Thoroughbred racing in New Zealand
The racing of Thoroughbred horses is a popular sport in New Zealand. The governing body is New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing Incorporated. The principal club is the Auckland Racing Club, which races at Ellerslie Racecourse (where the first Totalisator machine in the world was installed in 1919, see Sir George Julius).
Horses are frequently moved between New Zealand and its neighbour Australia, for races and for breeding purposes. Famous New Zealand racehorses include the great mares Desert Gold, Cuddle, Horlicks and Sunline, plus Carbine, Kindergarten, Phar Lap, Nightmarch, Gloaming, Rising Fast, Il Tempo, Advance, Tulloch and Grey Way. Both Australia and New Zealand claim Phar Lap. Gloaming was an Australian bred horse who raced in Australia and New Zealand.
Since 1882, New Zealand bred horses have won 40 Melbourne Cups and many other important races in Australia.[1] During the 2008-09 racing season 19 New Zealand bred Thoroughbreds won 22 Group One races around the world.[2]
Major Thoroughbred horse races in New Zealand
| Race |
Type |
Stake |
Month |
Location |
Distance |
| Spring Classic | Weight for Age | $300,000 | October | Hastings Racecourse | 2040m |
| New Zealand 1000 Guineas | 3yo fillies | $300,000 | November | Riccarton Racecourse | 1600m |
| New Zealand 2000 Guineas | 3yo | $400,000 | November | Riccarton Racecourse | 1600m |
| New Zealand Cup | Open | $225,000 | November | Riccarton Racecourse | 3200m |
| Karaka Million | 2yo | $1,000,000 | January | Ellerslie Racecourse | 1200m |
| Telegraph Handicap | Open | $250,000 | January | Trentham Racecourse | 1200m |
| Wellington Cup | Open | $200,000 | January | Trentham Racecourse | 2400m |
| Thorndon Mile | Open | $200,000 | January | Trentham Racecourse | 1600m |
| Auckland Cup | Open | $500,000 | March | Ellerslie Racecourse | 3200m |
| New Zealand Derby | 3yo | $750,000 | March | Ellerslie Racecourse | 2400m |
| New Zealand Oaks | 3yo fillies | $300,000 | March | Trentham Racecourse | 2400m |
List of Horse Races
- Air New Zealand Stakes
- Auckland Cup
- Awapuni Gold Cup
- Championship Stakes
- DB Draught Classic
- Desert Gold Stakes
- Easter Handicap
- Great Northern Derby
- Great Northern Foal Stakes
- Great Northern St. Leger
- Great Northern Steeplechase
- Hawke's Bay Guineas
- Karaka Million
- Levin Classic
- Manawatu Sires Produce Stakes
- Mudgway Stakes
- New Zealand 1000 Guineas
- New Zealand 2000 Guineas
- New Zealand Cup
- New Zealand Derby
- New Zealand International Stakes
- New Zealand Oaks
- New Zealand St. Leger
- North Island Challenge Stakes
- Railway Stakes
- Spring Classic
- Taranaki Stakes
- Television New Zealand Stakes
- Telegraph Handicap
- Trentham Stakes
- Waikato Sprint
- Wellington Cup
- Windsor Park Plate
List of Prominent New Zealand Horses
- Sacred Falls
- Sunline
- Darci Brahma
- Jimmy Choux
- Katie Lee
- Xcellent
- Seachange
- Princess Coup
- Ocean Park
- Miss Potential
- Balmerino
- Surfers Paradise
See also
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Horse racing in New Zealand. |
- Auckland Cup Week
- Glossary of Australian and New Zealand punting
- List of Melbourne Cup winners
- New Zealand Horse of the Year
- Thoroughbred racing in Australia
- Wellington Racing Club
References
- ↑ ASB VRC Melbourne Cup Race Winners Retrieved on 2009-7-25
- ↑ Racetrack Sires 2009, June/August, 2009, Record season for the New Zealand breed, p.52
External links
- N.Z. Thoroughbred Racing Inc.
- Gambling and the TAB (Totalisator Agency Board) in New Zealand
- Hall of Fame profiles