Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed is delighted to have finally won a Melbourne Cup after 30 years of trying.

Charlie Appleby, the first British trainer to win the Cup, spoke to Sheikh Mohammed shortly after Cross Counter won Tuesday's race.

“He was delighted,” Appleby told reporters on Wednesday.

“It's a race we've been trying to win for many years now.”

Sheikh Mohammed's words – in Arabic – to Appleby were “well done, well done, well done”.

Cross Counter's win in the $7.3 million race fulfilled the long-coveted Cup dream of one of the world's richest men.

He first tried to win the Melbourne Cup back in 1988, and through his Godolphin racing powerhouse since 1998.

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