Horse Racing History in Australia
Horse Racing History in Australia
Australian Horse Racing and Breeding dates back to the creation of a nationThoroughbred Horse Racing is as old as the nation of Australia itself. Given that many of our ancestors arrived from England where horse racing has been in existence for hundreds of years, this is not surprising. The Australian penchant for gambling made it almost inevitable that horse racing would become one of the premier pastimes for the new colony.The Australian Racing Board is the overseer of Australian horse racing. It is made up of representatives from the Principal Racing Associations of the six States and two territories. There are almost 400 race clubs that hold over 2500 meetings per year. In Australia approximately 32,000 races are run, and over 190,000 runners compete for prize money well over $421 million. There are more than 36,000 individual racehorses that compete annually.In 2009 16,000 foals was produced by the Australian breeding industry, this was a large drop on the previous years. The decline in numbers has resulted from approximately the same number of mares being served. This means that fewer mares are going into foal, and the increase in numbers of mares being covered by each stallion is the contributing factor in this. With only 840 registered stallions last year in Australia, compared to a high exceeding 2500 less than 20 years ago. The introduction of shuttle stallions; or stallions that cover mares in both the Northern and Southern hemisphere breeding seasons, has had a major impact on breeding trends in this time.Horse racing in Australia is driven by gambling. A total of almost $14.5 billion was wagered on registered horse races in 2009. About $4.5 billion of this was bet with bookmakers, while the remainder was invested on the TAB. Almost $8.9 billion was bet off course, including a growing amount wagered via the internet.In 1810 the first official race meeting was conducted in Sydney. It was estimated at the time the thoroughbred population in Australia was 1100 horses. Around 1813, a group of explorers found a way through the Blue Mountains west of Sydney, and opened up vast grazing lands. This increased the need for horses as transport, and the country had a large increase in the horse population for a variety of uses. Thoroughbreds had been imported into Australia largely for use as coach horses, but the growth in numbers lead to the development of a burgeoning racing industry. Majority of early thoroughbreds were shipped over from South Africa and India.The Australian Jockey Club was formed in 1842, and it held its first meeting that year with the running of the St Leger Stakes for 3yo's. In 1860, the AJC conducted its first meeting at the newly developed Randwick Racecourse. The first thoroughbred stud book in Australia was compiled in 1878 by William Yuille, the sporting editor of the Melbourne Weekly Times. The Australian Stud Book was purchased by the Australian Jockey Club and the Victorian Racing Club in 1910. These two Clubs remain the owners and administrators of the records for all thoroughbred breeding in Australia. Srilanka Tour And Must Visit Attractions Darjeeling Tour Will Leave You Spell Bound Diving in Kota Kinabalu: An Idyllic Holiday Tourist Places And Attractions In Atlanta, Dallas Top Destinations to Visit in Royal Rajasthan For Exciting Scuba Diving, Malaysia is an Ideal Destination Make the Most of Your Holiday Diving in Borneo Why Use Timber Frames? Cheap Hotels London Can Save A Lot Of Your Pounds Eating The Seasons: The Best Of Autumn Sunderbans National Park Tour Information Sun Bingo will make some Christmas wishes come true Halong Paradise Cruises - A Luxury Cruiser in Halong Bay - Vietnam