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It is hard to imagine in today’s world that one of our favourite sports, horse racing, has been around for thousands of years. It has been noted as being an organised sport as far back as the Greek Olympics in 638 BC.

Horse racing really came into its own when in the 12th century English horses were bred with Arabian horses. This breeding programme produced sturdy horses that had amazing speed. It was around this time that a more modern version of racing began with racecourses opening and rules and standards established.

Newmarket in Britain was the very first venue for horse racing and is now known all over the world. King Charles II arranged horse races in open fields and the winner would be given a prize.

Horse racing changed during the reign of Queen Anne (1702-1714), the races involved several horses and racing spectators could bet on their favourite horses. It was, at this time, that Queen Anne founded the famous Ascot course and horse racing became a professional sport.

In 1750 the Jockey Club was formed at Newmarket where the “elite” of the horse racing circles met. The club controlled racing and the rules made then are still in force today.

In 1791 the Jockey Club decreed that the breeding of race horses had to be regulated. The job of tracing the history of all race horses was given to a gentleman called James Weatherby. It is an amazing fact that because of Mr Weatherbys hard work some race horses can now be traced all the way back to a horse called Byerley Turk. This particular horse was racing between 1680 and 1696.

The National Hunt Committee was formed in 1866. The British Horseracing Board became the governing authority for horse racing in 1993, however, the Jockey Club still manages and regulates point to point.

Tags: Horses

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