Administrators of thorough bread racing in Australia are the Australia Racing Board and each individual state in the country must adhere to the Australia Rules of Racing. The most popular races in Australia are held in spring and autumn. Over 100,000 people annually have attending the Melbourne Cup and Victoria Derby. Some of the most important races include the VRC Oaks, Golden Slipper Stakes, Caulfield Cup and the W. S. Cox Plate.

The first horses arrived in Australia in Sydney, New South Wales on ships which were part of the First Fleet in 1788. The first known racing horse was Young Rockingham, who arrived on Australian soil in the year 1797. Born in 1879, Malau was one of the most versatile Australian thoroughbreds and after several wins both the flat and VRC Grand National Hurdle he was commissioned as a sire. Following him were New Zealand’s Carbine and his descendants Phar Lap and Tulloch. Some other racing thoroughbreds of note are Bemborough, Kingston Town, Herioc and Makybe Diva. Horses have been mostly imported from Europe although some arrived from the US later on.

Some of the most notable jockeys in Australian thoroughbred horse racing include Scobie Breasley, Edgar Britt, Mick Dittman, Roy Higgans, George T. D. Moore, Neville Sellwood, Harry White and Bill Williamson. Jockeys of this caliber are some of the absolute best on the planet and many have experimented with the crouched style of riding which was perfected in the year 1800 by Tot Flood and James Barden, upon noticing a similar style practiced by Tod Sloan, who hailed from the US. A famous lady jockey was Wilhemena Smith, who rode under the pseudonym Bill Smith in the mid-1900s since no women jockeys were permitted to race back then. The first female riders to compete against men were Pam O’Neill and Linda Jones in 1979.

Australia is the largest thoroughbred racing country in the world as it holds 66 out of 193 Group One Races worldwide. Of the Group One Races, there are three main categories: 1, Australian Races, 2. State/City/Track races and 3. Historically significant races. National races include the Australian Derby – AJC Easter Carnival, Australian Oaks – AJC Easter Carnival, Australian Cup – VRC Autumn Carnival, Australian Guineas – VRC Autumn Carnival, Australia Stakes – Moonee Valley, and Australian Sires Produce Stakes – AJC Easter Carnival. There are 30 State/City/Track races and 41 historically significant races.

Australian horse racing, is in a league of it’s own, there is a fortune that can be made and lost at a moments notice. The world of Australian horse racing is one that is taken quite seriously and many times is bigger than many of the national sports. There are a lot of different things that need to be considered when it comes to making money at this sport.

The mood of the horse will make an indication as to if you need to make a bet on them or not. If the horse appears to be disinterested, then it is a safe bet to not waste your money and wager on the horse. One sign of a horse that you need not place a bet on is one that appears to be salivating excessively than normal.

Make sure that you place your bets at the last minute. This is a good bit of advice that will go a long way in assisting a person from losing a lot of money on a horse that will not bring in that good of odds.

The last minute bets offer a person the chance to see if the trainers or owners are secretly looking at their horse to bring some serious money. People that place early bets, are at times looking to get an edge by being the first ones placing bets, This is not an advised move as this can result in a last minute scratch affecting the persons payout.

With all of the various types of horse racing that is run on a regular basis, this is why Australian horse racing is one of the fastest growing sports in the country and a good reason for the popularity that is experiences from fans of the sport.

Australian horse racing is an event all it’s own, there are so many things to see and do when it comes to experiencing the history and pageantry that is offered through the many types of racing. The thrill of winning a ton of money and the excitement that is experienced when watching this on a regular basis, allows a person to enjoy one of the finer sports that the country of Australia has to offer a person looking for a sport that is a little more refined.

The most famous race horse in Australia horse racing was “Phar Lap.” Phar Lap was foaled in New Zealand and trained and raced in Australia. Phar Lap was a champion thoroughbred who became the darling of the Australian racing circuit during the depression. Phar Lap raced from 1928 to 1932 and won the Melbourne Cup in 1932, two Cox Plates and 19 other weight for age races. He won the Agua Caliente Handicap in Tijuana, Mexico in his final race in track record time. Phar Lap dies in 1932 after a mysterious and sudden illness. His mounted hide is on display at the Melbourne Museum, his skeleton is on display at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and his heart is at the National Museum of Australia in Canberra.

