| Princess Haya bint Al Hussein | |
|---|---|
| Princess Haya of Jordan; Sheikha Haya of Dubai | |
| Spouse | Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum |
| Issue | |
| Sheikha Al Jalila | |
| Father | Hussein of Jordan |
| Mother | Alia al-Hussein |
| Born | 3 May 1974 Amman, Jordan |
Haya bint Al Hussein, (born 3 May 1974) is one of King Hussein I of Jordan's daughters and a wife of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. She is known as Her Royal Highness Princess Haya of Jordan (Arabic: ھيا), a title derived from her father.
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Princess Haya studied in Britain, where she attended Badminton School for Girls in Bristol, Bryanston School in Dorset and later St Hilda's College, Oxford University, from which she graduated with a BA Honours degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE).
On 10 April 2004, Princess Haya wedded HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai[1]
On 2 December 2007 in Dubai, Princess Haya gave birth to her first child, HH Sheikha Al Jalila bint Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.[2] The baby's birth coincided with the United Arab Emirates' 36th celebration of its National Day.[3]
Princess Haya participated in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia representing Jordan in show jumping, where she was also her country’s flag bearer.[4]
Princess Haya was elected president of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) in 2006 for an initial four-year term [5] in the FEI’s first contested presidential race. She made history a second time in 2010, when dissatisfaction with her record led to her becoming the first sitting FEI president to be challenged in a re-election bid. She succeeded, however, in refuting the criticisms and in winning a second and final four-year term receiving an overwhelming mandate of 75 percent of the vote soundly defeating her most vocal critics.[6]
On 7 June 2008, New Approach, a three-year-old colt owned by Princess Haya, trained in Ireland by Jim Bolger and ridden by Kevin Manning, won the Derby Stakes. On 25 October 2008, her three-year-old colt, Raven's Pass, won the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic. After being named the European champion 2-year-old in 2007 and winning the 2008 Epsom Derby, New Approach was retired at the end of the 2008 racing season.[7]
In 2009, due to her contribution to the equine world, she was made the first Patron of Retraining of Racehorses. [8]
Princess Haya holds the position of President of the International Jordanian Athletes Cultural Association which was founded to provide athletes with incentives and support they require from sport clubs and national federations.
Princess Haya has engaged in a range of humanitarian activities and founded Tikyet Um Ali, the first Arab NGO dedicated to overcoming local hunger, in her native Jordan. She now chairs Dubai's International Humanitarian City which is now the world's largest operational center for the delivery of aid in emergencies. She was an ambassador for the World Food Programme 2005-2007, and then appointed a UN Messenger of Peace in July 2007 by Secretary-General Ban-Ky Moon. She was a founding member of former Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Global Humanitarian Forum based in Geneva, writes editorials and articles on hunger, nutrition and the UN Millennium Development Goals,[5][9] and serves on the boards of many non-profit organizations.
Before her re-election in 2010, Princess Haya faced persistent and highly public criticisms from some members of the FEI Bureau for behaving dictatorially and violating the organisation’s democratic principles and procedures to pursue her own agenda.[10] Some members of the FEI Bureau and the international press expressed the opinion that her behaviour reflected her background as a member of an unelected ruling family accustomed to unquestioning obedience, rather than an elected president of a democratic institution.[11] Her re-election campaign was opposed by both of her personally chosen vice presidents and a majority of the FEI Bureau members who had worked with her.[10]
In 2009, in the middle of the FEI’s campaign to eliminate doping and horse abuse in equestrian sport, Princess Haya’s husband and stepson were both convicted by the FEI for serious doping violations.[12] Princess Haya ceded presidential powers to a senior colleague for the FEI disciplinary processes on the matter. She later complained that the issue would be used to "injure and damage the reputations of myself and my family."[13]
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HH The Emir Sheikh
With Other Wives (unknowns)
HRH Princess Haya of Jordan HH The Late Emir |