UAE’s equestrian athlete, Omar Abdul Aziz Al Marzooqi, brings home the first ever Longines FEI Rising Star Award.
Photo: Courtesy of FEI / Liz Gregg
UAE’s equestrian athlete, Omar Abdul Aziz Al Marzooqi, claimed the prestigious Longines FEI Rising Star Award last evening—becoming the first athlete from the country to do so. The ceremony took place on the Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi and witnessed a star-studded guest list. “I feel so proud to win the Longines FEI Rising Star award, especially as it is the first time someone from the UAE has received it,” says Al Marqoozi.
The 21-year-old jumping athlete already has an impressive track record under his belt—from winning a silver medal at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires (ARG) at only 15 years to acquiring an individual silver and a team bronze at the Asian Games in Hangzhou (CHN) last year. Al Marzooqi’s impressive performance led to his qualification for the UAE team at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games—making him the youngest equestrian competitor at the Games. The athlete not only qualified for the games but advanced to the individual final and finished among the top 20, and he is only getting started.
As Al Marzooqi celebrates his well-deserved win, he speaks to Vogue Man Arabia regarding his journey so far, challenges he has faced, and how he hopes to inspire the youth of the UAE, along with dreams for qualifying for the next World Cup.
Photo: Courtesy of FEI / Liz Gregg
You have just won the FEI Longines Rising Star Award—how does it feel to have achieved this honor?
Winning the FEI Longines Rising Star Award is an incredible honor. I’d like to thank everyone who voted and believed in me. It really means a lot. This recognition inspires me to keep working hard to represent the UAE on the global stage.
Tell us how your journey with riding and show jumping began.
My journey with riding and show jumping began since I was a child. I was on ponies when I was three up to seven; probably I was riding ponies, and I started training in a riding school when I was six or seven. I would say I was seven when I did my first national show. And I was nine or 10 years old when I did my first international show.
However, I started as a show jumper when I was 12 years old in the children categories. It all began with the passion I had. I used to go to the stables with my father, and ever since then, I always loved horses. I loved to be around horses. I would rather spend my whole day with horses than hanging out with my friends, even when I was younger. So I always had love for horses, and it always meant a lot to me.
Was it always your dream to become an equestrian?
Yes, it has always been a dream to become a show jumper. Ever since I was a child, I always looked up to big shows like the Olympic Games, World Cup finals, and all the equestrian games. And I’m so happy that today, at my age of 21, I already jumped the Olympics and hopefully more to come to represent the UAE.
From training at a young age to becoming an Olympian, you’ve had quite the journey with sports. What is your favorite memory so far?
It’s very difficult to have a favorite memory, but winning any big grand prix or big occasions is always great. For example, winning the Youth Olympic medal in Buenos Aires was one of the best because it’s the first ever medal for the UAE in the Youth Olympic categories, jumping from the Youth Olympics to the Asian Olympics with double medals there, and then jumping in the Olympic final in Paris. That was an exceptional experience, an exceptional memory that will always be in my mind throughout my whole career.
Photo: Courtesy of FEI / Liz Gregg
What was the biggest challenge you’ve faced along the way, and how did you overcome it?
One of the biggest challenges has been balancing the support with my studies or my educational path, especially my final year of university. It was really tough, as I had to prepare for the Olympics and my final exams. I believe it requires a lot of discipline and time management, but by staying focused and well organized, I was able to maintain my balance between the sport and studies, and I had always been focusing on my goals to reach.
As an Emirati, you are a source of pride for the country. How do you hope to inspire the youth of your country?
As an Emirati, I hope to show the next upcoming generation, or the youth of my country, that with passion, discipline, and hard work, they can achieve their dreams that they’re aiming for. I want to inspire them to pursue their goals, even if the path seems challenging, and to always believe or want to represent our country with pride in whatever field they choose.
Through your lifetime, who has been your biggest source of strength?
My biggest source of strength has been my parents, and of course, Sheikha Fatima Bint Hazza Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the owner of Al Shira Stables. Sheikha Fatima has been supporting me since I was 12 years old and has believed in me and seen the potential in me since the beginning. Her faith in my abilities has pushed me to strive for things I’d never imagined I’d achieve. For example, the goal was always for the UAE to compete in the Olympic Games, but if you’d told me I’d ride for the UAE in the Olympic Games at the age of 21, I wouldn’t have believed it. On the other side, my parents have been there with me every step of the way, through studies and sports, through every challenge, through every success, and they have always encouraged me to follow my dreams.
Your past has been incredible, your present is inspiring. What are your hopes and dreams for the future?
The hopes and the dreams are quite high for the future. One of the main things and one of the most challenging things is to maintain my results in the same way or try to even develop them in a better way, but to be always consistent, to love my horses, to give them the priority rather than just trying to win every show or every class, try to build up in your horses, in your strength, build up horses from the young horse categories up to the senior categories or the main Grand Prix, Nations Cup, or Olympics if it is even possible. It would be such a challenging thing, but it would be a dream to develop a horse from zero up to the World Equestrian Games, Olympic Games, and World Cup Finals, which are one of the biggest shows in the world.
For the next 4 years, I think it’s going to be one of the most interesting four years I’d face, to be honest, because the New Year’s goal is to qualify for the World Cup Finals in Switzerland, and in 2025 we have two big championships coming up, the World Equestrian Games and the Asian Games, and then in 2027 we’ve got the qualification for the Olympic Games in LA, and in 2028 if we had the chance to represent my country again in the Olympic Games in LA, that would be the main goal for the next four years.
