Sha Tin Racecourse

Sha Tin Racecourse
Location Sha Tin District,  Hong Kong
Owned by Hong Kong Jockey Club
Date opened October 7, 1978
Capacity 85,000
Course type Thoroughbred
Notable races Group One races:
Hong Kong Derby
Queen Elizabeth II Cup
Champions Mile
Hong Kong International Races
Hong Kong Triple Crown
Official website
Sha Tin Racecourse
Southeast Panorama over the Sha Tin horse race course
Traditional Chinese 沙田馬場
Racecourse Concourse
Covered Parade Ring
Public Betting Hall at Level 1

Sha Tin Racecourse (Chinese: 沙田馬場) is one of the two racecourses for horse racing in Hong Kong. It is located in Sha Tin in the New Territories. It is managed by Hong Kong Jockey Club (Chinese: 香港賽馬會).

Penfold Park (Chinese: 彭福公園) is encircled by the track, and the Hong Kong Sports Institute is located immediately south of the property.

Michael Jackson planned to perform at the racecourse on his Dangerous World Tour, which was the start of the third leg, but was cancelled due to the conflict of the racing season.

History

It was built in 1978 (under the administration of Sir David Akers-Jones, the then-Secretary for the New Territories) on reclaimed land and is the larger of the two tracks in Hong Kong.

The course has 474 races per season including:

  • Sha Tin Racecourse Silver Jubilee Cup
  • Sha Tin Sprint Trophy

On September 9, 2007, Sha Tin race track opened for the season with record 1-day crowd of about 60,000. Chief Secretary Henry Tang struck the ceremonial gong. The Hong Kong Jockey Club collected US$106 million in bets (highest since 2001). Children of horse owners were admitted amid protest of local anti-gambling groups. Sunny Power, booted by Howard Cheng got the trophy in the 1,200 metre dash.[1]

Features

Originally built with capacity for 35,000 and one grandstand, it now has capacity for 85,000 and two grandstands. It also has 20 stables for a capacity of 1,260 horses.

Other features include:

  • Equine Hospital
  • Racing Laboratory
  • Equine Swimming Pool
  • Riverside Gallop

Track Specifications:

  • Turf
    • Straight: 430 metres (470 yd)
    • Circumference: 1.899 kilometres (1.180 mi)
  • All Weather Track(Dirt)
    • Straight: 380 metres (420 yd)
    • Circumference: 1.560 kilometres (0.969 mi)

Major races

Group One
Group Three

Transport

The racecourse is served by Racecourse Station of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR). The station is only used on racing days.

References

  1. ↑ ChannelNewsAsia.com, HK's Sha Tin race course opens to huge crowds

Coordinates: 22°23′58″N 114°12′24″E / 22.39944°N 114.20667°E / 22.39944; 114.20667

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.