5 things you didn't know about camel racing

As the charity camel race gets underway at Chepstow this afternoon, we've put together a list of 5 things you probably didn't know about the unique sport:

• Camel racing is a popular sport in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates
• The animals can reach 40mph in short sprints and maintain a speed of 25mph for an hour
• Because of the weight difference between male and female camels, they generally race separately

• A robot jockey is commonly used in camel racing as a replacement for human jockeys
• It's not known when camel racing first began as a sport, but on the Arabian Peninsula it can be traced to at least the 7th century