Top level showjumper Sameh El Dahan, who has flown the British flag for the last five years, has switched nationality back to his home country Egypt.

During his time riding for Britain Sameh made two Nations Cup appearances, at Spruce Meadows in 2023 and 2024, and he has continued to be a regular on the CSI5* circuit, competing in grands prix around the world.

Sameh represented Egypt at the 2014 and 2018 World Equestrian Games but switched nationality to Great Britain in 2021 following a dispute with Egypt’s federation over selection for the Tokyo Olympics, after he helped his country qualify for the Games.

“Today I return back to represent my home country of Egypt,” said Sameh, on 2 June.

“Having seen the efforts the new administration of the Egyptian federation have been putting in place for the last few years, I feel now is the time to return and to do my part to help my team to return to the top of the international stage once again.

“I was honoured to carry the British flag for that stage of my career. Whilst it was a brief period, I’d like to think that it was a great one and I made all of you proud, especially my final bow for Team GB being a winning one, taking the CSI2* grand prix in Mullingar.”

Sameh said he has “so many precious memories that he will keep forever in his heart” and added “how much he was welcomed in my time of need by such a great country”.

“In saying that I’m also excited to see what’s next for us as a team and returning to ride and compete for Egypt is a feeling I have missed,” he said.

“I would like to thank all members of the British equestrian federation, chef d’equipe Di Lampard for all the opportunities and all my teammates in Team GB for their support.

“Thank you everyone for the continued support and following us on our journey and this new exciting part of it, [I’m] very grateful to have it.”

Sameh has achieved the required qualifying results for this summer’s World Championships in Aachen. As he did not represent Britain at a championships and has not jumped on a team competition since September 2024, he is eligible to represent Egypt at Aachen. National federations must submit their nominated entries to the FEI by 6 July.

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In Cairo, not far from one of the ancient wonders of the world is a street that Tegan Joke Van der Post and her team call The Gates of Hell.

Here horses stand tied and tacked up all day, Joke says, in case someone wants to ride. Most are emaciated, many have saddle sores the like of which most people have never seen. Others are made to work with broken legs, dumped by the roadside or out in the desert with catastrophic injuries, left to die.

“You need to see what happens here,” Joke told H&H. “It’s horrific, it’s constant, it’s everywhere. You never forget what you see here; it will haunt you for ever.”

Joke is from the Netherlands and a lifelong horsewoman. She grew up in an animal sanctuary and has been rescuing horses ever since. She spent 10 years living in Majorca, running a horse rescue there.

“I’d always been aware of the situation in Egypt, but never had the chance to do anything about it,” she said. “I didn’t have the time or the money, I had my children; I just couldn’t.”

Joke supported Egyptian charities, “But then Covid hit,” she said. “There were no tourists who could take medicine out there, and the horses were just dying in the streets. I decided that they needed me the most.”

For a while, Joke divided her time between Egypt and Majorca.

“But as time went by, I couldn’t enjoy my life as I couldn’t unsee what I’d seen,” she said. “I couldn’t relax as every minute there would be a horse here breaking its leg and no one helping it. So I decided I needed to do more. I made longer trips, then I was exposed to rabies so couldn’t go home. I realised that if I really wanted to make a difference, I needed to set up a hospital.”

Joke sold everything she had and used her life savings to move to Cairo to set up the Good Karma Sanctuary. The hospital now has three full-time vets and is open for emergencies 24 hours a day.

“Before I came here, I was aware it wasn’t a good place but even being aware and seeing pictures, when it happens right in front of you, it’s shocking,” she said. “I thought it would be like Majorca, with a lot of good horses and then a bad one but here there are thousands of them in dire need. I bought 15 or 16 horses on that first trip as their owners were so horrible; some had broken legs and I bought them so I could put them down.”

Joke said 90% of the horses she sees are there for tourists.

“I don’t understand how tourists can just ride past a bunch of dead horses on their way to the Pyramids,” she said. “It’s not cruelty behind closed doors, it’s everywhere you look. But no one speaks up. They come to the Pyramids and want to take their selfies, and they’re oblivious. If the tourists insisted on healthy horses, this wouldn’t happen. It’s difficult as a foreigner, coming in to tell these people what to do but if it hit them in the wallet – there are a couple of good stables where the horses look magnificent and they make a lot more money; so I hope eventually the others will follow their example.”

Joke said the numbers do not add up; horses can be bought for €200-300, but feeding one adequately costs about €200 per month.

