Horse racing in Australia is the third most popular spectator sport behind Australian rules football and rugby, with almost 2 million admissions to Australia’s 360 registered racecourses in 2009-10. It’s also a popular betting activity, with $14.3 billion wagered in 2009-10. Bets are placed with bookmakers and the Totalisator Agency Board (TAB).
The most popular forms of Thoroughbred horse racing in Australia are flat racing and hurdle racing. Australia has more racecourses than any other nation, and is second to the United States in the number of horses starting in races each year. Australia comes in third after the United States and Japan in the amount of prize money distributed annually.
The Australian Racing Board administers. As a whole, the industry employs 250,000 people full-time or part-time. About 300,000 either own or are members of syndicates that own the 30,000 horses training in Australia.
The most popular Thoroughbred horse racing in Australia events are the Melbourne Cup, Victoria Derby, VRC Oaks, Golden Slipper Stakes, Caulfield Cup, and W.S. Cox Plate.
The first horses arrived in Australia with the First Fleet on January 26, 1788, a total of one stallion, one colt, three mares, and two filles from Cape Town, South Africa. In 1797. Rockingham became the first or one of the first Thoroughbreds imported into Australia, followed in 1802 by the stallion Northumberland, and Old Hector in 1803. In 1825 Mano became the first General Stud Book horse recorded Thoroughbred mare to arrive in Australia. In 1826 Thoroughbred stallion Peter Fin and mares Cutty Sark and Spaewafe followed.
Early Austrialian horse breeders include Robert Campbell (1769-1846), explorer Lt. William Lawson (1774-1850), wool industry pioneer John Macarthur (1767-1834), John Piper (1773-1851), Dr. D’Arcy Wentworth (1762-1827), and James White (1828-90).
Eventually Australia began exporting champion Thoroughbred stallions to America, including Berborough, Shannon, Sailor’s Guide, and Royal Gem.
Australian jockeys pioneered the crouched riding style independently from American jockeys.
The first official horse race in Australia was held at Hyde Park in Sydney in October 1810. In 1838 the first official horse races were held in Victoria on Batman’s Hill in Melbourne. In 1864 the Victorian Racing Club was formed from the merger of the Victoria Jockey Club and Victoria Turf Club. Victoria is now considered the home of horse racing in Australia.
The Automatic Totalisator came to Australia in 1913, offering parimutuel betting.
One of the top Australian Thoroughbreds of all time was New Zealand-born Phar Lap (1926-32), who died after a sudden mysterious illness, becoming the third highest stakes winner in the world.
The Australian Racing Hall of Fame was officially created in 2000, honoring great champion horses including Ajax, Phar Lap, Northerly, Eurythmic, Sky High, and Rising Fast, champion jockeys including Darby Munro, George Moore, Bobby Lewis, and Billy Cook, and champion trainers including Bart Cummings, James Scobie, and Tommy Smith.
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