Cigar storms to victory in the inaugural Dubai World Cup on 28 March 1996, securing a record-breaking $2.4 million prize. The race signaled the start of Dubai’s enduring pursuit of world records and global firsts.
It is hard not to think back to another time — not so long ago — when the city was redefining global modernity.
I lived in Dubai in the mid-1980s and again in the neighboring emirate of Sharjah in the mid-2000s, and when I wasn’t based in the Emirates I returned frequently on news assignments.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, two buildings dominated Dubai’s skyline: the World Trade Center in the left background and the Hyatt Galleria in the right background.
From 1979 through the late 1990s, the skyline evolved slowly and was largely defined by a single landmark — the World Trade Centre, standing at the start of the Dubai–Abu Dhabi Road — a far cry from the forest of towers and futuristic buildings that now define the city’s skyline.
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum attends the inaugural Dubai World Cup horse race alongside international racing enthusiasts—an event reflecting the vision and leadership behind Dubai’s rise to world-class status.
Beyond setting a new benchmark for prize money, the race took place during the inaugural Dubai Shopping Festival, when visitors from around the world flocked to the city to purchase luxury goods at significant discounts. At the time, Dubai had just five shopping malls — modest by today’s standards.
Clad in a traditional dishdasha and clutching shopping bags, a bungee jumper plunges from a crane high above Dubai Creek in a daring promotional stunt for the Dubai Shopping Festival.
What many people don’t realize is that this record-setting prize marked the start of a broader pursuit — a city intent on redefining limits, from the tallest building in the world to more unconventional feats like the largest chopsticks. Today, Dubai holds more than 400 Guinness World Records.
The Chicago Beach Hotel, a popular landmark in the 1970s and 1980s, is seen here dwarfed by the rising Jumeirah Beach Hotel development and the early construction of the Burj Al Arab. These projects, launched in the late 1990s, would mark the beginning of a dramatic transformation of Dubai’s skyline. The Chicago Beach Hotel was demolished in 1997.
Here are additional photographs I took while on assignment covering the inaugural Dubai Shopping Festival and World Cup horse race in March 1996 — a moment when that transformation was just beginning to take shape.
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s horse stables set a new benchmark in luxury, with air-conditioned stalls and state-of-the-art training facilities.
In 1996, Dubai’s skyline and coastline bore little resemblance to the city of today—largely devoid of high-rises and artificial beachfront developments, it stood as a modest Gulf port poised on the brink of an extraordinary transformation.
The inaugural Dubai Shopping Festival marked a turning point for Dubai, helping transform the emirate into a global destination for luxury shopping and signaling the beginning of its rapid rise on the world stage.
At the inaugural Dubai World Cup in 1996, people from all walks of life came together—from Dubai’s ruling elite and well-heeled Western expatriates to foreign laborers—all gathered to witness a defining moment in the city’s rise onto the world stage.
Beyond the Dubai World Cup horse race and the Dubai Shopping Festival, a range of spectator events captivated audiences, including traditional bull-on-bull contests brought from the Indian subcontinent.
