Solvalla

Horse Race Track
Solvalla
Location	Bromma, Stockholm, Sweden
Year opened	1927
Race type	Standardbred - Harness racing
Driver champion	Björn Goop (109 wins at Solvalla in 2008)
Trainer champion	Stig H. Johansson (SEK11,989,664 won at Solvalla in 2008)
Website	www.solvalla.se
Principal Races
Elitloppet
Swedish Trotting Criterium
Swedish Trotting Oaks
Jubileumspokalen

Solvalla is a horse racing track located in Bromma, Stockholm, Sweden.^[1] It was opened in 1927 and is the biggest harness racing venue in the Nordic countries.^[2][3] The last Sunday in May, Solvalla annually hosts Elitloppet, one of trotting's most prestigious international events.^[4][5]

Contents 1 Major events 1.1 Elitloppet 1.2 Swedish Trotting Criterium 1.3 Swedish Trotting Oaks 1.4 Jubileumspokalen 2 Driver champions 2.1 Driver champions ranked by number of titles 2.2 Most wins in one year 3 References 4 External links

Major events

Elitloppet

• International Group I race.^[6]
• Setup: Sixteen invited horses are divided into two elimination heats. Four horses from each heat progress to the final, raced later the same day. All races are of 1,609 meters, i.e. one mile.
• Date: Is always raced on the last Sunday of May, which meant May 31 in 2009.^[4][7]
• Purse (2009, the final and the elimination heats included): ≈US$803,000 (SEK 6,100,000).^[7][8][9]
• Titleholder: Iceland (driven by Johnny Takter), winner in 2010.^[10]

Swedish Trotting Criterium

• National Group I stakes race for Swedish three-year-olds.^[6]
• Setup (2008): Six elimination races from which the first two horses progressed to the final eleven days later. All races 2,640 meters long.^[11][12]
• Date (2008, the final): October 5.^[12]
• Purse (2008, the final only): ≈US$458,000 (SEK 3,200,000).^[12][13]
• Titleholder: Raja Mirchi (driven by Lutfi Kolgjini), winner in 2010.^[14]

Swedish Trotting Oaks

• National Group I stakes race for Swedish three-year-old fillies.^[6]
• Setup (2008): Six elimination races from which the first two horses progressed to the final eleven days later. All races 2,140 meters long.^[11][15]
• Date (2008, the final): October 5.^[15]
• Purse (2008, the final only): ≈US$286,000 (SEK 2,000,000).^[15][16]
• Titleholder: Tamla Celeber (driven by Örjan Kihlström), winner in 2010.^[17]

Jubileumspokalen

• International Group I race.^[6]
• Setup (2008): 2,140 meters. Ten horses competed in the event. Some were invited, some qualified through qualification races.
• Date (2008): August 9.^[18]
• Purse (2008): ≈US$281,000 (SEK 1,750,000).^[18][19]
• Titleholder: Nu Pagadi (driven by Erik Adielsson), winner in 2010.^[20]

Driver champions

During the 83 years since the track's opening in 1927, there have been only 13 different driver champions at Solvalla. From 1934 until 1976, one of the three Nordin brothers won every year, with the exception of 1949 and 1975. Oldest brother Gösta won ten times, as did middle brother Gunnar. Youngest brother Sören Nordin was track champion 21 times. After the dominance of the Nordins, Stig H. Johansson took over and claimed the champion title no less than 29 times between 1975 and 2005, his last year as a driver. 27 of these titles were consecutive, from 1979 to 2005. Örjan Kihlström is the reigning driver champion.^[21]

Driver champions ranked by number of titles

Rank	Driver	Number of titles	Years
1	Stig H. Johansson	29	1975, 1977, 1979-2005
2	Sören Nordin	21	1942, 1944-1946, 1948, 1954, 1956-1959, 1961, 1963-1964, 1966, 1969-1974, 1976
T3	Gunnar Nordin	10	1947, 1950-1951, 1953, 1955, 1960, 1962, 1965, 1967-1968
T3	Gösta Nordin	10	1934-1941, 1943, 1952
T5	Sixten Lundgren	3	1931-1933
T5	Björn Goop	3	2007-2009
T7	Ernst J. Nordin	2	1928-1929
T8	Erik Adielsson	1	2006
T8	Alfred Johansson	1	1927
T8	Örjan Kihlström	1	2010
T8	Erik Larsson	1	1949
T8	Berndt Lindstedt	1	1978
T8	Carl A. Schoug	1	1930

^[21]

Most wins in one year

• Stig H. Johansson - 194 (in 1992)^[21]

References

External links

• (Swedish) Official website
• Venue information