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| Sheikh Hamdan celebrates Prince Bishop's win with Jockey William Buick |
Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown
Prince of Dubai, has donated his $6 million (Dh22 million) prize money for
Prince Bishop winning the Dubai World Cup horse race to the Dubai Autism Center.
Sheikh Hamdan joined his father Sheikh Mohammed, Ruler of
Dubai, at Meydan Racecourse on Saturday night to watch Prince Bishop romp home
on the 20th anniversary of the world’s richest horse race.
And he wasted little time in spending his windfall,
taking to Twitter to announce that he was pledging the money to a cause close
to his heart.
Sheikh Hamdan, known affectionately as Faz3, is the chairman
of the Dubai Autism Center. He was optimistic the money will go towards
changing young children’s lives.
He also directed that plans and initiatives be launched so
that the children in the center will reap the enormous psychological, social
and therapeutic benefits as quickly as possible.
The Dubai World Cup,
the richest horse race in the world, is held at the Meydan Grandstand and
Racecourse on the last Saturday in March.
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| Sheikh Mo at the races on Saturday |
The brainchild of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al
Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, the Dubai World
Cup was inaugurated in 1996 as a tribute to his love of horses and horseracing.
The total value of the prize money stands at over $35 million, with the annual
invitation-only Dubai World Cup, worth $10 million.
On Saturday night (March 28), Prince Bishop pulled away from
favorite California Chrome on the home straight and won the $10 million Dubai
World Cup by 2 ¾ lengths.
Starting from the inside post, jockey
William Buick rode Prince Bishop to his first victory on dirt. It was the
fourth attempt for the eight-year-old horse in the world's richest race.
Buick said it would take some time to
gather his thoughts after winning the world's richest horse race.
"I didn't look back, but I
imagine we won well because I could hear the commentator. I feel a bit numb at
the moment, but I'm sure when I get home and relax it will sink in."
Prince Bishop was bred in Ireland, but has been trained by
Saeed bin Suroor in the Emirates.
