Qatar Racing team gear up for ultimate endurance test

Three members of the Qatar Racing team, including former champion Flat jockey Kevin Darley, are preparing to confront the unique challenges of the eighth Mongol Derby, renowned as the world’s longest and toughest horse race.

Darley, David Redvers and Peter Molony are among 43 competitors – comprising 20 men and 23 women – from 13 countries who will ride semi-wild horses in a ten-day, 1,000km endurance test through Mongolia which begins tomorrow.

In addition to serious riders from the worlds of racing, eventing, showjumping, dressage, polo and rodeo, the 2016 line-up includes a family team, cancer survivors, and some who have learned to ride specifically to take part in the race. Some are even coming back in a bid to complete the course, having failed in their first attempt.