Wales is home to how many racecourses?
Nowadays, Wales is home to three racecourses, namely Bangor-on-Dee, Chepstow and Ffos Las. Historically, Wales was home to various other racecourses, including those at Cardiff, or Ely, Newport and Oswestry and Llanymynech, but by the middle of the twentieth century they had all closed their doors.
Not to be confused with the seaside resort of Bangor, in Gwynedd, northwest Wales, Bangor-on-Dee is a National Hunt venue in Clwyd, northeast Wales. The racecourse, which is situated approximately 6 miles south-east of Wrexham, on the banks of the River Dee, has the distinction of being the only one in Britain without a grandstand.
Chepstow, situated on the northern outskirts of the town of Chepstow, in Monmouthshire, southeast Wales, near the English border, is a dual-purpose racecourse. Billed as Wales’ premier racecourse, Chepstow is home to the most prestigious race of the year in Wales, the Welsh Grand National, which is staged annually on December 27.
Ffos Las, situated just north of the former mining village of Trimsaran and approximately 4 miles east of Kidwelly, in Carmarthenshire, southwest Wales, is another dual-purpose racecourse. Built on the site of a former open cast coal mine, Ffos Las opened in 2009, making it the first new turf racecourse in Britain for 80 years.