Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in the UK and steeplechasing in the US. Jump racing can be further divided into hurdling and steeplechasing.
Horse racing is the second largest spectator sport in Great Britain, and one of the longest established, with a history dating back many centuries. According to a report by the British Horseracing Authority it generates £3.39 billion total direct and indirect expenditure in the British economy, of which £1.05 billion is from core racing industry expenditure, and the major horse racing events such as Royal Ascot and Cheltenham Festival are important dates in the British and international sporting and society calendar.
National Hunt racing, also known as Jump Racing, is a form of horse racing particular to France, Great Britain and Ireland, that requires horses to jump over fences and ditches.
Aintree Racecourse is a racecourse in Aintree, Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, bordering the city of Liverpool. The racecourse is the venue for the Grand National steeplechase, which takes place annually in April over three days. Aintree also holds meetings in May, October (Sunday), November and December.
Newbury Racecourse is a racecourse and events venue in the civil parish of Greenham, adjoining the town of Newbury in Berkshire, England. It has courses for flat races and over jumps. It hosts one of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat races, the Lockinge Stakes.
Leicester Racecourse is a horse racing course in Oadby, Leicestershire, about three miles south of the city centre.
Cheltenham Racecourse at Prestbury Park, near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, hosts National Hunt horse racing. Racing at Cheltenham took place in 1815, but comprised only minor flat races on Nottingham Hill. The first racing on Cleeve Hill was on Tuesday 25 August 1818 when the opening race was won by Miss Tidmarsh, owned by Mr E Jones. It was a year later when the results were printed in the Racing Calendar when a programme of flat racing was watched by the Duke of Gloucester who donated 100 Guineas to the prize fund. By 1831 races were being staged at Prestbury, although not on the present day course. In 1834 the Grand Annual Steeplechase was run for the first time. In 1839 Lottery won the Grand Annual having previously won the first Aintree Grand National. In 1840 the meeting transferred to Andoversford for a brief period, only to return to Prestbury in 1847. 1902 was a notable year in that racing moved to the present course at Prestbury Park. The new stands were completed in 1914 and the present day Festival races, as we know them, began to take shape. The Cheltenham Gold Cup, over 3 ¼ miles, was run for the first time in 1924, with the Champion Hurdle following in 1927.
Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse racing during afternoons, evenings and on weekends, and also hosts many non-racing events such as trade shows, wedding fairs, toy fairs, car shows and auctions, property shows, concerts, and even some private events. It was requisitioned by the War Department from 1940-1945 for World War II. The venue has hosted bands such as UB40, Madness, Girls Aloud, Spandau Ballet and Simply Red. The racecourse is close to Esher railway station, served by trains from London Waterloo. There is a secondary exit from Esher station which is open on race days, this exit leads directly into the racecourse and Lower Green, Esher.
Kempton Park Racecourse is a horse racing track together with a licensed entertainment and conference venue in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England, on the border with Greater London; it is 13 miles west of Charing Cross in central London. The site has 210 acres of flat grassland surrounded by woodland with two lakes in its centre. Its entrance borders Kempton Park railway station which was created for racegoers on a branch line from London Waterloo, via Clapham Junction.
A steeplechase is a distance horse race in which competitors are required to jump diverse fence and ditch obstacles. Steeplechasing is primarily conducted in Ireland, Great Britain, Canada, United States, Australia, and France. The name is derived from early races in which orientation of the course was by reference to a church steeple, jumping fences and ditches and generally traversing the many intervening obstacles in the countryside.
Wetherby Racecourse is a racecourse situated near the market town of Wetherby in West Yorkshire, England, located 12 miles (19 km) from Leeds city centre. For most of its history the course has hosted only National Hunt racing but staged its first Flat racing fixture on 26 April 2015.
The Coral Welsh Grand National is a Premier Handicap National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Chepstow, Wales, over a distance of about 3 miles and 6½ furlongs, and during its running there are twenty-three fences to be jumped. It is a handicap race, and it is scheduled to take place each year on 27 December.
Jamie Moore is a retired English National Hunt jockey. Over a career spanning 23 seasons he rode 968 winners including seven wins in Grade 1 races. The highlight of his career was winning the 2014 Queen Mother Champion Chase on Sire de Grugy, trained by his father.
Brighton Racecourse is an English horse racing venue located a mile to the northeast of the centre of Brighton, Sussex, owned by the Arena Racing Company.
Exeter Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located near the city of Exeter, Devon, England. Locally it is known as Haldon racecourse because of its location on top of the Haldon Hills. At 850 feet (260 metres above sea level, it is the highest course in the UK. Until the early 1990s it was officially known as Devon and Exeter.
Folkestone Racecourse was a thoroughbred horse racing venue in southeast England, until it closed in 2012. It is located in Westenhanger, by junction 11 of the M20 motorway and about 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Folkestone. The course remains closed and all running rail and steeplechase fences have been removed. In May 2016 it was revealed that the land covered by the racecourse forms part of a plan to develop and build housing. It is now unkempt and in a state of disrepair.
Sedgefield Racecourse is an English left-handed horse racing course, used for jump racing. It is owned by Arena Racing Company and located close to the town of Sedgefield, County Durham.
Horse racing in Wales has a long tradition dating back to the 18th century. Wales has held flat racing, National Hunt and harness racing, and presently has three racecourses, at Chepstow, Bangor-on-Dee and Ffos Las. The Welsh Grand National is held annually at Chepstow between Christmas and New Year and is the highlight of the Welsh racing calendar.
Northern Racing was a private company that owned ten horse racing courses and one golf course in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1998 by Sir Stanley Clarke CBE, and after being listed on the Alternative Investment Market, was owned privately by the Reuben Brothers. In 2012, it was merged with Arena Leisure to form Arena Racing Company
Sam Thomas is a retired Welsh National Hunt jockey who is now a horse trainer. He is best known for winning the 2008 Cheltenham Gold Cup with Denman.
