14 jockeys from around the world were invited to the King Abdulaziz Racecourse for the International Jockeys Challenge on the 23rd of February. Ryusei Sakai represented Japan and finished sixth after four races.

He started with a 12th finish in the first race but bounced back to finish second in the second race. After that, he finished fifth and seventh earning a total of 12 points to finish sixth in the final table. Maryline Eon from France won the competition with a total of 25 points.

Sakai reflected on the competition saying "Thank you to all the people who provided us with this amazing opportunity in Saudi Arabia. It is a shame that I could not win a race but they were good horses. I had a bit hard time communicating with horses here."