Dubai crown prince buys camel for record 2.7 mln dlrs

Abu Dhabi - The crown prince of the United Arab Emirates of Dubai has bought a female camel for a record 2.72 million dollars, an organiser at a camel beauty pageant said on Monday.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashed al-Maktoum "bought camels... worth 16.5 million dirhams (4.49 million dollars), including a female camel... for 10 million dirhams (2.72 million dollars)," Hamad bin Kardoum al-Amiri said.

Amiri, quoted by the official WAM news agency, made the remarks on the sidelines of the nine-day beauty pageant which opened on Wednesday in the UAE capital of Abu Dhabi.

More than 10,000 camels -- including females which are the fasting racing camels -- from across the Gulf are competing for prize money totalling around 9.5 million dollars. One hundred cars are also up for grabs.

The contest is part of a camel festival in Abu Dhabi that aims to celebrate and preserve the region's cultural heritage.

Oil-rich Abu Dhabi, one of seven emirates that make up the UAE federation, produced the world's first test-tube purebred camel and has begun using remote-controlled robot riders in its camel races in place of child jockeys. -- AFP

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