Ahmed Ajtebi pictured in Dubai
©Photos by Z
Ahmed aboard Vale Of York after his success in the G1 Grey Goose Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Stakes at Santa Anita in November 2009
©Racing Fotos
Calming Influence winning the G2 Godolphin Mile at Meydan in March 2010
©Andrew Watkins
Ahmed Ajtebi has enjoyed success around the world
©Neville Hopwood
Name: Ahmed Ajtebi
Job Title: Jockey
One of the most striking images from the 2009 Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita in California was that of a beaming Ahmed Ajtebi entering the winner’s enclosure atop the victorious Vale Of York, with the UAE flag proudly draped around his shoulders.
The Dubai native, who views every success in the saddle as a triumph for his homeland, is a key member of the Godolphin team and has enjoyed notable wins in major contests around the globe.
Born on December 27, 1981 Ahmed Ajtebi is the nephew of one of H. H. Sheikh Mohammed’s longstanding friends, Saeed Manana, who is well known for his ownership of top‑class horses such as Warrsan, Luso and Needle Gun.
Ahmed is unique among the world’s leading jockeys as his race‑riding career began in the desert astride camels. Between the ages of seven and fifteen, he competed in camel races over distances ranging from five furlongs to six and a half miles, notching some 200 victories from approximately 3,000 rides.
It was H. H. Sheikh Mohammed, while discussing camel racing with the youthful rider, who pointed out that although UAE horses competed all over the world under the care of a Dubaian trainer in Saeed bin Suroor, there was not a single UAE-born jockey.
At that point, Ahmed Ajtebi had never sat on a horse but the seed was sown. Under the direction of H. H. Sheikh Mohammed, the camel jockey began the transition to accomplished racehorse rider.
In 2003, he and two other young Dubai‑born apprentices went to Ireland to gain experience, and he accumulated valuable knowledge during four months with Classic‑winning trainer John Oxx.
He returned to Dubai that autumn and had his first career ride on November 13, 2003, at Nad Al Sheba, finishing 10th aboard the John Sadler‑trained Junction Line.
The following year, he furthered his education at the Australian apprentice school in Melbourne and was elated when riding his first winner, Al Tharb, at Geelong, also for John Sadler.
Two successful summers in South Africa with trainer Mike de Kock, yielded further success as Ahmed Ajtebi’s evolution into a talented jockey continued. He partnered a total of 19 winners from 85 rides in those two spells, as well as a pair of major victories in Zimbabwe.
With the benefit of such valuable experience, albeit in a relatively short space of time, the Dubaian was ready to test himself against the best riders in Europe. He arrived in England for the 2007 season, splitting his time between Bryan Smart, David Simcock and Clive Brittain.
Six winners from 26 rides that summer showed that he was more than capable of competing. He returned to Dubai where he was crowned champion apprentice for the 2007/2008 season with 11 wins, when attached to the stable of Emirati trainer Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
Ahmed Ajtebi went back to the UK for the 2008 Flat season and the confidence gained from his successful UAE campaign was evident as he made history on one of the world’s most eminent stages.
Riding Regal Parade for trainer Dandy Nicholls, he became the first Emirati jockey to taste victory at Royal Ascot as he partnered the gelding to success in the Buckingham Palace Handicap.
That summer, riding mainly for Dandy Nicholls, Clive Brittain and Bryan Smart, brought 10 wins from 72 rides and provided a springboard to an unforgettable Dubai season that winter when he posted his best Emirates total of 18 wins from 210 rides.
But the numerical successes during the winter of 2008/09 paled when compared to Ahmed Ajtebi’s exploits on Dubai World Cup night in March, 2009, as he stunned the world with a brilliant Group One double that highlighted his burgeoning expertise in the saddle and announced his arrival as a world class rider.
The first of those two triumphs came aboard Gladiatorus in the nine‑furlong Dubai Duty Free. The jockey dictated the pace from the front and stormed down the Nad Al Sheba straight for a three and a quarter length victory. Gladiatorus was officially rated the best horse in the world after that sensational win.
Just under an hour later, Ahmed exhibited fine judgement as he brought Eastern Anthem from last to first inside the final quarter‑mile of the Dubai Sheema Classic, gaining victory by a nose in the final stride.
The 2009 season saw the rider emerge as a key member of the Godolphin team. He notched 21 winners in Britain, 14 of those coming for Godolphin. He also captained the Rest of the World team at Ascot’s Shergar Cup and added to his Group One haul when partnering his old friend Gladiatorus to a smooth success in the Premio Vittorio di Capua at San Siro, Milan in October.
That win proved to be a fitting appetizer for a remarkable first Breeders’ Cup triumph at Santa Anita, California, a month later. Ahmed Ajtebi had the Saeed bin Suroor‑trained Vale Of York in third place as the field entered the final furlong of the Grade One Grey Goose Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Stakes. With the winning post looming, he switched his mount off the rail and drove the colt to a last‑gasp head success over the US champion juvenile Lookin At Lucky.
The rider gained further experience in America later in the year, thanks to a spell with trainer Eoin Harty at Santa Anita.
More big‑race joy came at the most recent Dubai World Cup night when, sporting the royal blue Godolphin silks, he teamed up with recently appointed trainer Mahmood Al Zarooni to win the Group Two Godolphin Mile with Calming Influence at the new Meydan Racecourse.
Ahmed Ajtebi is the main jockey for Mahmood Al Zarooni and has partnered 39 winners for Godolphin from 242 rides, with two of those victories coming in Grade/Group One company.
To view the Godolphin statistics for Ahmed Ajtebi, please
click here.