Royal Ascot
The first Royal Ascot Racing Week, or Royal Meeting , took place in 1768 and is still under the patronage of the royal family to this day . The race week takes place every year in mid-June, around 20 days after the Epsom Derby at the Ascot racecourse .
In 2005, the race week could not take place in Ascot due to reconstruction of the grandstands and had to be relocated to York . At Royal Ascot 2006 , the racing course was reopened with a new grandstand by Queen Elizabeth II .
Gold cup
The third race day of the race week is considered the most important day of the event. The Ascot Gold Cup , which has been held since 1807, takes place on this day . The Gold Cup runs over a distance of 4,022 m (20 furlong ) and is considered the most important horse race for stayers in England. The Gold Cup race day is also known as Ladies' Day , when the female visitors wear particularly extravagant hats. Not least because of this, in addition to its high-class sporting character, the Royal Ascot is also important as a social event. During Royal Ascot, each day of racing is opened by the arrival of the Royal Family , who travel to the open Landauer from nearby Windsor Castle .
run
The following races were held during the Royal Ascot race week:
| month | Day | run | class | distance | Age / gender |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June | Tuesday | Queen Anne Stakes | Group 1 | 1609 m | 4 years old and older |
| June | Tuesday | Coventry Stakes | Group 2 | 1207 m | 2 years |
| June | Tuesday | King's Stand Stakes | Group 1 | 1006 m | 3 years and older |
| June | Tuesday | St James's Palace Stakes | Group 1 | 1609 m | 3 years old, only stallions |
| June | Tuesday | Ascot Stakes | Handicap | 4023 m | 4 years old and older |
| June | Tuesday | Windsor Castle Stakes | List races | 1006 m | 2 years |
| June | Wednesday | Jersey stakes | Group 3 | 1408 m | 3 years |
| June | Wednesday | Queen Mary Stakes | Group 2 | 1006 m | 2 years old, only mares |
| June | Wednesday | Duke of Cambridge Stakes | Group 2 | 1609 m | 4 years old and older, only mares |
| June | Wednesday | Prince of Wales's Stakes | Group 1 | 2012 m | 4 years old and older |
| June | Wednesday | Royal Hunt Cup | Handicap | 1609 m | 3 years and older |
| June | Wednesday | Sandringham Stakes | Handicap | 1609 m | 3 years old, only mares |
| June | Thursday | Norfolk Stakes | Group 2 | 1006 m | 2 years |
| June | Thursday | Hampton Court Stakes | Group 3 | 2012 m | 3 years |
| June | Thursday | Ribblesdale Stakes | Group 2 | 2414 m | 3 years old, only mares |
| June | Thursday | Gold cup | Group 1 | 4023 m | 4 years old and older |
| June | Thursday | Britannia Stakes | Handicap | 1609 m | 3 years old, stallions and geldings |
| June | Thursday | King George V Stakes | Handicap | 2414 m | 3 years |
| June | Friday | Albany Stakes | Group 3 | 1207 m | 2 year old mares |
| June | Friday | King Edward VII Stakes | Group 2 | 2414 m | 3 year old stallions and geldings |
| June | Friday | Commonwealth Cup | Group 1 | 1207 m | 3 years |
| June | Friday | Coronation stakes | Group 1 | 1609 m | 3 year old mares |
| June | Friday | Duke of Edinburgh Stakes | Handicap | 2414 m | 3 years and older |
| June | Friday | Queen's vase | Group 2 | 2816 m | 3 years |
| June | Saturday | Chesham stakes | List races | 1408 m | 2 years |
| June | Saturday | Wolferton Stakes | Handicap | 2012 m | 4 years old and older |
| June | Saturday | Hardwicke stakes | Group 2 | 2414 m | 4 years old and older |
| June | Saturday | Diamond Jubilee Stakes (formerly Golden Jubilee Stakes) | Group 1 | 1207 m | 4 years old and older |
| June | Saturday | Wokingham Stakes | Handicap | 1207 m | 3 years and older |
| June | Saturday | Queen Alexandra Stakes | Conditions | 4370 m | 4 years old and older |
In 2007, Manduro won the Prince of Wales Stakes and was the first horse from German breeding and German ownership to win a race during the Royal Ascot meeting .
Trivia
- The consumption of luxury goods at Royal Ascot 2003: 150,000 bottles of champagne , 100,000 bottles of wine , 14,000 bottles of Pimm’s , 6.7 tons of salmon and 5 tons of strawberries .
- A close friend of the Prince Regent , Beau Brummell , developed the dress code for Ascot, which has only changed slightly to this day : men wear a morning dress (consisting of a cutaway and a top hat ), women wear a corresponding “ ascot-gray ” dress code. “respectable” clothing - although women's fashion has become increasingly revealing in the recent past - and a hat is mandatory.
- For a long time, officially divorced members of society had no access to the Royal Enclosure . In this closed visitor area of the racetrack, only invited persons have access after prior application and naming of guarantors who are already authorized to enter. However, this convention has not existed for several years - not least because of the divorces within the royal family.
- In the famous musical My Fair Lady , the horse racing in Ascot plays a role. One piece of music in it is titled Ascot Gavotte .
Individual evidence
- ^ Start of the racing season in Ascot. Brisant , June 18, 2003, archived from the original on November 26, 2003 ; accessed on June 12, 2017 .