YORK RACECOURSE


York racecourse recently came out top in a Times survey of the best racecourses in the UK, and if you've ever visited York racecourse that wouldn't surprise you. Excellent facilities and good viewing are coupled with a friendly atmosphere and cheap prices to make York a must visit. Such is its standing that when Ascot was being re-developed York was chosen to host the Royal Ascot meeting in 2005. The course is also called the Knavesmire, and horse racing has taken place there since 1731.

york racecourse

Key Characteristics

York really is a splendid course with a long run-in sweeping turns and virtually no undulations, making it a galloping horses dream. It is fair to every style of horse. There is also a perfectly flat straight course on which all 5 and 6 furlong races are run. They appear to be pretty fair. However the perception is that there is a bias favouring front runners. However an excellent study carried out by Simon Rowlands dispels this myth, and ranked York as only 36th best out of 37 for front runners, with the long flat straight maybe having something to do with this.

Course map


York racecourse map

Interesting Facts about York Racecourse

  • The site is universally known as the "Knavesmire" — a name derived from the Old Norse Knares Myre, meaning boggy or waterlogged ground.
  • There's genuine archaeological evidence the site was used for chariot racing during Roman times — it sat just outside Roman Eboracum (York), with activity dated to the 1st-4th centuries AD.
  • The first grandstand was built in 1754, designed by John Carr. Part of that original structure still survives today — it's now incorporated into the Guinness Bar on Champagne Terrace, and it's Grade II* listed.
  • Both the Ebor Handicap and the Gimcrack Stakes date to 1846, right out of that same push for quality.
  • The Gimcrack Stakes is named after an 18th-century horse who won 27 of his 35 races over an 11-year career — remarkably, despite never actually winning at York itself.
  • York now ranks as Britain's third-largest racecourse by total prize money, and second only to Ascot in prize money per race.
Advertisement