The horse racing industry in Australia is one of the three leading horse racing nations in the world. The world famous “Melbourne Cup” is called the “race that stops the nation” and attracts many international entries. Australia’s first country club was established in Wallabadah in 1852, and the “Wallabadah Cup” is still run on New Year’s Day.

Australia has more race tracks than any other nation. It is second to the United States in the number of horses starting races each year. Australia is third after the United States and Japan for the amount of prize money distributed annually. Thoroughbred racing ranks third in spectator sport, in Australia, with Australian rules football and rugby being number one and two, respectively.

The two forms of racing in Australia racing is flat racing and steeplechase racing. Flat racing is run over a level track at a predetermined distance. Flat racing is a test of speed, stamina and jockey skill. The Steeplechase is a form of horse racing and involves racing a course and jumping fences and ditches. The race is a test of speed and rider skill as the horse and rider traverse the course.

Racing in Australia is governed by the Australian racing Board. This body supersedes the power and the rules of the individual racing clubs. This body is responsible for establishing the rules of racing, in addition to the local rules, establishing and maintaining the pattern racing committees and grading races, as well as, allocating race status. The Board also establishes racing advisory boards to maintain uniformity between states and establish an accepted national racing calendar.

Horse race betting can be done in four ways. On-track book makers offer fixed odds betting on wins and losses. Off track betting was controlled by the state government which offered pari-mutuel betting. SB bookmaking was illegal off-course betting that took place in pubs and private clubs. Lastly, there is person to person betting where members set their own prices and pay a percentage of winnings in commission.

Speak the Lingo

If it seems like betting on horse races has its own unique language, it is because it does.  You don’t have to know all of the terms, you will pick them up as you progress, but a cursory understanding is necessary if you want to be successful and not simply lose money because you misunderstood.  What you need to be concerned with the most is going to be the basic betting lingo.

• To Win—This is a bet where-in you choose which horse will finish the race in first place.  It pays out very high compared to the other basic bets and can be very difficult to determine properly.
• To Place—This bet is one in which you choose a horse that will finish the race in either first or second place.  This is good for a strong horse that you fear might be having an off day or if there is a strong competitor.  It pays decent on the odds, but not as high as betting on a winner.
• To Show—This type of bet is where you choose a horse that will finish the race in one of the top three positions.  It doesn’t pay out as high as the other two, but it does pay out.
• Across the Board—This is where you are placing a Win, Place, and Show on the same horse

Betting Strategically

Some people will bet on a horse because it feels right, or because the horse is their ‘lucky’ number but most of the people that are serious about horse racing do research on the horses being raced and make strategic bets.  Many people will hedge their bet by placing multiple bets.  One of these bets is called Betting Both Ways.  This is when you would place a bet to win and then place a bet to show for the same horse.  Don’t confuse this with Across the Board betting.  This is a hedge for a strong horse that might not win, but you are sure will show.  If your pony wins, then you will get to collect on two bets, but if it only shows, you might have saved your initial bet amount on the payout.

Research Your Bet

It will pay you to start doing more research on horses and horse racing.  The first time you go to the track, don’t bet anything.  Watch and learn.  Go down to the paddock and get a close look at the horses, keep track of which horses are racing and how they looked in the paddock.  After a while you will start to notice what a good relaxed and healthy horse looks like.  This can come in really handy when you start putting money on the line.

The first Cup

The first ever Melbourne Cup was held on Thursday 7 November 1861. Seventeen horses competed for the prize of 710 gold sovereigns and a hand-beaten gold watch.

The first Cup was an eventful race. One horse bolted before the start, and three of the seventeen horses that did start the race fell, two of which died. The first Melbourne Cup winner was a 16.3 hand bay stallion called Archer who triumphed in a time of 3.52.00.

