Emirati showjumper Abdullah Al Marri. CNN/ARCHIVE

For the first time, an equestrian team from the UAE is competing in the Olympics, and Emirati showjumper Abdullah Al Marri said that he aims to win a medal. The Olympics is returning to Paris this year, over a century after the city hosted the 1900 Olympics when the equestrian sport was featured for the first time. The UAE showjumping team is confident that they may win a medal in the 2024 Paris Olympics, with Al Marri saying that the “dream is actually possible”. “When it comes to showjumping, for us, the Olympics is the pinnacle. It’s the most important event and difficult to dare to dream to be in the games, and we saw that the dream is actually possible,” Al Marri said in an interview with CNN. For years, showjumping has been dominated by the German, American, and British teams. Al Marri said he anticipates the tough competition that the team will face. “The second you qualify you realise that your work starts now. And you know that you’re going to be against multiple medallists, especially from Europe and the US. We know how good they are,” he said. For Al Marri, the competition comes as an exciting challenge with his horse BBS McGregor by his side. “In Formula 1, without the car, as good as the driver is, there’s no chance of winning a championship. And it’s the same with horses. You need these horses that are at the highest level for you to achieve these dreams,” the Emirait said. With more than 44 international victories under his belt, Al Marri said it has been a fulfilling journey so far and that he is confident about the team taking home a winning title, “It’s one thing to dream of the games, and another to dream of winning a medal. And I think we all have a chance, and we’ll give it the best shot possible. These chances don’t come that often, and hopefully on the day it’s all going to be ok, and we achieve the impossible dream.” ICA/Expat Media
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