What is a Classic?
Not to be confused with its adjectival form, when used as a noun in horse racing circles, ‘Classic’ – often, but not always, capitalised – has a highly specific meaning. In Britain, the term refers to any of the five principal races for three-year-old horses, which are, in chronological order, the 2,000 Guineas, the 1,000 Guineas, the Oaks, the Derby and the St. Leger. The 2,000 Guineas, the Derby and the St. Leger are open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies, but the 1,000 Guineas and the Oaks are restricted to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. Collectively, the former three races are sometimes referred to as the ‘Triple Crown’; the last horse to win all three was Nijinsky in 1970. The term ‘Classic’ can also be used to describe equivalent races in countries other than Britain, such as the Prix du Jockey Club, also known as the French Derby.