JEDDAH: The Arabian Horse Beauty Championship organized by the King Abdul Aziz Arabian Horses Center (KAAHC) at the 12th edition of Souq Okaz is successfully under way.
Equestrians all over the world admire the beauty of Arabian horses. The contest, which is taking place at the Souq Okaz racing track, will conclude today.
The 148 participating horses are being judged on the basis of five basic criteria: The head and neck, the back, the legs, the horse’s movement and breed. Additional observations include the beauty of a horse’s skeletal build.
A horse should also have a strong, straight back, a curved, long neck, a relatively straight muzzle, small and erect ears that are close to each other, wide black eyes, a broad convex forehead that narrows and concaves when it reaches the horse’s nose, and wide nostrils. 
All horses belong to Saudi owners.
Turki Al-Khalty, director of public relations and head of horse beauty contests at KAAHC, said: “This contest aims to encourage competition in this Arab sport.”
The contest is for C-category horses, which are considered beginners, and is overseen and rated by the European Conference of Arab Horse Organizations, he said.
Al-Khalty said arbitration is being carried out by a panel of judges from different European countries.
The results in five categories are as follows:
In the one-year-old foal category A, first place went to Julia Al-Hawajer, owned by Ali Bin Hadi Al-Yami (Al-Hadad Stables). Abha Al-Khalidiyah, owned by Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz (Al-Khalidiyah Stables) clinched the second position and Kunuz Al-Karim, owned by Bandar bin Karim Al-Atawi (Al-Atawi Stables) came third.
In the one-year-old foal category B, Moubdihat Al-Khalidiyah and Hulwat Al-Khalidiyah owned by Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz (Al-Khalidiyah Stables) secured the first and third positions respectively. Paris owned by Salman Al-Otaibi (Al-Shamekh Stables) came second in this category.
In the one-year-old colt category A, first place went to Rahib Al-Khalidiyah owned by Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz (Al-Khalidiyah Stables); Barakat Al-Khalidiyah owned by Mohammed Al-Maliki (Al-Majd Stables) came second, and third place went to MLH Tornado owned by Al-Hussein bin Qassem Al-Rakidi (Al-Tayar Stables).
D Jalaa owned by Ali bin Hadi Al-Yami (Al-Hadad Stables) was declared first in the one-year-old colt category B. D Rawaj owned by Rashid bin Mohammed Al-Merri (Baqiq Stables) and Raslan Al-Khalidiyah owned by Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz (Al-Khalidiyah Stables) secured the second and third positions respectively.
Raghad Anne owned by Nabil Al-Subhi (Nasayem Stables) was ranked first in the two-year-old foal category A with Souja owned by Mohammed Al-Saadi Al-Harbi (Al-Haramain Foundation Stables), and Moukhlizat Al-Khalidiyah owned by Badah Ayed Al-Dousari (Al-Faras Stables) securing the second and third positions respectively.
In the two-year-old foal category B, Kahila Faisal Al-Khalidiyah, owned by Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz (Al-Khalidiyah Stables) won, followed by stablemate Risalat Al-Khalidiyah, then Yamama Aya owned by Suleiman bin Hamad bin Salim (Al-Suleimaniyah Stables).
In the three-year-old foal category, Khamila Al-Khalidiyah owned by Rakan bin Mohammed Al-Humaid (Al-Rif Stables) came first followed by D Rawafed, owned by Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Ghaith (Al-Tawseel Stables), and Edinaj owned by Ali Hussein Al-Otaibi.
In the two-year-old colt category, Wajih Al-Khalidiyah, owned by Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz (Al-Khalidiyah Stables) clinched the first position followed by Shelyosen Arlington owned by Hadi Abdullah Al-Yami and Bariz Al-Khalidiyah, owned by Suleiman bin Hamad bin Salim (Al-Suleimaniyah Stables) in the second and third positions.
Sleysla Center showcases new products
Sleysla Center, a subsidiary of AlFaisalya Women’s Welfare Society, introduced 10 of its modern heritage products at the Souq Okaz.
The center also introduced manufactured products such as sadu (a traditional form of weaving) and pottery.
Amani Al-Wazir, the supervisor of Sleysla Center for the development of Saudi heritage, said that new outlets would develop business relationships with agents, forming strategic partnerships with people interested in crafts and heritage.
Al-Wazir said that the center’s focus is on low-income families, the hearing-impaired and physically disabled.
The center offers training courses to girls, which contributes to improving the families’ economic conditions.
