It may be one of the UAE’s oldest, more enduring traditions, yet not many foreigners, or even young Emiratis, could tell you much about the sport of falconry.
It is an activity, though, that has, over the past 10 years, started to thrive again in Emirati culture, thanks to a generation of natives keeping this branch of their heritage alive and kicking.
Surprisingly, it is a young generation, too.
Last week was the end of the Fazza Championships for Falconry, a competition that extends to more than four months, attracts more than 7,000 participants and acknowledges the efforts of the country’s best falconers.
This season’s big winner was Khalifa bin Mejren, a 46-year-old Emirati who was honoured with a Medal of Excellence by the Hamdan bin Mohammed Heritage Centre at last Thursday’s awards ceremony.
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The falcons taking part in the competition are broadly separated into Farakh (under one year of age) and Jirnas (over one year), and each category has races for the Saker (Falcon) and Shaheen (Peregrine).
Bin Mejren’s birds excelled in both, reaching the final “Noukhba” competition, which consists of races over 400 metres.
Once released the birds seek the live prey or “Tilwah” that is attached to a small remote controlled plane.
“Thanks to the will of God, I won both races in Noukhba,” Bin Mejren said.
“A month ago I won in the Farakh category and my brother Hamad won the Jirnas category, and this time I won.”
Despite windy conditions at the start, the weather had settled by the time of the Noukhba races (“fair on all birds”) and Bin Mejren’s falcons performed in record-breaking fashion.
“They race in straight line from A to B, with the wind,” he said. “At the finish line there is a very sensitive laser machine that will measure the precise time from the bird leaving your glove to crossing the finish line.
“We managed 16.4 seconds for Farakh and 16.5 seconds for Jirnas. It’s the first time this has happened in any competition.”
For Bin Mejren, who has been involved in falconry since the age of 10, such results are the results of months of preparation.
“Training the bird in its early days requires more effort, it’s still young, still untrained,” he said.
“You have to train it and teach it to respond to your call. Then you have to see if the bird is good enough to race. A racing falcon has to be exceptional. As a trainer, you have to find its strengths and focus on it.”
Training periods for a new (Farakh) bird can last between four to six months and only then can its ability be gauged.
“As you enter it in competitions, the falcon will show if he is going to be competitive,” Mejren said. “How long a bird stays with you depends on the will of God. I have a bird now that is six years old, almost seven and is still a contender.”
The falconry season starts in early September and runs through to the end of February. The birds then get a break but they do not just take to the skies.
“Everybody has their own ideas of where to keep the birds,” Mejren said. “Some put them in an open area with training space, some keep them in a more cooled area.
“There are many options, we see what suits them best, but it’s important that they get a lot of sunlight, too.”
Throughout the summer, the birds are afforded constant attention. “The rest time is six or seven months,” Mejren said. “Each owner has to show his expertise with the type of food, vitamins, how many times to feed the bird and keeping an eye on its weight.”
Then it is time to go through the cycle again.
“In early September as the weather cools down, we take the Jirnas out again, while the new Farakh go through their training,” Mejren said.
“When we get to November we know the heat has gone. Handling the heat and the humidity is very important.”
Mejren said he believes the number of participants in the races, which began 10 years ago, is the best indication of the sport’s success.
“We never thought this race could one day grow to this level of competition,” he said.
“Now we see far more people entering these competitions, showing their love for this sport. the increase in number of races is thanks to the generosity of our leaders. At one point we had only one race a year, then two and three. Now we have seven, which could get to 10.”
Modern falconry is no less challenging or interesting than horse racing or even athletics, according to Mejren.
“Even foreigners now find it exciting,” he said. “In the past you could have a second or more between the birds, today the timers and distances are so precise the birds have to be separated by thousandths of a second. This shows the strength of competition.”
akhaled@thenational.ae
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