What are some of the most famous horse races around the world?

Horse racing is a global industry and many famous horse races are staged in leading racing jurisdictions worldwide, including the United Kingdom, United States and Australia, to name but three.

Domestically, the five ‘Classics’ – that is, five long-established Group 1 races – are considered the ultimate test of the three-year-old generation. Indeed, three of them, namely the 2,000 Guineas, run at Newmarket in May, the Derby, run at Epsom in June and the St. Leger, run at Doncaster in September, constitute the British Triple Crown, which was last won by the legendary Nijinsky back in 1970.

On the other side of the Atlantic, in the United States, the early-season racing narrative is also propelled by the pursuit of the American Triple Crown. The three constituent races, the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes, take place in the space of four or five weeks in May and June, but have nonetheless defined the careers of celebrated names such as War Admiral, Secretariat, Affirmed and, most recently, Justfied.

In the Southern Hemisphere, the Melbourne Cup, run at Flemington Racecoursein Melbourne, Australia in November is, with good reason, nicknamed ‘the race that stops a nation’. The most important race of the year in Australia and, nowadays, worth A$10 million in total prize money, the Melbourne Cup is a truly international event, attracting entries from around the world.

Similar comments apply to the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, run at Longchamp, Paris in October and, boasting £5 million in guaranteed prize money, the most valuable race run in Europe. At the time of writing, of the last 10 renewals, five have been won by horses trained in Britain, three by horses trained in France and one apiece by horses trained in Ireland and Germany.