Archer was ridden by John Cutts and trained by Etienne de Mestre and the horse was a Sydney outsider who was largely swerved in the ante-post betting. However the horse spread-eagled the field and defeated the favourite and Victorian champion, Mormon, by six lengths.

The early years

Archer returned to win the second Melbourne Cup in 1862 and it took over a hundred years for another horse to win back-to-back Melbourne Cups (Rain Lover won in 1968 and 1969). Archer returned in 1863 for a third tilt at the Cup but was scratched on a technicality leading many other owners to boycott the race.

The race was first run on a Tuesday in 1875 and the first Tuesday in November, Melbourne Cup Day, was officially gazetted a full public holiday in 1877.

Foreign runners

Although the first foreign bred horse to win the Melbourne Cup was Comedy King in 1910, foreign horses competing for the Cup is a relatively recent phenomenon. Eight foreign bred horses have subsequently won the Melbourne Cup including Belldale Ball in 1980, Kingston Rule in 1990, Media Puzzle in 2002 and Makybe Diva in 2003, 2004 and 2005.

Other notable dates

Some other notable dates in the history of the Melbourne Cup are:

• 1896 - The Cup was first filmed. This race was won by Newhaven
• 1915 - First woman owner to win was Mrs E.A. Widdis with Patrobas
• 1931 - The first year the totalisator operated at the Melbourne Cup
• 1958 - The first Cup start from starting stalls
• 2005 - Makybe Diva became the only horse so far to win the Melbourne Cup three times

Jockeys

Winning the Melbourne Cup is one of the lifelong ambitions of many jockeys. Bobby White and Harry Lewis share the record for most Melbourne Cup wins with four each with all White’s wins occurring during the 1970s. The 1970s also saw the first Aboriginal jockey to win with Frank Reys triumphing on Gala Supreme in 1973. The first female jockey to ride in the cup was Maree Lynden on Argonaut Style in 1987 and Claire Lindop became the first Aussie female jockey to ride in the Cup in 2003.

Where is it held?

Since 1999 the Australian Cup has been held at the Meadows race track, the home of the Melbourne Greyhound Racing Association. After years at Sandown Park and Olympic Park, the brand new Meadows track was opened in February 1999 with over 8,000 spectators in attendance.

The Meadows is in the northern Melbourne suburb of Broadmeadows.

The track itself has a circumference of 450 metres with a width of 7 metres.

When is it held?

The race is held annually, every February. It was first hosted in 1958 and has been held every year since with the exception of 1963 when there was no event due to the local greyhound association seeking a new venue for the event.

The race

The Australian Cup was first raced in 1958 and won by the Aussie racing legend Rookie Rebel. From 1964 to 1995 the event was staged at Melbourne’s Olympic Park before four years at Sandown Park. It has been run at its current venue since 1999.

The race itself is a Group One Open race run over a distance of 525 metres. There is a prize fund of $150,000 for the Cup.

The Australian Cup is one of the final events in the annual Sky Channel Australian Cup Carnival. The Carnival has proved to be a huge success over recent years with over $650,000 in prize money awarded over a three week period.

Recent history

Dyna Lachlan added to his recent Adelaide Cup win with a triumph in 2010’s Australian Cup. The Andrea Dailly trained dog beat Galba Jack by three and a half lengths. The greyhound is now well on the way to beating the all-time Australian prize money record for a single greyhound with $434,555 earned so far in his career.

Other recent winners of the Australian Cup include Velocette, Tasman Queen and Pete’s Conquest.

The Australian Cup

The Australian Cup is one of the country’s leading greyhound races and one of the Cups every trainer and owner wants to win. As well as boasting a large amount of prize money, winning the Cup means that a greyhound will go down in history as one of the greats. A victory means their name is added to a roll of honour which includes some of the most legendary dogs in Aussie greyhound racing history.

In the 1967 English Grand National, Foinavon’s chances of winning the race were so remote that owner Cyril Watkins didn’t even turn up to the race. However, when two fallers at the 23^rd fence brought down every single horse in the race, except Foinavon, the $100 shot cantered around the course to win by twenty lengths. It’s probably the greatest example of luck in horse racing history.

