Hundreds of spectators thronged the Kano racecourse for horse racing competition on Sunday, the third such gathering for the sport this year.
The turf came back to life as sports lovers converged on the venue to watch their favorite horses and to cheer them on as they galloped the distances to win one of the five cups that were up for grabs.
Five categories of races comprising breeds like Sudanese, Tallouns, Super Arewa, Arewa Maiden and Arewa Novice took place that day.
In the Sudanese category, eight horses from the stables of Abdullahi Ibrahim, Maiturare, Alhaji Kamal Aminu Ahmad Maiturare, Rima, Habib and Titan competed for the Alhaji Tajuddeen Dantata Cup.
The race was won by Bombino from the stable of Kamal Maiturare while Shagger and Bara from the stables of Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim and Titan, came second and third, respectively.
For the Tallouns race, six horses took part, with Golden Eagle from the stable of Kamal Maiturare, clinching the first position to lift the Gado Da Masu Cup. Lai-hah and Just in Time, owned by Abdullahi Kofar- Ruwa and Abdullahi Ibrahim, came second and third, respectively.
The Arewa Maiden race was won by Fulanin-Zage, a horse owned by Abban-Malam, scooping the Mu’azzam Madaki Cup. Hon. Ibrahim Mu’azzam Madaki is the Senior Special Assistant on Sports to the Kano State governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
The competing horses covered six furlongs (approximately 1.2kilometres) in all the categories.
The Sunday meeting, which was the club’s third edition this year, was sponsored by Alhaji Kamal Aminu Ahmad Maiturare. In February, Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, an Executive Director of First Bank Nigeria Limited, sponsored the second race this year which also witnessed a large turnout of spectators. The first race of the year was sponsored by Alhaji Muhammad Abdullahi Umar Ganduje in January.
Speaking after presentation of trophies to the winners, Hon. Mu’azzam Madaki said arrangements were in top gear for hosting a national horse racing championship in the state.
The national event would feature participants from both Nigeria and neighboring countries and would hold later in the year, the Kano Turf Club’s organizing committee secretary, Alhaji Magaji Danjuma Adamu, told Dateline.
The sport, which was first introduced by colonial administration in Kano in 1912, has remained part of the state’s equestrian culture over the last century.
Although hugely popular with fans across generations of residents, horse racing witnessed decline over the last 20 years.
But in an effort to revive it and return the races, the Kano Turf Club, under the chairmanship of Alhaji Tajuddeen Dantata, has been at the forefront of organizing competitions recently.
This is being complemented by the support of other avid sportsmen in the state who sponsor the races.
