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Sheikh Mohammed: the ruler with real horsepower Sheikh Mohammed: the ruler with real horsepower
(5 months later)
A couple of years before he succeeded his brother as ruler of Dubai in 2006, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, never a man plagued by self-doubt, developed an idea to have some of his own poetry written on the sea of the Persian Gulf. The poetry would be in the form of man-made islands, constructed by thousands of the indentured migrant workers who form the bulk of Dubai's population, and on which Premier League footballers and the like might be encouraged to buy ocean-front real estate. It was imagined that the lines, written in Arabic in concrete and sand, would be large enough to be read from space.A couple of years before he succeeded his brother as ruler of Dubai in 2006, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, never a man plagued by self-doubt, developed an idea to have some of his own poetry written on the sea of the Persian Gulf. The poetry would be in the form of man-made islands, constructed by thousands of the indentured migrant workers who form the bulk of Dubai's population, and on which Premier League footballers and the like might be encouraged to buy ocean-front real estate. It was imagined that the lines, written in Arabic in concrete and sand, would be large enough to be read from space.
In devising such a plan, you imagine that most world-class self-mythologisers might have been content with a single line of verse. It gives you a measure of Sheikh Mohammed's exaggerated sense of Xanadu that he decided on a whole stanza. "Take wisdom from the wise," the script would run. "It takes a man of vision to write on water/ Not everyone who rides a horse is a jockey/ Great men rise to greater challenges."In devising such a plan, you imagine that most world-class self-mythologisers might have been content with a single line of verse. It gives you a measure of Sheikh Mohammed's exaggerated sense of Xanadu that he decided on a whole stanza. "Take wisdom from the wise," the script would run. "It takes a man of vision to write on water/ Not everyone who rides a horse is a jockey/ Great men rise to greater challenges."
In the end, despite property on the planned islands being sold out in advance, this was one of the few wild schemes that was never realised in Dubai's decade of outrageous construction. Other ocean-and-desert-defying projects were made – the Palm Resort of frond peninsulas, the World, a mini globe of islands out at sea – not to mention the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building, and mile upon mile of gravity-mocking condos, hotels and office blocks. In that time, the joke has gone that only three words have been required to make overnight building miracles a steel and glass reality: "Sheikh Mohammed says…"In the end, despite property on the planned islands being sold out in advance, this was one of the few wild schemes that was never realised in Dubai's decade of outrageous construction. Other ocean-and-desert-defying projects were made – the Palm Resort of frond peninsulas, the World, a mini globe of islands out at sea – not to mention the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building, and mile upon mile of gravity-mocking condos, hotels and office blocks. In that time, the joke has gone that only three words have been required to make overnight building miracles a steel and glass reality: "Sheikh Mohammed says…"
This development programme was just one aspect of the diminutive 63-year-old's singular drive toward world domination. At the same time as he was impressing the soaring power of the Maktoum bloodline on the Gulf skyline, he was taking an autocrat's obsession with hereditary principles to extremes in the world of thoroughbred racing, pursued with trademark determination on five continents. Every man needs a hobby. Sheikh Mohammed's has involved the creation of the largest and most expensive stable of fast horses in human history.This development programme was just one aspect of the diminutive 63-year-old's singular drive toward world domination. At the same time as he was impressing the soaring power of the Maktoum bloodline on the Gulf skyline, he was taking an autocrat's obsession with hereditary principles to extremes in the world of thoroughbred racing, pursued with trademark determination on five continents. Every man needs a hobby. Sheikh Mohammed's has involved the creation of the largest and most expensive stable of fast horses in human history.
In his own mind, the twin aspects of his brand, joint expression of his familial riches and power, have been intertwined. In his vision, Dubai, a place that now features the world's most opulent racecourse, the Meydan, built at a cost of $1.25bn in two years, has itself been sold as the ultimate winners' enclosure for newly globalised wealth.In his own mind, the twin aspects of his brand, joint expression of his familial riches and power, have been intertwined. In his vision, Dubai, a place that now features the world's most opulent racecourse, the Meydan, built at a cost of $1.25bn in two years, has itself been sold as the ultimate winners' enclosure for newly globalised wealth.
