Phil Georgiou’s Dubai World Cup Tours
25 Years of Laughter, Racing, and Unforgettable Moments
Above: SA On Tour, Let's Go Travel style!
Phil Georgiou of Let’s Go Travel will be hosting a group of South African racing enthusiasts for the 25th time in Dubai during the week of the 2025 Dubai World Cup, scheduled for Saturday, 5 April. With the exception of 2020, when the annual desert extravaganza was cancelled due to COVID-19, Phil and his group of colourful travellers have been a consistent presence at the event.
Due to their prominence during DWC week, including their contributions on the race days, Phil’s faithful band of racing fans was recognised last year with an award of acknowledgment by the Dubai Racing Club.
Their first racing trip took place in 1999. Phil brought a number of close friends, including Paul Lafferty, 'Chalky' White, and Claude 'Cannonball' Makins, to watch the Dubai World Cup, which was then valued at $USD5 million. It was won by Almutawakel (Machiavellian), ridden by Richard Hills, who secured a first win in the race for Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, under his Godolphin banner.
This was a time for significant growth and development in the region. Dubai was already a major trading hub, but Sheikh Mohammed was starting to focus on developing the economy away from its dependence on oil to promote real estate, financial serves and tourism. Large groups of engineers and construction staff, worked around the clock. State-of-the art malls and skyscrapers rose rapidly, road networks were upgraded and expanded and some of the world’s most exclusive hotels were erected in downtown Dubai and along the Gulf Strip.
Above: Stable visit with friends('Mr George' on the right)
Phil and several more mates attended the 2000 Dubai World Cup, aptly won by Godolphin’s Dubai Millenium. By the time 2001 rolled on, the group had grown to an official South African touring contingent on Let’s Go Travel’s bespoke, all-inclusive package.
Sheikh Mohammed, in conjunction with Dubai Racing, devised a lucrative entertainment programme during Dubai World Cup week, including visits to his Zabeel stables, a massive desert party complete with fireworks, belly dancers and camels; a 4x4 drive on the dunes; a lavish ceremony to host the big-race draw; a breakfast at Nad Al Sheba where racing fans could meet and chat with trainers, jockeys and celebrities, and VIP treatment on the race days.
Phil locked these initiatives into his package and said: “Let’s Go Travel’s motto has always been twofold. There are no strangers on our trips, just friends who haven’t met, and the success of our travels results from the efforts we put into our planning stages.”
When Mike de Kock ventured to Dubai with Ipi Tombe and Victory Moon for his breakthrough success on the international stage in 2003, the group had already grown to about 50 travellers, and a party of proportions ensued when both runners claimed the honours in front of a capacity crowd at Nad Al Sheba. In those days, Phil’s group was hosted in the racecourse’s ‘International village’, a large, lawned enclosure about 100m away from the winning post. He recalled: “We already had a base of regulars, including Paul Lafferty, James Goodman, Andrew Bon, Michael Aboud, Andrew Riddell and Marsh Shirtliff, but over the next few years that grew to include Gary and Jackie Joliffe, Mike Fullard, James and Lee-Anne Drew, Pierrick Maujean, Rouvaun Smit, Anthony Govender, Marius and Gill Mostert, Kom Naidoo, Roy and Mumsy Moodley, ‘Eddie The Mover’, Sally Bruss, the extended Sham family of New Turf Carriers, Owen Leibbrandt and others.
“By 2004 we were inundated with queries, and the next 10 years were crazy. De Kock was winning everything in sight, with good backup from Herman Brown (Jr.), who’d built his own, strong yard. Geoff Woodruff, Sean Tarry, Mike Azzie, Dean Maroun and Brian Wiid also had runners during some of the Carnivals and there was a period in which Alec Laird trained for one of the Sheikhs. The festivities in the international village were legendary. One night, even the quiet and always reserved Sabine Plattner and her daughter danced on the tables in celebration!”
The lively characters within the South African groups became as much a part of the carnival’s magic as the horses themselves. A mosaic of unique personalities and unforgettable moments emerged—stories that highlight the passion and camaraderie of the group and the joy of their collective experiences.
Above: Recent SA group on the staircase at Movenpick Hotel
Phil negotiated a deal with the Mövenpick Hotel in Bur Dubai – this five-star venue has been the city-central abode of choice - and later added to his package a Rooftop Braai at the Meydan Hotel, an evening braai at De Kock’s Blue Stables, and a luxury boat trip.
Above: A braai on the rooftop of Meydan hotel
He said: “In the few early years the travellers got around to the cycling club near the hotel to keep their fitness and energy levels up, but they got rattled with too much exercise and turned to partying. After the exciting days out, there are always people left in the Mövenpick’s night club and pubs, and they give it a full go. But despite some all-nighters, there is no sleeping in to recover. There are just so many fun things to do and so little time, and the shopping venues are world-class.”
Above: Luxury yacht trip from the Dubai Marina
Phil, Mike de Kock and Kim Shea walked the premises at Meydan when the new racecourse and hotel were under construction. “We came across a lovely dining area behind the parade ring and we all agreed that this would be a good place to race from. I put in an application to reserve a section of the dining room and, to our delight, Dubai Racing granted us seating room in that very spot, from the first Dubai World Cup held at the new track in March, 2010.”
