Great Leighs Racecourse in Essex, the first new UK racecourse in 81 years when it opened in April 2008, closed in January 2009 after entering administration. It was purchased in 2011/2013, renovated, and reopened in January 2015 as the successful Chelmsford City Racecourse, featuring an all-weather Polytrack surface and hosting regular, high-profile fixtures.
Racing Queensland advises that the Brisbane Racing Club meeting at Doomben today has been abandoned following the running of three races. The abandonment decision was made following persistent heavy rainfall and the track being deemed unsafe to continue racing on.
The smallest significant racecourse in England is Chester Racecourse (The Roodee), known for its unique 1 mile, 1 furlong oval circuit, making it compact and creating a close-up racing atmosphere, though there are even smaller, more specialized tracks like Cartmel for National Hunt racing, known for its quaintness and smaller scale.
“The safety of our animals and participants is paramount, and unfortunately a heavy downpour following the third race has left the track unsuitable for racing.”
Chelmsford City racecourse, originally known as Great Leighs Racecourse, is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Great Leighs near Braintree, Essex, England.
Chester, the oldest course still in operation, can trace its history to 1539. Doncaster was staging races later in the 16th century, while Newmarket was founded in 1636 and Ascot in 1711 by Queen Anne.
Four-hour queues led to people abandoning their cars and walking along the A131 when they could not exit Chelmsford City Racecourse on 4 July. Chelmsford City Council ruled on Friday that the venue's capacity for future music events should be capped at 10,000 due to a "catastrophic failure" in management.
“From this, we can deduce that horses are likely to feel as much pain as humans would when being whipped.” “Repeated strikes of the whip in horses that are fatigued as they end a race are likely to be distressing and cause suffering.
Number 17 is retired in Formula 1 as a permanent tribute to the late French driver Jules Bianchi, who tragically passed away from injuries sustained in a crash at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix while racing with that number. The FIA (Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile) permanently retired the number in 2015 out of respect for Bianchi, making it unavailable for other drivers to use.
Once a nearly bankrupt auction house, Magic Millions has been owned outright by Katie Page Harvey and Gerry Harvey since 2011 (the pair have owned the majority since it went into receivership in 1998).
The 80/20 horse racing system generally refers to two main approaches: a betting strategy where you place 80% of your stake on a horse to place and 20% to win, providing better coverage for near misses, or applying the Pareto Principle (80/20 rule) to handicapping, identifying the top 20% of jockeys/trainers/horses that win 80% of races for more focused betting. It's a way to balance risk and reward by focusing on consistent performers or creating more robust each-way bets.
The circuit hosted its last race in August 1939 and today part of it forms the Brooklands Museum, a major aviation and motoring museum, as well as a venue for vintage car, motorcycle and other transport-related events.
In Anglo-Saxon times, the River Dee covered the whole of the racecourse area, with the exception of a small raised mound upon which stood a stone cross or 'Rood', (Roodee means literally 'The Island of the ross), the stump of which is still visible today, close to the eastern-walled side. !
McNally was hit with the longest disqualification handed out to an Irish licence-holder in January 2023 after he was found guilty of conspiring to conceal ownership of Full Noise and All Class when they were trained by David Dunne.
Do you get your money back if a race is abandoned?
Yes, you usually get your money back (stake returned) if a race is abandoned, especially for betting on individual horses (as a "non-runner") or if the abandonment happens early; for physical tickets, refund policies vary, often giving a full refund before the first race and partial after, say, the third. Betting rules state that if a race is void (abandoned), bets are typically voided and stakes returned, but this depends on when the bet was placed and the specific bookmaker's terms.
The high cost of participation and an institutional lack of investment in women are largely to blame, says The Washington Post's Glynn Hill. Amna Al Qubaisi of the United Arab Emirates prepares to drive during an F1 Academy race in Singapore on Sunday. Formula One is trying to support women in the sport.
However, it opted to impose a suspended sentence because Renault F1 took swift action in forcing Briatore and Symonds to resign. The Daily Mirror described the de facto lifetime ban on Briatore as the harshest sanction ever imposed on an individual in the history of motorsport.
The F1 75% rule dictates that if a Formula 1 Grand Prix is stopped (red-flagged) but resumes and the leader completes 75% or more of the scheduled race distance, then full points are awarded, as if the race finished normally. If the race is stopped before 75% is completed (but after the minimum distance for points), points are awarded on a reduced scale, with points for 50-75% being halved and even further reduced for shorter distances, but reaching that 75% mark unlocks full points.
The "1-2-3 Rule" for horses is a vital guideline for monitoring newborn foals and their mothers in the critical first few hours: the foal should stand within 1 hour, nurse within 2 hours, and the mare should pass the placenta (afterbirth) within 3 hours; any delays signal a potential emergency requiring immediate veterinary attention, as these milestones ensure the foal receives crucial colostrum and the mare avoids serious complications.
The most common cause of death in horses is colic, which refers to abdominal pain and is a leading cause for horses aged 1 to 20 years old, while old age and related gastrointestinal issues become the primary reason for horses over 20 years old, alongside lameness. Other significant causes include lameness (especially chronic laminitis), various digestive system failures (impaction, rupture, tumors), and specific infectious diseases.
No. Many horses recover fully and return to competition or other roles. Euthanasia is rare and only considered when recovery would result in severe pain or complications.
Any bets other than Ante Post will be void if the race is abandoned or declared void. If the race is postponed to a future day and the final Declarations stand, all bets will stand providing the venue is not changed. If this is the case all bets will be void.
Chelmsford's factories were a target for German bombing throughout the war, with Marconi's badly hit on 9 May 1941 and the loss of 30 Hoffman's workers in a raid on 19 December 1944. Another heavy raid, known as the “Chelmsford Blitz”, occurred on 14 May 1943.
