The Crown Prince Camel Festival opens tomorrow with more than SAR 50 million in prizes and 248 races, introducing camel beauty competitions for the first time after a previous edition that set four Guinness World Records

Taif | BETH

Under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, the eighth edition of the Crown Prince Camel Festival will begin tomorrow, Thursday, at the Taif Camel Racing Field and continue from September 3 to 13.

Prize money exceeds SAR 50 million, while the program features 248 races across the Haqayiq, Laqaya, Jatha’a, Thanaya, Heil and Zamoul categories.

The festival also includes production races reserved for Saudi participants, who will compete for the Crown Prince Camel Festival Cup, worth SAR 500,000.

For the first time, this year’s edition will feature camel beauty competitions covering the Shuqh, Sha’al, Homr, Sufr, Majaheem, Wudh and Asayel camel categories, adding a new dimension to the festival.

Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Minister of Sport and President of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee, expressed his appreciation to the Crown Prince for his patronage, saying it reflects the continued support for camel racing as an integral part of Saudi Arabia’s cultural and national heritage and strengthens its local and international presence.

World Records

The eighth edition follows a previous festival that achieved four Guinness World Records, including the participation of 21,637 camels, reinforcing its status as the world’s largest camel racing festival.

Participation increased by 93.5% compared with the first edition, while the total number of camels taking part across the previous seven editions exceeded 100,000, reflecting the festival’s continued growth and expanding sporting and heritage significance.