately, Ali Pasha Sherif bought as much as he could, owning at one point 400 of this line. However, upon his death in 1897, his horses were sold at public auction. In 1908 the horse breeding section was assigned to re-start the pure Arabian line and turned to the lines which had been sold after Ali Pasha Sherif’s death. It is from these horses that the stud and the Straight Egyptian now descend.
The EAO today regulates over 490 straight Egyptian horses including 5 rare strains worldwide as well as over 8,000 purebred horses. El Zahraa Stud renewed and re-invigorated breeding programme aims to keep the best of the Straight Egyptians right here in Egypt to produce a new generation of the preserved breed.
KAYAN EQUESTRIAN CLUB
Nestled in the picturesque New Capital, Kayan Equestrian Club stands as a beacon for international equestrian sport, horse lovers and aspiring riders alike, constructed by blending traditional equestrian practices with contemporary values and advancements. The 24th World Military Equestrian Championships took place at the club and proved to be a success, with a follow up also taking place this year.
The club covers an area of 134 acres and consists of the following:
- 10 horse stables with 250 horse boxes. Each stable has an area of 1,060 square meters.
- Showjumping arenas with areas of 3,050 square meters.
- An equestrian administration building with an area of 1,050 square meters.
- Grazing grounds with areas of 475 square meters.
- A veterinary clinic with areas of 1,400 square meters.
- Cafeteria building and leisure areas of 1,280 square meters.
- A warehouse building with an area of 1,750 square meters.
- Staff accommodation building with an area of 550 square meters.
SPORTS TOURISM IN EGYPT
Sport tourism is one of the fastest-growing segments within the tourism industry, gaining increasing attention for its social, cultural, environmental, and economic impacts on host destinations.
Sports tourism in Egypt has become one of the most important types of tourism that contributes effectively to the revitalization of the tourism movement, whether internal or external, as interest in sports tourism has increased recently, through the activities of the Ministry of Youth and Sports and various sports federations, at regional and international levels.
Some distinguished tournaments and competitions include the Egyptian International Tennis Championship in Cairo, El Zahraa Arabian Horse Championships, the Safaga International Sailing Championship, the International Marathon in Luxor, the International Fishing Competition in Hurghada, the International Bridge Championship in Cairo to name just a few.
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