The King's Plate (known as the Queen's Plate during the reigns of Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth II) is an annual Grade I horse race at Kenilworth Racecourse in Cape Town, South Africa that has been run since 1861, and is one of South Africa's premier horse races. [1] Currently sponsored by the South African vintner L'Ormarins, it was branded the L'Ormarins Queen's Plate from 2005 to 2022, [2] and the L'Ormarins King's Plate since 2022. Traditionally named in honour of the British monarch, it reverted to the "King's Plate" name as a result of the accession of King Charles III in September 2022. [1] [3] [4]
The race was first run, as the Queen's Plate, in April 1861 in honour of Queen Victoria after she donated a silver plate and 500 sovereigns to the South African Turf Club. [5]
The winner of the race earns a berth in the Breeders' Cup Mile.[ citation needed ]
It is customary for the British high commissioner to South Africa to attend the race and read out a message of good wishes from the British monarch. [4]
The King's Plate is Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race and the oldest continuously run race in North America, having been founded in 1860. It is run at a distance of 1+1⁄4 miles for a maximum of 17 three-year-old thoroughbred horses foaled in Canada.
Nijinsky was a Canadian-bred, Irish-trained champion Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was the outstanding two-year-old in Europe in 1969 when he was unbeaten in five races. In the following season, he became the first horse for thirty-five years to win the English Triple Crown, a feat that has not been repeated as of 2023. He is regarded as one of the greatest European flat racehorses of the 20th century.
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.
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the monarch. The present monarch, King Charles III, is the sovereign of the order. The order's motto is Victoria. The order's official day is 20 June. The order's chapel is the Savoy Chapel in London.
Woodbine Racetrack is a race track for Thoroughbred horse racing in the Etobicoke area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Owned by Woodbine Entertainment Group, Woodbine Racetrack manages and hosts Canada's most famous race, the King's Plate. The track was opened in 1956 with a one-mile oval dirt track, as well as a seven-eights turf course. It has been extensively remodeled since 1993, and since 1994 has had three racecourses.
The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards, and it is scheduled to take place each year in June.
The King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards, and it is scheduled to take place each year in July.
The Queen Elizabeth II Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile, and it is scheduled to take place as part of British Champions Day each year in October.
The King's Stand Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 5 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in June.
The Breeders' Cup Mile is a 1-mile (1.6 km) Grade 1 Weight for Age stakes race for thoroughbred racehorses three years old and up, run on a grass course. It has been conducted annually as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships since the event's inception in 1984. All Breeders' Cups to date have been held in the United States except for the 1996 event in Canada.
Ascot Racecourse is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, about 25 miles west of London. Ascot is used for thoroughbred horse racing, and it hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and three Grade 1 Jumps races.
Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of British horseracing and is home to the largest cluster of training yards in the country and many key horse racing organisations, including Tattersalls, the National Horseracing Museum and the National Stud. Newmarket hosts two of the country's five Classic Races – the 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas, and numerous other Group races. In total, it hosts 9 of British racing's 36 annual Group 1 races.
Weight for Age (WFA) is a term in thoroughbred horse racing which is one of the conditions for a race.
The Queen Elizabeth Stakes, first known as Queen's Plate (1854-1872), and then by various other names at different times in its history, is an Australian horse race run in Melbourne, Victoria.
The Queen Elizabeth Stakes, formerly known as the Queen's Plate, AJC Plate, and AJC King's Cup, is an Australian Turf Club Group 1 Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race run over a distance of 2,000 metres at Randwick Racecourse, Sydney, Australia, in the autumn during the ATC Championships series. Prize money in 2013 was A$500,000 and was increased to A$4,000,000 in 2014 to become the richest race of the Sydney Autumn Carnival and as of 2020 the third richest WFA race in Australia.
The Oak Tree Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 7 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late July or early August.
The Queen's Plate, run since 1860, is Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race and is the first leg in the Canadian Triple Crown.
The Glorious Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 218 yards, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late July or early August.
From an early age, Queen Elizabeth II took a keen interest in horses. Into her reign, this developed into one of her main leisure time activities with a particular emphasis on the breeding of thoroughbreds for horse racing.
The King's Plate is a horse race, and the first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown.