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Man Beats Horse In UAE Race
DUBAI, Feb. 7 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - A long-distance runner has beaten a leading endurance Arabian racehorse over a distance of 80 kilometers in the United Arab Emirates.
Forty-two-year-old Tom Johnson from the United States won by about 10 seconds despite his four-legged Arabian opponent, Al-Barraq, galloping the final 16 km of the course flat out, BBC’s online news service reported.
The runner and jockey had always said it was going to be a close-run thing, but neither had predicted there would be only a few seconds between them after a race of five hours, 45 minutes.
The plan was for the horse to take two 40-minute breaks for food and water - as specified by rules ensuring the fair treatment of animals in endurance competitions - giving Johnson an effective head start of 80 minutes. Unlike the horse, he could eat and drink while on the run.
In the event, even though the second of the horse's breaks was cut in half, Al-Barraq and his jockey, Jennifer Nice, failed to catch the runner.
Johnson takes part in long distance runs of 80, 100 and 160 km around the world. He has competed against fellow human runners in South Africa, China, Japan and Switzerland and he holds the North American record for running 100 km. It took him six and a half hours.
Al-Barraq came in among the first 20 in endurance racing's World Cup in 2001.
This is believed to be the first competition in the Middle East, where endurance racing is becoming ever more popular.
Sheikhs of the ruling families compete both in the Emirates and abroad and take great pride in their home-grown Arabian horses being able to demonstrate such prowess.
According to the BBC, Johnson will Thursday, February 7, be helping on the course in a different way when his wife, Marcia Smith, takes part in the prestigious President's Cup endurance horse race over 160 km. This time, it is just for horses.
This is not the first time a man has raced a horse, however. In June 2000, a legendary Man versus Horse Race in mid Wales witnessed 35-year-old Royal Marine Corporal Mark Croasdale beat a four-legged challenger over a grueling 22-mile course.
Cpl Croasdale - 22nd at this year's London Marathon - won in a time of two hours 10 minutes and nine seconds. His equine opponent, Roama, ridden by local woman Jackie Gilmore, finished in two hours 22 minutes 41 seconds.
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