Under the patronage of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the eighth edition of the Crown Prince Camel Festival 2026 continued at the historic Taif camel racetrack, where Prince Fahd bin Jalawi bin Abdulaziz bin Musaid, chairman of the Saudi Camel Federation, crowned the winning camel owners in the 'Haqa'iq' category and the two Saudi production cups on Saturday, September 5.
The Saudi-owned camel 'Al-Zaeem', belonging to Mousa Al-Mousa, claimed the title of the second round and the Crown Prince Cup for 'Haqa'iq – Qaadan Open' with a time of 2:52.705 minutes, also recording the best time of the day. Meanwhile, Emirati camels dominated the first, third, and fourth rounds: 'Fakhr' owned by Hamad Al-Amri won the 'Bakar Open' cup in 2:57.651, 'Surooh' owned by Manaa Al-Shamsi took the 'Bakar General' cup in 2:57.699, and 'Jalmood' owned by Hamad Al-Amri secured the 'Qaadan General' cup in 2:57.673.
In the Saudi production rounds, 'Wa'ad' owned by Uqab Al-Dahasi won the fifth round and the 'Bakar General' cup with a time of 2:55.901, while 'Mnadi' owned by Nayef Al-Suhaili took the sixth round and the 'Qaadan General' cup in 3:00.189. The day featured 33 rounds in total, including 21 general rounds, 6 open rounds, and 6 rounds for the Crown Prince Cup, amid a large crowd.
During the morning session, Saudi camels secured first place in 17 of the 21 general rounds, with Qatari camels winning 3 and Emirati camels taking 1. The festival, which runs until September 13, offers prizes exceeding 50 million riyals and aims to preserve camel heritage and promote Saudi culture, while also generating significant economic returns through diverse activities.