Anyone who has watched horse racing or has ridden in a race knows there are countless reasons why a horse may not perform at its best on any given day, for reasons that will rarely seem apparent. Here are ten such reasons.

1. Horses will not race when boxed inside another

Many races see horses hampered when they are boxed in either by other horses or by the barriers at the side of the track.

2. Some may get hit by another jockey’s whip

3. Some horses panic in the mid race madness

In races where there is a large field, some horses find it difficult to cope with such a large number of other runners.

4. Some may refuse to race for a particular jockey

The choice of jockey for a horse is one of the most important factors in determining a runner’s success in a race. Some horse and jockey combinations work perfectly; on other occasions horses will simply not run for a particular jockey.

5. Some may lose balance mid race & never get it back again

6. Some may get hit by a clog of turf

7. The layout of the track, turns and rises

Some horses run better on clockwise than anti-clockwise tracks. Some just prefer the layout of certain courses. The great Kingston Town won 21 races from as many starts in Sydney between June 1979 and August 1982, but only five of his 13 starts on his trips to Melbourne.

8. Some may have a bad time at the barrier

There have been countless occasions where horses have experienced problems at the start of a race. An extreme example was in 2007 when Maldivian wounded his neck in the barriers and was scratched from the Caulfield Cup as favourite.

9. Some may get bumped & ease off

In large race fields, jostling between horses is commonplace. Some horses respond badly to being bumped and simply ease off, despite the jockey’s efforts.

10. Some may simply not be in the mood

There are simply some days when a horse just isn’t in the mood for racing. They may have a light cold or other ailment and simply don’t perform to their capability.

Whilst there might be dozens of races every day, here are five you don’t want to miss.

Melbourne Cup

The Melbourne Cup is the richest and most prestigious two mile handicap thoroughbred race in the world. It is held on the first Tuesday in November (generally a public holiday) at the Flemington course in Melbourne.

It is a Grade One handicap race open to horses aged three or over and is run over a distance of 3,200 metres (approximately two miles).

The Melbourne Cup is Australia’s most famous horse racing event, and is nicknamed ‘The Race That Stops A Nation’.

Victoria Derby

The Victoria Derby is also held at Flemington on the first day of Melbourne’s annual Spring Racing Carnival (in October or November). Victoria Derby Day is the only race day in Australia where each and every race has Group Status and so it is one of the nation’s biggest racing days.

The Victoria Derby is a Group One race run over a distance of 2,500 metres. First run in 1855, it is open to any three year old horse although it has been over eighty years since a filly last won the race.

Cox Plate

The Cox Plate is held at the Moonee Valley Racing Club in Moonee Ponds, a suburb of Melbourne. It is run in October each year and is held as part of the course’s Victorian Spring Racing Carnival.

The Cox Plate is a Group One race for three-year-olds and over. It is considered to be the ‘Weight for Age’ championship of Australasia and is run over 2,040 metres. First run in 1922, its position as one of the world’s leading races was confirmed in 1999 when it became the only southern hemisphere race to be included in the World Series Racing Championship – the global ‘grand prix’ of thoroughbred racing.

Crown Oaks

The Crown Oaks is the third major race held at Flemington. Crown Oaks Day is held annually on the first Thursday of November, the third day of Melbourne’s annual Spring Racing Carnival. Oaks Day has also become known as ‘Ladies Day’ over recent years.

The Crown Oaks is a Group One race run over a distance of 2,500 metres. It is one of Australia’s leading events for three year old fillies and the competing three-year-olds all carry set weights of 55.5kg.

Caulfield Cup

The Caulfield Cup is held at the Caulfield track, home to the Melbourne Racing Club.

The Caulfield Cup is held during the Caulfield Racing Carnival every spring. It is normally held in mid October, around two weeks before the Melbourne Cup. The Caulfield Cup is a Group One race run over 2,400m and is worth an astonishing $2.5million in prize money plus over $40,000 in trophies.

It is one of the world’s richest thoroughbred races of its type and is one of Australia’s toughest handicap races.