Sooner or later, though, every myth-making dictator is met with a dose of reality. For Sheikh Mohammed, this came first with Dubai's post-credit crunch bust, which saw a collapse in property prices, a great many unfinished ego developments and the humiliating need for an up to $20bn bailout from "Uncle Abu Dhabi" in 2010, a debt still to be repaid. At the time, an authorised biography of the sheikh was due; the rumour goes that his refusal to countenance an epilogue detailing the lessons of his emirate's recession meant that the book never happened.Sooner or later, though, every myth-making dictator is met with a dose of reality. For Sheikh Mohammed, this came first with Dubai's post-credit crunch bust, which saw a collapse in property prices, a great many unfinished ego developments and the humiliating need for an up to $20bn bailout from "Uncle Abu Dhabi" in 2010, a debt still to be repaid. At the time, an authorised biography of the sheikh was due; the rumour goes that his refusal to countenance an epilogue detailing the lessons of his emirate's recession meant that the book never happened.
And if the property slump marked the outer limit of his civic ambition, then the events of the last two weeks at the headquarters of his racing operation, Godolphin, in Newmarket, have been a defining moment in his private obsession, another line in the sand.And if the property slump marked the outer limit of his civic ambition, then the events of the last two weeks at the headquarters of his racing operation, Godolphin, in Newmarket, have been a defining moment in his private obsession, another line in the sand.
The random dope testing of horses under control of his joint head trainer Mahmood al-Zarooni, which identified the widescale use of banned anabolic steroids, most notably in the sample of the top-rated two-year-old filly in Europe, Certify, has been a personal humiliation for Sheikh Mohammed.The random dope testing of horses under control of his joint head trainer Mahmood al-Zarooni, which identified the widescale use of banned anabolic steroids, most notably in the sample of the top-rated two-year-old filly in Europe, Certify, has been a personal humiliation for Sheikh Mohammed.
It was a measure of his shame at this exposure that he took the highly unusual step of including his apologetic statement about the events that led to al-Zarooni's ban from British racing for eight years on his official website, which generally is a spotless expression of his distinctive personality cult: poet, statesman, sportsman, visionary. In the statement, he once again explicitly linked his vision for Godolphin with his vision for Dubai: "I was appalled and angered to learn that one of our stables has violated [the] ethical standards and the rules of British racing. I have been involved in British horse racing for 30 years and have deep respect for its traditions and rules. I built my country based on the same solid principles."It was a measure of his shame at this exposure that he took the highly unusual step of including his apologetic statement about the events that led to al-Zarooni's ban from British racing for eight years on his official website, which generally is a spotless expression of his distinctive personality cult: poet, statesman, sportsman, visionary. In the statement, he once again explicitly linked his vision for Godolphin with his vision for Dubai: "I was appalled and angered to learn that one of our stables has violated [the] ethical standards and the rules of British racing. I have been involved in British horse racing for 30 years and have deep respect for its traditions and rules. I built my country based on the same solid principles."
The determined conviction behind that dubious latter assertion – Sheikh Mohammed's formidably stubborn personality has helped him to prevail as a sometime champion in gruelling horse endurance races over 10 or more hours – seems to have been derived in his own mind from twin formative influences. The first was that of his father, Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed al Maktoum, the shrewd initiator of modern Dubai, who saw that the comparatively limited oil wealth that drove development would quickly dry up and that the future had to be made from tourism and commerce. Rashid was, as he frequently said, only one generation removed from the camel-driving roots of his family and he inculcated his sons with those values: they grew up in a compound with no electricity or running water and were encouraged to be hardened horsemen and hunters.The determined conviction behind that dubious latter assertion – Sheikh Mohammed's formidably stubborn personality has helped him to prevail as a sometime champion in gruelling horse endurance races over 10 or more hours – seems to have been derived in his own mind from twin formative influences. The first was that of his father, Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed al Maktoum, the shrewd initiator of modern Dubai, who saw that the comparatively limited oil wealth that drove development would quickly dry up and that the future had to be made from tourism and commerce. Rashid was, as he frequently said, only one generation removed from the camel-driving roots of his family and he inculcated his sons with those values: they grew up in a compound with no electricity or running water and were encouraged to be hardened horsemen and hunters.
