Sandown Park Racecourse
Location | Esher, Surrey |
---|---|
Owned by | Jockey Club Racecourses |
Date opened | 1875 |
Screened on | Racing UK |
Course type |
Flat National Hunt |
Official website |
Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse racing during afternoons, evenings and on weekends, and also hosts many non racing events such as trade shows, wedding fairs, toy fairs, car shows and auctions, property shows, concerts, and even some private events. The venue have hosted bands such as UB40, Madness (band), Girls Aloud, Sugababes, Spandau Ballet, Westlife, Boyzone and Simply Red. The racecourse is very close to Esher railway station served by trains from London Waterloo.
History
Sandown Park was one of the first courses to charge all for attending. It opened in 1875 and everyone had to pay at least half a crown. The first meeting was over three days, starting on Thursday 22 April, and included the Grand National Hunt Chase, now staged at the Cheltenham Festival. The Grand International Steeple Chase took place on the Saturday, worth £2,130 to the winner, and was the largest prize for a steeplechase that season, unusually even eclipsing that for the Liverpool Grand National.[1]
Notable races
Month | Meeting | DOW | Race Name | Type | Grade | Distance | Age/Sex |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
January | Saturday | Tolworth Hurdle | Hurdle | Grade 1 | 2m | 4yo + | |
February | Saturday | Gainsborough Chase | Chase | Handicap | 3m 110y | 5yo + | |
February | Saturday | Scilly Isles Novices' Chase | Chase | Grade 1 | 2m 4f 110y | 5yo + | |
February | Saturday | Heroes Handicap Hurdle | Hurdle | Grade 3 | 2m 6f | 4yo + | |
February | Saturday | Contenders Hurdle | Hurdle | Conditions | 2m 110y | 4yo + | |
March | Friday | Grand Military Gold Cup | Chase | Conditions | 3m 110y | 6yo + | |
March | Saturday | Imperial Cup | Hurdle | Grade 3 | 2m 110y | 4yo + | |
March | Saturday | European Breeders' Fund Novices' Handicap Hurdle Final | Hurdle | Grade 3 | 2m 4f | 4yo-7yo | |
April | Friday | Sandown Mile | Flat | Group 2 | 1m 14y | 4yo + | |
April | Friday | Sandown Classic Trial | Flat | Group 3 | 1m 2f 7y | 3yo only | |
April | Friday | Gordon Richards Stakes | Flat | Group 3 | 1m 2f 7y | 4yo + | |
April | Saturday | Bet365 Gold Cup | Chase | Grade 3 | 3m 5f 110y | 5yo + | |
April | Friday | Esher Cup | Flat | Group 3 | 1m 14y | 3yo | |
April | Saturday | Celebration Chase | Chase | Grade 1 | 2m | 5yo + | |
May | Thursday | Henry II Stakes | Flat | Group 3 | 2m 78y | 4yo + | |
May | Thursday | Brigadier Gerard Stakes | Flat | Group 3 | 1m 2f 7y | 4yo + | |
May | Thursday | National Stakes | Flat | Listed | 5f 6y | 2yo | |
May | Thursday | Heron Stakes | Flat | Listed | 1m 14y | 3yo | |
May | Thursday | Whitsun Cup | Flat | Listed | 1m 14y | 4yo+ | |
July | Saturday | Eclipse Stakes | Flat | Group 1 | 1m 2f 7y | 3yo + | |
July | Saturday | Sprint Stakes | Flat | Group 3 | 5f 6y | 3yo + | |
August | Saturday | Atalanta Stakes | Flat | Group 3 | 1m 14y | 3yo + f | |
August | Saturday | Solario Stakes | Flat | Group 3 | 7f 16y | 2yo only | |
December | Friday | Winter Novices' Hurdle | Hurdle | Grade 2 | 2m 4f | 4yo + | |
December | Saturday | Henry VIII Novices' Chase | Chase | Grade 1 | 2m | 4yo + | |
December | Saturday | Tingle Creek Chase | Chase | Grade 1 | 2m | 4yo + |
References
- ↑ Stevens, Peter, History of the National Hunt Chase 1860-2010, pp 53-55. ISBN 978-0-9567250-0-4
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sandown Park Racecourse. |
Coordinates: 51°22′33″N 0°21′42″W / 51.37583°N 0.36167°W