Beauty contest to attract Arabian horses — and their fans
Las Vegas is a 300-horse town this weekend, at the very least, until the Arabian Breeders’ World Cup trots out of the South Point Equestrian Center Sunday night.
Beginning today at noon, purebred Arabians compete on beauty, grace and breeding for $50,000 in prize money. Riderless competitions will be offered in four categories — representing junior and senior males and stallions.
“Think a dog show with horses,” says Taryl Pearson, show manager for the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Arabian Horse Breeders’ Alliance.
According to Pearson, Arabians are a breed apart.
“They are known as the oldest domesticated breed and the most beautiful,” Pearson says. “So you get a lot of people from around the world to pay a lot of money for them.”
No horses will be auctioned off at the show. However, offers are frequently made by moneyed attendees.
“We call it private treaty,” Pearson says. “They’ll come and view the horses and contact the owner.”
Pearson says that Arabians have fetched more than $6 million, owing in part to hundreds of thousands of dollars in prizes awarded by some Arabian shows.
“Thoroughbreds are in the spotlight due to televised racing,” she says, “but the Arabian industry is very active.”
Pearson says she expects that more than 10,000 Arabian fans from around the globe won’t be able to say nay.
Winning whinniers will be announced on Sunday at 4 p.m.
Contact reporter Corey Levitan at clevitan@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0456.