Facts About Racing in Australia
Arguably, the most famous name in horse racing history is Phar Lap and yes, most of his racing was done in Australia or New Zealand during the late 1920s and early 30s. Through decades of history, the Australian horse racing industry has developed into a first class destination for top class horses shipping in from all over world, including countries like England, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Hong Kong and Japan. It has more racing venues than any other country, it ranks 3rd in total annual purses (A$421 million) offered behind the US and Japan and it has the second most horses in training behind only the US. Most if not all of the racing in done on turf for horses 2-years-old and up, and there are 67 Group 1 races run at distances ranging from 900m up to 3200m. By the way, it's great racing weather year-round. …show more content…
As mentioned above, Australia has more racetracks than any other country in the world. While many of these tracks would be considered minor venues, there are several tracks that are considered on par with Royal Ascot or Newmarket. They include Flemington Racecourse, Caulfield Racecourse and Moonee Valley Racing Club in Melbourne, Victoria, and Royal Randwick Racecourse and Rosehill Gardens in Sydney, New South