Camel Racing

Can you tell me about yourself?

Hey my name is Khalid Al Merri, I'm 43 years old, I live in Abu Dhabi and I was born here. I started camel racing when I was 13 years old when it was allowed for kids to ride the camels. I won over 17 races and my father was one of the famous camel racers.

 

What is the history of Camel racing?

In the old days children were used to work as camel jockeys, because they are lighter so camels can go faster and easier,  but in 2002 the UAE law banned using the children as a jockeys because of the high number of injured children at races.

 

Who banned the use of child jockeys?

The United Arab Emirates was the first country that banned using children under 15 years old as jockeys in camel racing.

Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan banned in 2002, in 2009 he paid compensation to 879 former jockeys. The UAE issues penalties and other punishments like jail and banning from racing for those who use the kids as jockeys. However, all other countries reported violations of this ban.

 

How do robot jockeys work?

The robots jockey is a machine that is commonly used for camel racing instead of human jockeys; that developed since 2004 and they are used on all middle east countries for racing.
 

What is the popular countries with Camel racing?

Camel racing is a popular sport in Mongolia., Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Australia, and Pakistan.

 

Where can you watch Camel Racing?

There are around fifteen tracks spread in the UAE, if you want to have fun watching this sport you can head to Al Wathba Camel Race Track which is about 45km east of Abu Dhabi on Al Ain Road or another is on the Al Maqam track near Al Ain.

How much does it coast to watch the race?

 Entrance to the races is free.

 

What is the distance of the track?

Race distances vary. 4K to 10K is the general range.

 

How many camels in a race?
Some may have only 15 Camels, others as many as 70 or more.

 

At what time does the race begin?
Morning races feature camels owned by the sheikh and the afternoon is open racing. Winning an afternoon race can mean a tremendous amount of prestige.

 

Do the winners in open races get anything?

Most sheikhs buy the camels that win the races, and the seller gets a big payoff from the sheikh.

Camel racing grows internationally and the sport is still growing.