By Abdellatif Sharaa

KUWAIT: Kuwait Riding Center and national team rider Ali Jassem Al-Kharafi gave an outstanding performance and won the Kuwait International Show Jumping Festival after going through a differentiation round at 145 cm height with Masayel club rider Abdullah Al-Awadhi, as both went through the first round without faults.

Kharafi started the differentiation round first and completed it in 49.37 seconds and 4 penalty points. Awadhi on the other hand ended the round in 57.62 seconds and 6 penalty points, which enabled Kharafi to become champion of the first international tournament in the current season. Deputy director general for sports for all sectors at the Public Authority for Sport Hamed Al-Hazem handed the winners their trophies, along with Administrative Director of Kuwait Equestrian Federation Safyan Bugammaz.

Ghanim Al-Marzouq won first place at a height of 135 cm, while Abdullah Al-Hamad won first place at 125 cm. Hazem said the tournament was highly competitive, and he was happy with the level of Kuwait riders in such an important international tournament in which riders from Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Britain and host country Kuwait participated.

Bugammaz said Kuwait succeeded in organizing the "two-star" event, adding an international tournament will be held on Feb 2 in the 3-star category. The tournament witnessed the participation of more than 100 riders and around 150 horses, with KD 21,000 allocated as prize money.