Horse Racing
History of Horse Racing
Just like any other sport, horse racing is a competitive activity; the only difference is that it involves horses racing against each other. This can be for fun, entertainment or a price. Horse racing dates back to as early as the fifth century (Bareback and Chariot events, 2013). It is worth nothing that horse racing was not always a sport for the wealthy. Originally, horses were the primary mode of transport and communication besides walking (or running). Over time, it changed into a form of entertainment and finally, a race. During this time, it was in practice in the ancient Greece, Babylon, Syria, Roman Empire and Egypt, with the incorporation of the chariot and horse racing in the early Greek Olympics competitions by 648 BC. With horses being costly at the time, horse racing was a sport for the wealthy and the royalty, gaining the title of” Sport of Kings” in the British society(Prashanth, 2013).
The history of organized horse race cannot be well established, but scholars believe it to have originated in countries such as Persia, China, Arabia and Middle East countries and North Africa where horsemanship was early adopted. The European racing is believed to have developed between the 11th and 13th Century, which was contributed by the coming of the Arabian, Turk and Barb horses. However, up to date, the Persian and Arabian horses receive worldwide acclamation as the best and even fastest horses.
In early England, racing begun when horses met for sale were raced in contest by experienced riders to demonstrate the horses might in terms of speed to the potential buyers. The first horse racing price in the medieval England is alleged to have been forty pounds, this was during the rule of Richard the Lion Heart (1189), a contest run over 4.8km course with the knights as riders. This is because only the knights were very well versed in the art of riding, and as such, they could evaluate the best horses. The King would also choose to buy the best horses for his knights and court.
Types of Races
1. Match Races
These were the earliest known horse races where two or at most three horses racing against each other. The owners of the horses were required to provide a purse (a simple wage) which would be given to the owner of the winning horse. It was a rule that if an owner withdrew before the race ended, he had to forfeit half of the purse he had provided for the race this later came to be known as the “play or pay” rule. The agreements for the races were recorded by non-partisan third parties who later earned the name of the match book keeper. One of the match book keepers, in new market, England was John Cheny, who began issuing Cheny’s Horse Matches, a compilation of match books at different racing centers. This was until 1773 when James Weather started a Racing Calendar.
2. Organized Races
First established in England by Charles 11 (reigned 166—85) who later came to be recognized as “father of English turf, involved horses of the age of six. The horses carried 168 pounds and the victor won 6.4km heats. The king launches the King’s Plates competition for which awards were given to the winners.
3. Open Field Racing
With public demand for more racing in the mid-18th century in England, resulted to more open events with a bigger number of runners. The rules were based on the sex, place of birth and previous performance of the horses and the talent of the riders. The owners were to be the riders, in this case only gentlemen riders qualified. To ensure a fair ground, the British Parliament passed a law that the horses entering the race had to be legal possessions of the owners. The field was geographically restricted to the township or county.
The riders were as early as from the seventeenth century referred to as Jockeys –if professional in England and thereafter in French racing.
Jockey Clubs and Racing Commissions
In England, the Jockey Club was first founded at New market about 1750. It was responsible for writing racing rules, which made consideration to different kinds of contests involving horses of different ages and thus made more detailed. (Montgomery, 2013)The rules when printed in the Racing Calendar, later served as a model for rules everywhere.
In France, La Societed Encouragement pour Iamelioration des Races de Chevaux en France, established in 1833, administers French racing. In the United States, The North American Jockey Club established in 1894 in New York, used to administer the American horse racing, but later replaced by state commissions in the horse races governance.
Modern Horse Racing
Modern horse racing is not much different from the early horse racing, only a bit of change of things here and there, improvement or rules and regulations and also establishment of new types of horse races. The style, the types and the distances covered by the races vary from country to country. Its initiation is supposed to have been marked by the appointment of the English classic races, which were structured for three years old horses. These races included the St. Leger in 1776, the Oaks in 1779 and the Derby in 1780. Later come the French classics that included the Prix du Jockey Club in 1863 and then the American classics that included Belmont Stakes in 1867 and the Kentucky Derby in 1875.
There are three main types of horse races in modern racing. They are Flat racing, which involves horses running on a level ground, over a scheduled distance which involves horses racing and attach racing step.
Horse racing gained lots of popularity across generations especially due to its financial importance associated with gambling with an estimated market worth of around US $ 15 billion in 2008. Moreover, some have also come to appreciate it as a way of entertaining and for some as a way of just having fun. With all this in mind the horse race participants and audience continue to grow daily as some join for just fun while some just want to make more money.
Dubai
This is a famous city in the United Arab Emirates, and has the largest population among the emirates estimated at around 2.2 million, and has the second largest territory covering approximate, 1114 km squared. With Abu Dhabi, Dubai has the veto power in decisions involving critical matters. Although Dubai’s economy is greatly reliant on oil export, the western approach business model fuels its economy growth with the major revenues generated from tourism, real estate, aviation and financial services (Duncan, 2011). It is considered the most costly city in the contemporary world.
Dubai Horse Racing
Dubai horse racing has been around since the early times this was majorly contributed by the use of horses as means of transport. It is believed that the Arabic states were among the first people to practice organized horse racing. This was believed to be so due to their early horsemanship. Dubai may not have been in the publicity as far as horse racing is concerned, but with the conception of the annual Dubai world cup (considered to be the wealthiest in the world), when it comes to horse racing, Dubai is the place to be.
Dubai World Cup
With a visit to the England town of New market, (well known since the early times for its horse racing events) in 1960s on his first horse race (Borthwick, 2010), the Dubai ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bins Rashid al-Maktoum, was impressed and is now considered has an influential figure in sporting world and specifically horse racing. He is the man behind the Dubai World Cup.
This race is held annually since its beginning in 1996, at the Meydan Racecourse, which is suggested to be a meeting place for competing horses from Arab countries. The horse race is a thoroughbred horse race that is the race is done on a level ground across a common distance. It is managed by Emirates Racing Authority and is regarded the wealthiest horse race, with a purse of US $ ten million since the year 2010.
The race involves Thoroughbred four year olds for Northern Hemisphere and up and for Southern Hemisphere Thoroughbred three years olds and up race over a distance of 2000 meters about 10 furlongs.
References
Bareback and Chariot events. (2013, October 1). Retrieved November 21, 2013, from Equestrian Events: http://www.hellenism.com/olympics/ancientgames/equestrian.htm
Borthwick, M. (2010, March 26). BBC website. Retrieved November 21, 2013, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/business/2009/business_of_sport/8584923.stm
Duncan, G. (2011, November 30). Abu Dhabi and Dubai are the best places to live in the Middle East. The National, p. 1.
Montgomery, S. U. (2013). Horse Racing. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 5.
Prashanth. (2013, October 1). Earliest Record of horse racing. Retrieved November 21, 2013, from Library Index: http://www.libraryindex.com/pages/2186/Animals-in-Sports-ROOTS-ANIMAL-SPORTS.html
