Severo shines for host nation in Sao Paulo

Brazil’s Jose Severo on Egyto LA won the Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Apprentice World Championship race in Sao Paulo last Saturday to book a place in the series final in Abu Dhabi in November.

The HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival staged two races at the Hippodrome of Cidade Jardim in Sao Paulo last Saturday and Severo steered Egyto LA to a smart win in the third race in 2019’s Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Apprentice World Championship series.

Lorenzo of Puerto Rico on Gunther Rach finished second while Peru’s Apprentice jockey Stephanie Hernandez on Catarina LA took third place.

In the Wathba Stallions Cup, another event supported by the HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival, Gaea Rach, under jockey J Sousa, scored an impressive three-length win, whereas Velozter under E. Pereira finished second. It was a happy day for owner Andre Lahoz Mendonca as the first two horses belong to him. Oneida Rach under V.Sousa ran in to third place.

The Brazilian jockey Severo, who brought cheers to the home crowd, said: “Since the start I had been following closely the other horses and in the final 100 meters Egyto LA ran better than the others and I managed to win.”

Stephanie Hernandez of Peru said: “Just being able to participate in the race was important because I have two more races to complete 51 and become a professional Lady jockey.”

This was the first international race in which Apprentice jockeys from Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Puerto Rico attended and all participants thanked the HH Sheikh Mansoor Festival for the opportunity.

Ibrahim Salem Alalawi, Consul General of the UAE in São Paulo; Benjamin Steinbruch, President of the Jockey Club of São Paulo; Luciano Cury, President of the Brazilian Arabian Horse Breeders Association (ABCCA) and Almir José Ribeiro, Racing Director of ABCCA, attended the prize distribution ceremony.

Alalawi said: “I would like to thank Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs and Her Highness Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union, Supreme President of the Family Development Foundation (FDF) and Head of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood for their unlimited support for sport in general and equestrian events in particular all over the globe.”

“The event was very well received by the public of São Paulo. The support offered by the Festival will have a significant impact on the status of Arabian horses around the world,” Alalawi said.

The UAE ennvoy added: Finally, I would like to thank Ms Lara Sawaya, Executive Director of the HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival, Chairperson of the International Federation of Horse Racing Academies (IFHRA), Chairperson of Ladies & Apprentice Racing Committees in the International Federation of Arabian Horse Racing Authorities (IFAHR), for her support for this sport.”