Showing posts with label Horse Racing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Horse Racing. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Royal Ascot 2011 Live Stream, Ascot Racecourse Online Feed

The centre piece of Ascot’s year, Royal Ascot is one of Europe's most famous race meetings, and dates back to 1711 when it was founded by Queen Anne. Every year Royal Ascot is attended by HM Elizabeth II and various members of the British Royal Family.

This live feed is at Royal Ascot 2011:

Royal Ascot Live

Event Information:

Ascot Racecourse is a famous English racecourse, located in the small town of Ascot, Berkshire, used for thoroughbred horse racing. It is one of the leading racecourses in the United Kingdom, hosting 9 of the UK's 32 annual Group 1 races, the same number as Newmarket. The course is closely associated with the British Royal Family, being approximately six miles from Windsor Castle, and owned by the Crown Estate.

The Royal Enclosure is the most prestigious of the 3 enclosures with recent visits from the Queen and Royal Family members. Access to the royal enclosure is restricted with high security on the day. First time applicants must apply to the Royal Enclosure office and gain membership from someone who has attended the enclosure for at least four years. For existing badgeholders, an invitation is sent out by Her Majesty's Representative to request badges. The badgeholders name is written onto the badge and can only be used by that person; the colours of the badges vary each day for one day applicants. Those in the Royal Enclosure have the options of fine dining and hospitality and a selection of bars. The Dress is strictly enforced, for Ladies only a day dress with a hat or fascinator is acceptable with rules applying to the length of the dress and ladies must not show bare midriffs or shoulders. For gentlemen a black or grey morning dress with top hat.

Friday, June 3, 2011

Epsom Derby 2011 Live Stream, Epsom Downs Web Cam Feed

The Derby Stakes, known as The Investec Derby or The Derby and internationally as the Epsom Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to three-year-old Thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 10 yards (2,423 metres)

This live streaming feed is at Epsom Downs for The Derby:

Epsom Derby Live

Event Information:

The English Derby is one of the most prestigious and iconic events of the sporting and social calendars. The Ladies day is known for being a highly fashionable event, where ladies compete to win the coveted Style on the Downs competition. Elaborate headwear and colourful dresses are the norm. The Derby originated at a celebration following the first running of the Oaks Stakes in 1779. A new race was planned, and it was decided that it should be named after either the host of the party, the 12th Earl of Derby, or one of his guests, Sir Charles Bunbury. According to legend the decision was made by the toss of a coin, but it is probable that Bunbury, the Steward of the Jockey Club, deferred to his host. The inaugural running of the Derby was held on 4 May 1780. It was won by Diomed, a colt owned by Sir Charles Bunbury, who collected prize money of £1,065 15s. The first four runnings were contested over 1 mile, but this was amended to the current distance of 1½ miles in 1784. Lord Derby achieved his first success in the event in 1787, with a horse called Sir Peter Teazle.

The starting point of the race was moved twice during the 19th century. The first move, suggested by Lord George Bentinck, was in 1848, and the second was in 1872. It was discovered in 1991 that the exact length of the race was 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 10 yards. The Derby has inspired many similar events around the world. National variations include the Prix du Jockey Club, the Irish Derby, the Deutsches Derby, the Derby Italiano and in Australia, the AJC Australian Derby, Queensland Derby, South Australian Derby, the VRC Victoria Derby and WATC Derby. The New Zealand Derby contested at Ellerslie Racecourse, Auckland is the richest Derby in the Southern Hemisphere. Several races in the United States bear the "Derby" name, the most famous of which is the Kentucky Derby.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Kentucky Derby 2011 Live Stream, Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky

The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival.

This live feed is at Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby:

Kentucky Derby live

Race Information:

he race is one and a quarter mile (2 km) at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds and fillies 121 pounds. The race is known in the United States as "The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports" or "The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports" for its approximate duration, and is also called "The Run for the Roses" for the blanket of roses draped over the winner. It is the first leg of the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing and is followed by the Preakness Stakes then the Belmont Stakes. The horse must win all three to win the Triple Crown. The attendance at the Kentucky Derby ranks first in North America and usually surpasses the attendance of all other stakes races including the Preakness Stakes, Belmont Stakes and the Breeders' Cup. For more information, see American Thoroughbred Racing top Attended Events.

The Kentucky Derby is one of the USA's oldest Thoroughbred horse races (the Phoenix Stakes being the oldest, first run in 1831). From the time the region was settled, the fields of the Bluegrass region were noted for producing superior racehorses. In 1872, Col. Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr., grandson of William Clark of the Lewis and Clark expedition, traveled to England, visiting the Epsom Derby, a famous race that had been running annually since 1780. From there, Clark went on to Paris, France, where in 1863, a group of racing enthusiasts had formed the French Jockey Club and had organized the Grand Prix de Paris, which at the time was the greatest race in France.

Friday, April 8, 2011

Aintree Webcam Live at the 2011 Grand National

The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase over a distance of four miles and 856 yards (7,242 m), with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course.

This live feed is at Aintree for the Grand National:

Aintree webcam

Race Information:

The steeplechase is the centrepiece of a three-day meeting, one of only four run at Aintree in the racing season. It is the most valuable National Hunt event in Britain, offering a total prize fund of £950,000 in 2011.The race is popular amongst many people who do not normally watch or bet on horse racing at other times of the year. The Grand National has always been run over the same course at Aintree and consists of two circuits of sixteen fences, the first fourteen of which are jumped twice. Participating horses cover a distance of four miles and four furlongs, the longest of any National Hunt race in Britain. The course is also notable for having one of the longest run-ins from the final flight of any steeplechase, at 494 yards.

The Grand National was designed as a cross-country steeplechase when it was first officially run in 1839. The runners started at a lane on the edge of the racecourse and raced away from the course out over open countryside towards the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The gates, hedges and ditches that they met along the way were flagged to provide them with the obstacles to be jumped along the way with posts and rails erected at the two points where the runners jumped a brook. The runners returned towards the racecourse by running along the edge of the canal before re-entering the course at the opposite end. The runners then ran the length of the racecourse before embarking on a second circuit before finishing in front of the stands. The majority of the race therefore took place not on the actual Aintree Racecourse but instead in the adjoining countryside. That countryside was incorporated into the modern course but commentators still often refer to it as "the country", much to the confusion of millions of once-a-year racing viewers.