Increase in races and prize money for new Riyadh racing season

Prize money for the 2023-24 horse racing season in Riyadh, which begins on Oct. 16 and
continues until Mar. 16, will increase by more than 7 percent compared with last season,
and 56 additional races will be run at King Abdulaziz Racecourse, where the highlight
remains the Saudi Cup in February. The total prize money for the season, excluding the
Saudi Cup meeting, will rise by $1.5 million to a total of $21.9 million, the Jockey Club of
Saudi Arabia said. The total number of races will increase to 700 across 59 meetings, all of
which will comprise 12 races compared with the previous 11: 10 for Thoroughbreds and
two for purebred Arabians. This represents a significant increase in the number of races
for purebred Arabians over the course of the season, the jockey club added, with 66 races
added to the calendar. They include a new cup race, the $80,000 Abdulaziz bin Musa’id bin
Jalooey Cup, which will be run for the first time on Feb. 10, 2024.