Dear Friends, Breeders and Owners,

Since 1989, the A.F.A.C., the French Arabian Racehorse Horse Association, publishes an Annual Review intended to give an overview of Arabian horse races held in France during the previous year and to introduce stallions standing in France together with our principal Arabian stud farms.

Our breeders are, indeed, very proud of French success in breeding racing Arabians. This success has not been achieved by chance, and even less by enigmatic cross-breeding as has sometimes been said, but instead is the result of uninterrupted, careful selection of the breed, based on competition results, over a period of nearly 150 years, and this thanks to the knowledgeable and studied policies of the French National Studs Institution, which has encouraged and advised French breeders and maintained the presence of high quality Arabian stallions throughout the country.

In fact, France is the country with the longest tradition of racing purebred Arabians, included within the general horseracing calendar. The only breeding criteria was selection, through competition, of the best stock destined to produce the best pure bred animals for racing, and also for out-crossing to breed cavalry horses.

The first official races for purebred Arabians and Anglo-Arabs were organised in France in 1860. Until recent times, these two breeds always appeared together on the same racecards, Arabians receiving a weight allowance when competing against Anglo-Arabs, and the best of their breed did so regularly. The selection of Arabians was therefore even more severe, as the top Arabians were continually confronted with faster horses than themselves.

In 1874, when the National Studs were reorganised, a new racing programme for Arabians
and Anglo-Arabs was instituted in the South West of France, using the racecourses at
Bordeaux, Tarbes, Pau and Pompadour.

But it was in the early twentieth century, up until the Second World War, that racing for Arabian horses was most strongly developed. As from 1920, six races were reserved for pure bred Arabians over distances no further than a mile and a half (2,400 metres).

During this period the French National Studs acquired several animals from Oriental breeding stock. Strong, well-boned stallions and mares, who were to bring to French bred Arabians their conformation and hardiness, which is often lacking in animals bred from origins selected via subjective criteria. The National Stud officers made many visits to the Middle East such as that made, in 1925, by the General Inspector of the National Studs, Mr G. Rieu de Madron.
They were in search of the best Arabian horse breeding lines from the nomadic desert tribes, the Sbaa, Feidhan, Beggaras and Roalla, who constituted the Anezeh Confederation, whose roots are to be found in the most northern half of Arabia, north of the Djebel Chammar. They also acquired breeding stock of pure Nedj origin, in southern Arabia, which had practically the same characteristics as the Anezeh Arabians. They also acquired stock from Mesopotamia, from the edges of the desert in the dry plain of Alep, from where came Darley and Massoud. These stallions, imported from the Middle East, were hugely popular with French breeders, as had been Latif, imported from Egypt in 1909, who sired notably Denouste, the stallion at the base of French Arabian breeding.

This was the time when great studs were created and developed and which fashioned the French bred Arabian horse as we know it today. It was they who produced and valorised, through competitive racing, the great Arabian stallions from which originate our Arabian horses of now: Denouste, the best known of them all, both at home and abroad, but also Nedjari (exported to Poland), Kann (exported to Russia), Noriz, Nedjanor, Kriss II, Baroud II and Kairouan III, all great racehorses and stallions of their time.

After the Second World War, racing soon began again and several great Arabian stallions made their name on the racecourse: Djerba Oua, Saint Laurent, Gosse du Bearn, Ba Toustem, and also, coming from Tunisia, Ourour and Sumeyr.

After being in crisis from the early fifties, the French bred racing Arabian made a come-back
beginning in 1974. Several stages have been primordial in its evolution:
1986 : The creation of an international race on the Parisian racecourse at Evry.
1989 : 15 races offering 79,300 euros (520,000 francs) in total prize money.
1994 : 35 races with 384,200 euros (2,513,700 francs) total prize money, including sponsorship of 115,250 euros (756,000 francs) from the sponsorship of the Prix du Jockey-Club (French D erby) D ay at Chantilly, with 2 Arabian races on the
programme.
1998 : 45 races with 481,750 euros (3,160,000 francs) prize money, including 140,250 euros in sponsorship.
1999 : Creation of IFAHR, International Federation of Arabian Horse Racing, initiated by Yves Plantin, Vice President of AFAC, who became the inaugural president of theIFAHR.
2004 : Creation of the French Arabian Breeders’ Cup
2006 : Creation within the IFAHR of its Pattern Race Committee, initiated by Jean-Pierre de Gasté, elected the committee’s Chairman.
Group race system created for Arabian racing in France.
2007 : Qatar sponsors the Qatar Prix du Moulin de Longchamp meeting and the Breeders’ Cup.
2008 : 54 races for Arabians and 1,281,000 euros in prize money, including 658,000 euros of sponsorship.
Sponsoring of the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, with a race for Arabians
included in the programme, and the prize money doubled for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, for thoroughbreds.