The contrasting pillar of Sheikh Mohammed's wisdom was gained at what his website grandly terms "the Bell School of Languages at Cambridge University", actually just an international language college, at which he gained his still slightly awkward grasp of English. It is claimed that his gift for literature arose in his years in the university town, but any reader of his poetry might guess that he spent much more of his time at Newmarket up the road; he saw his first 2,000 Guineas race in 1967 and was immediately hooked.The contrasting pillar of Sheikh Mohammed's wisdom was gained at what his website grandly terms "the Bell School of Languages at Cambridge University", actually just an international language college, at which he gained his still slightly awkward grasp of English. It is claimed that his gift for literature arose in his years in the university town, but any reader of his poetry might guess that he spent much more of his time at Newmarket up the road; he saw his first 2,000 Guineas race in 1967 and was immediately hooked.
In the years since, he has not so much sought to reconcile these influences as to pursue both avidly. At home, he is his father's son. He has 23 "acknowledged" children, mostly with his "senior wife", Sheikha Hind bint Maktoum bin Juma al Maktoum, who lives in Jameel Palace and is never pictured in public. Despite the supreme decadence of his gold-plated, air-conditioned ambition for Dubai, built by armies of wretchedly paid workers from the Indian subcontinent, he likes to project himself as a simple soul: "I need little from my world. My prayer mat and water bottle are in my car wherever I go, together with my work documents and my vision."In the years since, he has not so much sought to reconcile these influences as to pursue both avidly. At home, he is his father's son. He has 23 "acknowledged" children, mostly with his "senior wife", Sheikha Hind bint Maktoum bin Juma al Maktoum, who lives in Jameel Palace and is never pictured in public. Despite the supreme decadence of his gold-plated, air-conditioned ambition for Dubai, built by armies of wretchedly paid workers from the Indian subcontinent, he likes to project himself as a simple soul: "I need little from my world. My prayer mat and water bottle are in my car wherever I go, together with my work documents and my vision."
He is haphazardly generous – the lifestyles of all United Arab Emiratis are richly subsidised; they pay no taxes and are awarded a share of the principality's wealth. Despite this, he argues with more complacent branches of the family for the virtues of meritocracy, education and hard work. His development plan was largely one of divide and rule; desert land was parcelled up for cousins and acolytes, with the implicit instruction to "do something to make Sheikh Mohammed proud". Predictable insanity ensued.He is haphazardly generous – the lifestyles of all United Arab Emiratis are richly subsidised; they pay no taxes and are awarded a share of the principality's wealth. Despite this, he argues with more complacent branches of the family for the virtues of meritocracy, education and hard work. His development plan was largely one of divide and rule; desert land was parcelled up for cousins and acolytes, with the implicit instruction to "do something to make Sheikh Mohammed proud". Predictable insanity ensued.
The other half of his life, his summers at the Godolphin operation he runs with his brother Hamdan in Newmarket and at the comparable facility in Lexington, Kentucky, or at the Darley stud with its outposts in Australia, Japan and Ireland, is on different terms. He spends most of it with his "racing wife", Princess Haya, Oxford-educated daughter of the King of Jordan, with whom he has two young children, and who, as an Olympic show-jumper, shares his love of horses.The other half of his life, his summers at the Godolphin operation he runs with his brother Hamdan in Newmarket and at the comparable facility in Lexington, Kentucky, or at the Darley stud with its outposts in Australia, Japan and Ireland, is on different terms. He spends most of it with his "racing wife", Princess Haya, Oxford-educated daughter of the King of Jordan, with whom he has two young children, and who, as an Olympic show-jumper, shares his love of horses.
