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| Staff Writer |
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With the passing of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Shadwell's international racing and breeding operation has passed to the careful hands of his daughter, Sheikha Hissa.
In an exclusive interview with Ten Furlongs, Sheikha Hissa bint Hamdan Al Maktoum talks about how passion for racing stems from her father’s love for horses and her favourite racing moments with him, her desire to see the UAE develop a well-rounded, multi-faceted, and sustainable industry spear-headed by initiatives such as the further development of the Dubai World Cup and Dubai World Cup Carnival initiatives as well as thoroughbred sales, her vision for Shadwell much more.
Q: What is your earliest racing memory as a girl growing up and with your family?
A: The earliest memory I could think of is of my late father watching the TV and the racing channel was on. Our homes were always filled with photos of many of his previous racehorses, and with time I would remember who was. There are many photos of Salsabil, Nashwan, Al Bahathri, Erhaab, with some of them having my father in it. Most of them were not when they were racing, but when they were back in the yard or in their paddocks. So framed photos of our horses have always been sentimental to me.
Q: Given the passion for racing that you and your father - HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum shared, which racehorse and raceday would you say is beloved both by your father and yourself? And why?
A: I'm very fortunate to admit there are many that its very hard to pick out: Sakhee's Arc win was a classic and early memory of mine since I was old enough to understand why this horse was so important. I was only 5 and when I'd joke around and claim that he was my horse, my father would play along, so that for me was the start of it. I was too small to remember Al Mutawakel winning the Dubai World Cup, but until today many families and friends who are not into racing remember him and his win since my father had a habit of gifting everyone with watches and small gifts with the horses' names engraved in it, he did that for everyone when Nashwan won the Derby.
Having Gr.1 wins overseas is great but having won in your own country is indescribable, it feels like the win is for everyone. I cannot describe how happy I and my whole family were when lnvasor won the Dubai World Cup and my sisters and I stayed up late to watch it and when he had won, we waited for my father to celebrate with him once he came back home. I will never forget that day, and how when the next day we had school everyone was congratulating us, which is a very fond memory of mine.
Another fond memory for myself and I think my father was when Shaaqaaf, the Sepoy filly, gave me my first ever win as an owner. My father would always call me on my phone before they reached the finish line, so he would be the first person to congratulate me always. It didn't matter how important the race was, my father loved sharing the excitement.
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Q: Today you are one of the world's leading owners and breeders. What advice would you give to women trying to follow in your footsteps, and taking on a more professional owner-breeder role?
A: Only a few months ago I allowed everyone on the team to call me a breeder after we went through all the broodmares and breeding plans since this was the first time, I've gone through it. So, I don't call myself one of the world's leading owners and breeders because what I'm working on now is everything my late father and all the Shadwell operations have been working on for decades, a little over 30 years. A colt we've enjoyed watching all throughout last year, Baaeed, is an example of all the breeding efforts Shadwell and especially my father has been working on, and I can’ take credit for that. I'm privileged to have an amazing team, jockeys, and trainers with so much experience and talent, let alone the group of horses I'm so excited to see again ·this year.
We've recently had an Emirati owner and she has won a Group 3; I've heard about a Saudi trainer and she has been to Meydan a couple of times. I enjoy conversations with one of my friends who dream of opening her own yard and would like to get involved in the breeding aspect of flat racehorses.
My cousin, Latifa Al Maktoum has represented the UAE in the Olympics and always has been helpful when I needed some advice with my riding and in any other way she could help. I wish them all more success and Inshallah on an international level I hope to see many more women involved with the horses and hope I could help.
Q: Being a horsewoman is not easy, especially with family, social, business and political pressures on your time, but your passion seems to have simply grown over decades. How do you 'lean in' to every facet of the intricate role of being one of the world's greatest legacy breeder-owners of this time?
A: Firstly, you have to have some level of enjoyment in the sport and in horses in general. I've been around horses all my life and tried different horse-riding styles and activities, and I believe it's very important to widen your knowledge of everything to do with horsemanship, you never know which fact or knowledge from a different sport involving horses would aid you in solving a problem and Inshallah maintaining the racing legacy of Shadwell.
Q: Which horseman/ horsewoman inspires you and why?
A: Firstly, my late father, Sheikh Hamdan. I have yet to meet a person who knows by heart the pedigrees of individual horses and recalls the history of their dams and grand dams and the pros and cons of each stallion without referring back to notes or books to confirm what he just said. I have made my peace with the fact that I cannot compare myself to him, and with his precise outlook and vivid knowledge of what he is talking about, I try my best to depict was he has taught me.
Other horsemen I look up to would be, of course, my uncle Sheikh Mohammed, many show-jumpers like Beezie Madden, Henrik von Eckermann, Ludger Beerbaum and Nick Skelton. I aspire to be as talented as them, since riding has always been my favourite activity until this day during my free time.
Q: What is your ambition for the region? How do you see the region developing into one of the world's greatest racing centers?
A: I believe the foundation is already there: The Dubai World Cup since its inception has become an annual event where people wait for it and look forward to it, and I enjoy the fact that it doesn't matter whether you are involved in the sport or not, everyone is there. Even including the carnival from January to March is a great idea to remind everyone that the main event of the year is near. In that aspect, we achieved our main goal. Now I hope to see us improve in terms of the sales, where I hope to see more people travel to Dubai to buy horses.
I also hope to see even more involvement of women in this industry, whether they are owners, breeders, jockeys, commentators or owners. I see us moving that way already and I'm looking forward to it.
Q: And finally, what is your vision for Shadwell, especially over the next ten years and what is the most important thing you would like to see happen at Shadwell?
A: At the moment my plan for it is to maintain the legacy in terms of owning and breeding, by being
self-sufficient: the only way I believe we will be able to maintain that is by us accepting that we need to be more flexible and accepting with the idea of change and make use of it.
At the moment we have made it no secret with the number of horses we sold last year so we can start with a clean slate. Selling the horses last year has opened my eyes to how things work in the industry. We're trying to work with other breeders and future clientele to understand what the commercial market wants and provide them with what they acquire. As long as Shadwell is constantly reviewing and improving our business, I have no doubt of our future and Inshallah we will be improving and if not we'll learn from it.