Our wish is to associate the greatest possible number of Arabian breeders worldwide with our Breeders’ Cup for pure bred racing Arabians initiative. Thanks to our partnership with the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club, the purses offered for the four Breeders’ Cup races will be considerably higher and so become a major goal for the world’s best Arabian horses.

The AFAC and all French breeders are obviously extremely grateful to the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club and its directors for their exceptional involvement in this race meeting in our calendar which, associated with the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, will become a major international event, and allow the racing Arabian breed to attain further heights of vitality and dynamism essential for its perpetuation.

Jean-Pierre Gasté

Chers (ères) amis (es) Eleveurs et Propriétaires,

L’A.F.A.C., Association Française du Cheval Arabe de Course arrive dans sa dixième année d’existence. Notre Association, créée en janvier 1998, à l’initiative de son ancien Président Jean Luc Jardel et de son Vice Président Yves Plantin, émane de l’A.C.A. dont nous sommes restés très proches et succédait alors à l’ex Commission des Courses de l’A.C.A., mise en place en 1989 par les mêmes membres fondateurs de la future AFAC.
Le chemin parcouru depuis lors par la filière du cheval arabe de course est particulièrement significatif:
1989 : 15 courses et 79.300 € (520.000 F) d’allocations
1994 : 35 courses et 383.200 € (2.513.700 F) d’allocations, dont 115.250 € (756.000 F) de sponsoring
Sponsoring de la journée du Prix du Jockey Club avec 2 courses arabes au programme
1998 : 45 courses et 481.750 € (3.160.000 F) d’allocations dont 140.250 € (920.000 F) de sponsoring
Création de l’AFAC
1999 : Création de l’IFAHR, International Federation of Arabian Horse Racing à l’initiative du
Vice Président de l’AFAC, Yves Plantin, qui deviendra le premier Président de l’IFAHR.
2004 : Création des Breeders’ Cup arabes
2006 : Création au sein de l’IFAHR, du Pattern Race Committee à l’initiative de Jean Pierre de Gasté
qui en est élu Président
Instauration du système des Groupes pour les courses arabes en France
Rapprochement de l’AFAC avec le Syndicat des Eleveurs de Chevaux de Sang
2007 : Sponsoring de la journée du Qatar Prix du Moulin de Longchamp et de la Breeders’ Cup
Elaboration avec les Haras Nationaux d’un protocole sanitaire pour la race arabe
Instauration du « label course » avec les Haras Nationaux pour les étalons arabes
2008 : 54 courses et 1.281.000 € (8.403.360 F) d’allocations dont 658.000 € de sponsoring.
Sponsoring du Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe avec une course arabe au programme et doublement de l’allocation du Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe pour les Pur Sang

Ce rappel des principaux évènements qui ont ponctué l’évolution de notre discipline ces vingt dernières années fait ressortir le professionnalisme de notre association, qui a réussi, grâce à l’implication des membres de son bureau depuis 1989, à créer le dynamisme à l’origine de la formidable expansion de la race arabe de course en France, et de sa domination à l’étranger.

En vingt ans, en effet, les allocations distribuées sont passées de 79.300 € (520.000 F) à 1.281.000 € (8.403.360 F). Et, sur ce budget de 1.281.000 € pour 2008, plus de la moitié des allocations proviennent de recettes initiées par la discipline elle-même.

Mais plus encore, à l’occasion du sponsoring du Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe par le Qatar, notre filière a également prouvé sa maturité et sa capacité à participer à l’expansion des courses de plat en France. S’il est en effet extrêmement bénéfique pour la race arabe de pouvoir être représentée dans le programme de course de la journée du Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, il est non moins évident que courir à Longchamp la course de Pur Sang sur turf la plus riche au monde ne peut que renforcer la primauté mondiale de cette épreuve, et par delà même le rayonnement des courses françaises.

Pourtant, le plus grand défi que nous ayons à relever reste, il ne faut pas se le cacher, de savoir se faire reconnaître et accepter sur la scène hippique du plat, non pas comme une discipline marginale, mais comme de vrais acteurs des courses plates françaises, au même titre que les Anglo-arabes ou les AQPS. Mais, nous en sommes encore loin. En effet, bien que nous ayons prouvé notre capacité à contribuer au financement et de nos courses, et de la discipline du plat, le montant global des allocations qui sont accordées à notre filière par le Fond Commun ne représente, en 2008, que 623.000 €, soit à peine un peu plus du quart de la rallonge octroyée par le Qatar pour l’allocation du Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Il nous reste donc encore un vaste chantier à réaliser : conquérir chez nous, en France, la notoriété que notre race a acquise à l’étranger grâce à sa domination incontestée. Voilà l’objectif auquel nous nous attelons… au galop !

Jean-Pierre de Gasté