SHARQIYA, Egypt, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Egypt's 28th Sharqiya Arabian Horse Festival kicked off here on Wednesday with a beauty and obedience contest featuring 191 purebred Arabian horses from five regional countries.
Horses from Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait joined the contest on the first day of the three-day event organized by the Shaqriya Governorate in cooperation with other government ministries and agencies.
"The number of participating horses has increased this year compared to last year when 100 horses joined the festival ... the number of the audience who come to enjoy the festival's events has also increased notably," Deputy Governor of Sharqiya Ahmed Abdel-Moaty told Xinhua.
The event contributes to activating the desert sports tourism industry, said the official, adding that Shaqiya is home to nearly 80 percent of purebred Arabian horses in Egypt.
Hassan Rizq, owner of eight Arabian horses participating in the contest, said the festival has become a platform gathering Arabian horse owners, breeders, and lovers from around the region.
"I have quite a big number of distinguished Arabian horses ... my horses are really beautiful and I expect they win some medals this year," Rizq told Xinhua.■