“So if you feed it for about €20 per month and it lasts six to eight months, you then buy another one,” she said. “There’s a lot of ignorance but in the end it comes down to numbers. It’s cheaper to buy a new one than care for the one you have.”

Joke said many of the horses live tied in a nearby street, “living with their saddles and bridles on”, so they are ready for the tourists to ride, “and when the horse dies, they put the tack on the next one”.

“The horses have huge saddle sores,” she said. “Girth sores too, with pus coming out of them, some have broken legs, and broken necks, from the metal chains they’re tied up with.

“There’s a lot of colic from the cheap food they get, they can be worked 20 hours a day. And it doesn’t matter if they’ve got colic or a broken leg; if they can stand, they can work. I see it every day.”

Joke said some progress is being made; police will tell her if they see groups coming back with two people on one horse, so her team can go into the desert to rescue the injured or sick one left behind.

“When you are thankful you can euthanise a horse, you know how bad it is,” she said.

“We call it hell. There’s one street with a long wall where the worst owners tie their horses, which we call the Gates of Hell. This has been life-changing; I couldn’t see it and not do anything.”

Joke’s website is open for donations, but almost more important, she says, is getting the message out there.

“It’s not just money I need, it’s support,” she said. “I need people to speak up; to sign petitions and write to the tourism ministry, to share social media posts, and people to rehome horses. I can’t save them all. My focus is making sure the ones working here are as healthy as they can be.”

Joke said the picture of the horse above is a common sight.

“How bad does the world have to be for that to be normal?” she said. “People ask if I get used to it but for me it gets harder with each horse; another one I’m too late for.”

Charities helping horses in Egypt also include:

• Brooke
• Egypt Equine Aid
• Prince Fluffy Kareem

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An Olympic rider who failed a dope test and claimed he “had never heard of cannabis” – before blaming another country for “sabotage” — has had his Tokyo Games result disqualified. 

Egyptian showjumper Mohamed Talaat, 33, tested positive for carboxy THC, a metabolite of cannabis, in a sample taken on 22 August 2019 at the African Games in Morocco. Carboxy THC and cannabis are prohibited in competition, and the rider’s A sample contained an estimated concentration of 608 ng/mL, which is greater than the decision limit of 180 ng/mL.

The African Games organising committee originally dealt with Talaat’s disciplinary process and when he was notified of the failed sample on 16 September 2019, no provisional suspension was imposed. On 14 February 2020 a partial decision was issued by the committee, resulting in his results from the African Games being disqualified.

Owing to “extensive delays” in the disciplinary process, including the rider’s request for his B sample to be analysed – which did not take place until January 2020 – the disciplinary process was transferred to the FEI. Talaat was notified by the FEI on 28 February 2020 of the violation of the human anti-doping rule, and an FEI Tribunal hearing was held on 1 October 2021.

In his written submissions Talaat told the Tribunal he had never knowingly smoked, inhaled or otherwise used cannabis during the African Games, and said before the event, the team manager verified with the hotel about ensuring compliance with the anti-doping rules.

The rider was convinced the only plausible explanation for the positive sample was “inadvertent exposure” to cannabis during team visits to the hotel’s shisha bar in Rabat. On 20 August 2019, he and his fellow athletes visited the bar, where other riders were also present. Following drinks, Talaat ordered shisha but “did not stay very long in order to prepare for the next day’s competition”. After the visit to the bar he reported “he felt sick and believed he may have food poisoning as he was up all night and unable to sleep”, and as a result changed hotels the following morning.

The Tribunal heard from Talaat that smoking shisha is very popular in Qatar, and is a common way for professional athletes to relax. He also said although shisha is very popular in Morocco, a substance called “kief” (Moroccan cannabis) is often used instead or in combination with shisha tobacco, unlike Egypt. He claimed “all precautions were taken” to make sure only shisha tobacco would be smoked by himself and his team.

Dr Borrey, an expert witness for Talaat, stated in her report that Talaat’s exposure to cannabis most probably occurred “unconsciously” during visits to the shisha bar, and even though different values of the drug were detected in some of the other riders’ samples [Sheikh Ali Al Thani and Bassem Mohammed], they could have been exposed to a “similar dose” but had a different metabolic reaction causing varying results.

Talaat stated he is not a cannabis or drug user, adding that it is against his religion and upbringing. He said using a substance such as cannabis, which “does not even enhance performance”, at such an important event, would have been “simply stupid”. He said he had “never heard of cannabis and carboxy THC”, so was “shocked” when he received the results of the adverse finding. Talaat considered it “very implausible” he and his fellow athletes would knowingly put themselves and the team in “such a volatile situation”. He had never tested positive for any prohibited substance, and therefore concluded “keif” must have been deliberately added to his shisha without his knowledge to “influence [the Egyptian team’s] performance in the competition”.