That love runs deep. Racing broadcaster Brough Scott, a long-time acquaintance who helped the sheikh establish the Racing Post, believes he has been a fundamentally good thing for racing and hopes the current scandal will at least lead to established international standards of anti-doping legislation. Scott suggests the embarrassment was all the greater for Sheikh Mohammed since his trainer, al-Zarooni, was very much promoted as his protege. Even so, "the benefits of his involvement in British racing outweigh any negatives enormously", Scott suggests. "They have supported racing in a huge way, in terms of its employment, its economy."That love runs deep. Racing broadcaster Brough Scott, a long-time acquaintance who helped the sheikh establish the Racing Post, believes he has been a fundamentally good thing for racing and hopes the current scandal will at least lead to established international standards of anti-doping legislation. Scott suggests the embarrassment was all the greater for Sheikh Mohammed since his trainer, al-Zarooni, was very much promoted as his protege. Even so, "the benefits of his involvement in British racing outweigh any negatives enormously", Scott suggests. "They have supported racing in a huge way, in terms of its employment, its economy."
Thousands of residents of Lexington, Kentucky, whose mortgages have indirectly been paid, and children educated through the sheikh's largesse, would no doubt concur. Despite some suggestions that the scandal might tempt Sheikh Mohammed to retreat from the UK, off-the-record insiders suggest the opposite will be the case. He is nothing if not persistent. Anyone who believes otherwise might try the endurance test of his poetry, in which the race is always hard, as those verses that might have been written in the sea went on to suggest: "At times even the wise and experienced are tormented with bewilderment, fear and delusions/ Determined we moved along unwaveringly buoyant, riding the earth's saddle and steering its reins."Thousands of residents of Lexington, Kentucky, whose mortgages have indirectly been paid, and children educated through the sheikh's largesse, would no doubt concur. Despite some suggestions that the scandal might tempt Sheikh Mohammed to retreat from the UK, off-the-record insiders suggest the opposite will be the case. He is nothing if not persistent. Anyone who believes otherwise might try the endurance test of his poetry, in which the race is always hard, as those verses that might have been written in the sea went on to suggest: "At times even the wise and experienced are tormented with bewilderment, fear and delusions/ Determined we moved along unwaveringly buoyant, riding the earth's saddle and steering its reins."
THE MOHAMMED FILETHE MOHAMMED FILE
Born Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum in Dubai, 15 July 1949. He is the third of four sons. Married his "senior" wife, Sheikha Hind bint Maktoum bin Juma al Maktoum, in 1979. His "junior" wife is Princess Haya bint al-Hussein, daughter of the King of Jordan. He has 23 acknowledged children: nine sons and 14 daughters.Born Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum in Dubai, 15 July 1949. He is the third of four sons. Married his "senior" wife, Sheikha Hind bint Maktoum bin Juma al Maktoum, in 1979. His "junior" wife is Princess Haya bint al-Hussein, daughter of the King of Jordan. He has 23 acknowledged children: nine sons and 14 daughters.
Best of times After becoming crown prince in 1995, he oversaw a series of ambitious development projects. In 2006, he became ruler of Dubai following the death of his elder brother.Best of times After becoming crown prince in 1995, he oversaw a series of ambitious development projects. In 2006, he became ruler of Dubai following the death of his elder brother.
Worst of times In 2008, fearing humiliation if Dubai went bust, he received a $10bn loan to save Dubai World – his main investment company – from bankruptcy. The headquarters of his horse racing operation, Godolphin, in Newmarket, is currently embroiled in a doping scandal.Worst of times In 2008, fearing humiliation if Dubai went bust, he received a $10bn loan to save Dubai World – his main investment company – from bankruptcy. The headquarters of his horse racing operation, Godolphin, in Newmarket, is currently embroiled in a doping scandal.
What he says "I have been involved in British horse racing for 30 years and have deep respect for its traditions and rules. There can be no excuse for any deliberate violation."What he says "I have been involved in British horse racing for 30 years and have deep respect for its traditions and rules. There can be no excuse for any deliberate violation."
What others say "He's only about 5ft 8in but he has the charisma of a ruler about him. He is always surrounded by people but it is he who leads, makes the decisions." Brough Scott, the jockey turned commentator, who set up the Racing Post with the sheikh's backing.What others say "He's only about 5ft 8in but he has the charisma of a ruler about him. He is always surrounded by people but it is he who leads, makes the decisions." Brough Scott, the jockey turned commentator, who set up the Racing Post with the sheikh's backing.
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