The Emirates Falconers’ Club and Abu Dhabi’s Arabian Saluki Centre will hold the inaugural season in Al Ain and Al Dhafra from November 2026 to April 2027.
The Emirates Falconers’ Club and the Arabian Saluki Centre in Abu Dhabi will organise the first Arabian Saluki Championship in Al Ain and Al Dhafra from November 2026 to April 2027, aiming to develop this heritage sport and preserve its ties to hunting culture and desert life.
The championship brings together speed, distance and endurance races in a season built around registration, classification and cumulative points.
Three distances for males and females
Competitions comprise 1,000-metre sprints, 1,500-metre middle-distance races and 2,000-metre endurance races, with male and female categories. The season includes preliminary rounds, semi-finals and finals, with points accumulated across rounds to determine the category champions.
Five seasonal titles will be awarded: Speed Champion, Distance Champion, Endurance Champion, Arabian Saluki Champion and Best Breeder. The programme also includes cash prizes, an Arabian Saluki beauty competition, or mazayen, and a simulated hunting competition using a mechanical lure.
A registry of bloodlines, owners and breeders
The club says the championship will establish the first official Arabian Saluki registry in the UAE and the Gulf region, documenting bloodlines, owners and breeders and issuing annual registration and classification certificates. The system will allow each Saluki’s performance to be tracked and assessed throughout the season rather than through a single race result.
The organisers’ vision also includes a scientific database to study genetic and physical capabilities, programmes to improve bloodlines, training and assessment, and broader participation by owners, breeders and enthusiasts.
Source: Emirates Falconers’ Club.
Photographs: Emirates Falconers’ Club.