At the African Games, Morocco was the winner of showjumping individual and team final. Talaat believed the results allowed Morocco as a host country to exhibit “exemplary results on its own territory”, having been absent from the Games since 1978. He added that at the time of the event, the Egyptian team were considered most likely to win the showjumping. Consequently he deemed “the stakes were high enough” for the Moroccan team to consider a strategy to gain a clear advantage and is the reason why their shishas were “tampered with a prohibited substance”.

To find out “who had tampered with the shishas”, and whether the person or group was connected to or acting on instruction of the Moroccan team, Talaat confirmed he hired a Moroccan lawyer to file a criminal complaint with the Moroccan authorities. The rider stated that due to the exceptional circumstances, no merits of the Tribunal proceedings should take place until a decision was taken on the criminal complaint, and if necessary apply a retrospective sanction on the outcome of the criminal investigation to assess whether sabotage occurred. It is not clear if the criminal complaint has been finalised.

In its written submissions to the Tribunal, the FEI stated that the violation is a “strict liability” offence, established simply by proof that the prohibited substance was present in Talaat’s sample, and the B sample also confirmed this. The presence of the substance was not disputed by Talaat and therefore the FEI submitted that it had discharged its burden of establishing the rider had violated the rules.

The FEI noted Talaat’s explanation of sabotage by another team, but as the rider did not provide any evidence this was deemed by the FEI “mere speculation”. The FEI requested more information and explanations but Talaat did not respond. Despite Talaat’s claims of “innocent exposure” to cannabis, the FEI considered that even if passive smoking shisha provided a plausible explanation for the adverse finding, Talaat had not submitted any substantiated evidence of such a scenario.

The FEI submitted that Talaat could have perceived the risk of going to the shisha bar and smoking shisha during the event, and by doing so he had not exercised “utmost caution” in his duty of care. The FEI believed he exposed himself to a risk he was already aware of, therefore was at fault for the violation, and requested the Tribunal impose a two-year period of ineligibility.

During the hearing’s closing proceedings, Talaat raised concerns that his rights of defence had been violated by not having his case heard in a timely manner, and the delay was not attributable to him. He claimed “opportunity costs” were suffered throughout the proceedings owing to a two-year period of “immense uncertainty”. Initially he voluntarily did not compete, but since his case did not seem to progress he eventually resumed riding. He claimed the uncertainty negatively affected his results, mental wellbeing and health, and the delay should be reflected in the outcome of the proceedings and a significant reduction in sentence would be appropriate as he had to wait “10 times longer” for his case to be dealt with than what the World Anti-Doping Agency considers timely.

The FEI acknowledged the proceedings had “taken some time” but submitted this was largely due to the fact the source was not established and the arguments put forward were examined and addressed in detail.

The Tribunal considered Talaat’s suggestion of sabotage but noted no corroborating evidence was submitted and such conclusions “could not be formed”. The Tribunal found the rider’s witnesses provided “no clear facts or findings” of sabotage, other than hypothetical claims and therefore no Talaat had failed to establish how the prohibited substance entered his system.

The Tribunal ruled that the FEI had established an anti-doping rule violation to the comfortable satisfaction of the Tribunal, and ordered a two-year period of ineligibility from 17 June 2021. This means all his results from 17 June 2021 are disqualified. This includes his results obtained with Darshan at the Tokyo Games, resulting in the disqualification of the Egyptian showjumping team. The team were 11th in the team qualifying competition, but only the top 10 teams went through to the final.

Talaat was fined 7,500 CHF (£5,981), and must contribute 2,000 CHF (£1,595) towards FEI costs. The rider can appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration of Sport, within 21 days.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

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Animal lover and ex-MP Ann Widdecombe has toured the Giza pyramids area in Cairo to see the plight of horses facing starvation there amid the ongoing political unrest.

As Egypt’s visitor numbers have plummeted, hundreds of emaciated carriage horses that are usually used for tourist excursions are now suffering severe malnutrition.

Around 48 per cent fewer tourists visited the country in the last quarter of 2013 compared to the same period in 2012, leaving many of Cairo’s carriage drivers without an income and unable to afford feed.

Miss Widdecombe visited Giza with the British animal charity the Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad (SPANA) to see their work helping malnourished horses, and travelled to an area on the outskirts of the city that has become a dumping ground for horse carcasses.

She said: “Tourists will stay away from Egypt until political stability returns and in the meantime horses will suffer.