Phil said that Sheikh Mohammed himself uses the parade-ring dining room for his private guests and recalled: “One night, the Sheikh stepped into the dining room from the parade ring with his entourage of at least 20 people behind him. He had to walk right by one of our tables, where Gary Citron was sitting on a chair closest to his passage. Gary, a few glasses of whiskey under his belt, jumped up and stuck his hand out, saying, ‘Hi Sheikh, I am Gary Citron from Durban, South Africa. That’s Citron without the ‘E’!’ The Sheikh, in surprise as this was not something you’d expect from an ordinary member of the public, shook Gary’s hand and smiled. If this had happened outside the dining room, he would’ve been whisked away by the Sheikh’s security detail before he got close!”
On another occasion, two Australian ladies found their way into the Sheikh’s desert party and, without an invitation, made themselves at home among the South Africans. They said they were tired of walking, took their shoes off and put them on the dinner table. When they got up after a while to see if they could get closer to the Sheikh’s group, South African Eblan David took their shoes and dropped them into a large bowl of soup at the buffet counter. The Aussies left the party, barefoot!
Eblan, the father of jockey Derrick David, was responsible for another memorable moment. Two other ladies appeared in the Meydan dining room one evening and Phil told: “They were two of the most beautiful women we’d ever seen, drop dead gorgeous. We were challenging each other to approach them, but nobody could muster the courage. Then Eblan, a tall man with a large cross around his neck and a heavy Southern Joburg accent, said, ‘Watch me cuzzies, I’ll go say hello!’ He made his approach and asked where the girls were from. One said, ‘We are from Milan, Italy’, to which Eblan responded, ‘Well, wouldn’t you know, I am Eblano from Milano!’ We burst out laughing!”
Gary Citron also holds the record for lamb chop consumption at the braai held on the rooftop of the Meydan Hotel, overlooking the track. He once devoured 50 chops in a single evening, a tally that would have been bigger had there been more chops to dish up.
Meat was always vacuum-packed and flown in from South Africa for the De Kock yard’s braai evenings. “Mike’s trainer friends including Charlie Appleby and Mark Johnstone were regulars. They always complimented the braai masters, Steven Jell and Declan Cronin, for the quality of the meat. Jessica Slack attended a few of those braai’s too, she liked to prepare the salads. Traditionally, this was another social event that nobody wanted to miss because they could get close to Mike’s horses and meet some of the world’s leading racing celebrities. We hope to revive it again from next year.”
Above: Shea Shea (Christophe Soumillon) after the 2013 Al Quoz Sprint
When De Kock and Christophe Soumillon won the 2013 Group 1 Al Quoz Sprint with owners Brian Joffe and Myron Berzack’s Shea Shea (National Emblem), there must have been over 100 South Africans on course. “It took two bus loads to get the group to Meydan that night. We were expecting a great night for South Africa and it happened. When Christophe returned to the winner’s enclosure, many South Africans had stormed into the lead-in paddock to surround the horse. We’d brought a big South African flag, and Christophe draped it around him to deafening cheers and applause, teary eyes and the attention of the world’s racing media. Mike de Kock called it one of the greatest moments of his career, and we, the fans, treasure similar memories.
“I thanked Christophe for his display of the flag and asked, ‘you’re a Belgian-born Frenchman and you’re promoting South Africa?’ He responded, ‘When I ride for the South African team, I am fully a part of the team!’
Perhaps Christophe enjoyed his relationship with the South Africans so much because he, too, is never scared of a good party. There was an occasion when he gave Mike’s assistant, Trevor Brown, a few thousand dollars to book the Penthouse Suite at the five-star Shangri-La Hotel. Trevor also stocked up on champagne, vodka and wine for a good celebration of the evening’s winners.
Phil recounted: “The penthouse was split on different levels with a jacuzzi on the top floor and winding staircases to the lounge and reception areas. There were people everywhere and we must have consumed record volumes of booze and eats. There was music booming through the penthouse. Halfway through the night Christophe and Frankie Dettori announced that they’d be the cabaret act for the evening. We helped them to move the chairs in the lounge, replaced them with small coffee tables and the two jockeys got on. They performed their version of ‘The Full Monty’.
Phil related: "That same night, Mike de Kock gave jockey Pat Cosgrave his version of open-air flight simulation from the balcony, while Bernard Fayd’Herbe realised he needed inflatable tubes to stay afloat in the jacuzzi. Jehan Malherbe pulled off a trapeze act so impressive it could have earned him a spot in the Cirque du Soleil cast!
“As Jehan, wine in hand, waddled down the winding staircase to the lower level, something unexpected happened. For reasons unknown, he placed one foot to the left, where no wooden steps existed—only air. To the gasps of onlookers, he executed a flawless somersault from a free-fall start, landing gracefully on his feet without spilling a drop of wine."
“Next year, Phil said, he expects to see an increase in tourist numbers. ‘Our group has been smaller since Mike and Herman closed their UAE stables, but De Kock Racing has expressed their intention to return to the desert with a select string in 2026. UK-based South African Dylan Cunha successfully tested the water this year and will also be back with several more runners, and Herman is eyeing a comeback in Dubai. The good times haven’t stopped, but they’re going to be even bigger and better when our local trainers race at the Carnival again. We may also see the world’s best horse, Romantic Warrior, in action at Meydan next season. I believe we’re on the verge of a revival!”
Mail Phil, phil@letsgotravel.net.za for more information.