“It has been truly shocking and heartbreaking to see the plight of horses here, especially the area that’s become a makeshift horse graveyard. I commend charities like SPANA for taking action to feed Giza’s horses, saving their lives and securing the future incomes of carriage drivers reliant on the tourist trade.”

SPANA is funding an emergency programme to provide basic rations for 200 horses per day.

Jeremy Hulme, SPANA’s chief executive, said: “Thousands of people rely on the tourism industry for their income in Egypt and can’t afford to feed their families at the moment, never mind their animals. This is why our emergency feeding programme is absolutely vital to help keep animals alive until tourism returns.

“Tragically, many horses and camels in the area have already died; they are truly the forgotten victims of this crisis.”

The feeding programme is being run in association with SPANA’s partner organisation the Egyptian Society of Animal Friends.

Warning: this video contains footage you may find distressing

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The plight of working horses in Egypt continues, four months after political unrest caused tourism there to grind to a standstill.

And charities are appealing to the British public for help.

In February H&H reported that 2,000 Egyptian equines were suffering after the uprisings left owners unable to earn a living to feed their animals (news, 24 February).

Susie Nassar from the Egyptian Society for Mercy to Animals (ESMA) said: “We have been feeding the malnourished horses since 13 February, when the crisis started.”

She said there had been a gradual decrease of the “really emaciated horses” in the past couple of months. But there were “at least 300 starving horses” that still needed help.

Around 3,500 bags of food were given out by ESMA during April and May, but feed is still needed and donations are decreasing.

Medical treatment — including de-worming and first aid — has been administered thanks to ESMA.

The charity also aims to teach the community to feed horses and how to be compassionate.

“There are still around 50 horses that need de-worming and we would like to buy padded saddle cloths for those who have no respite from heavy leather saddles on their saddle sores,” said Ms Nassar.

The Brooke equine welfare charity, working with The Donkey Sanctuary and the Egyptian Society for Animal Friends, has also been involved.

The Brooke’s Karen Reed said: “We launched an emergency response programme for equines in Cairo, Edfu, Aswan and Luxor after the crisis. This ran until late April and more than 90,000kg of feed was distributed and more than 28,000 veterinary treatments were given.”

She added: “Some animals remain in a poor state of health, particularly in the area of the Pyramids, and a mobile veterinary team visits the area twice weekly. We are also running a special six-month education programme to train owners in better equine care.”

Visit: www.thebrooke.org and www.esmaegypt.org

This news story was first published in the current issue of Horse & Hound (7 July, 2011)

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At least 2,000 Egyptian equines are suffering as tourism has ground to a halt in many regions following the recent political uprisings.

Their owners are unable to earn a living to feed their animals.

Charities, including The Brooke, which has launched an urgent appeal, are calling for help.

Five Brooke teams are treating animals used for tourism in the pyramid area.

Dr Ammr Mahmoud, one of the Brooke vets, said: “We have treated and fed more than 1,000 animals so far.”

Owner Hamada Hussien, said: “This is the first time my horse has eaten properly since the start of the demonstrations. My horse was starving and not able to work. This has saved his life and my only source of living.”

Riding instructor Beth Sartain, who has lived in Cairo for five years, is also helping to fund-raise with the Egyptian Society for Mercy to Animals.

She has set up a collection point to which owners can bring their horses and 450 were fed last week.

“We gave as much feed as we considered appropriate considering the condition of the animal,” she added.

This news story was first published in the current issue of Horse & Hound (24 February, 2011)

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Dressage rider Andrew Gould is stuck in Egypt after all flights were cancelled due to the volcanic ash.

Andrew is on holiday with his wife Polly and their two children, as well as Katie Price, who he trains, and her family.

“We were meant to come home today (Tuesday 20 April),” Polly told H&H. “But we have no idea how or when we’ll be able to get back to the UK — people are saying it could be weeks.

“We are looking into options at the moment and we are discussing finding a private charter with everyone at the resort, but that would cost about £1,000 each. We’re losing money every day as our insurance doesn’t cover natural disasters.

“We left for Egypt just after the Nationals for a nice easy break. We’ve had a lovely holiday out here with the kids, the weather’s been gorgeous and it’s been very relaxing but now Andrew’s anxious to get back to his horses and competition.

“It’s really stressful. We have grooms looking after the horses, they are all fine and it’s good for them to have a break but Andrew has shows coming up, his teaching commitments and the London Marathon on Sunday (25 April) and we just don’t know if he’ll be back.

“At this rate Andrew might have to start training camels!”

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now