The Bukit Timah Race Course was a venue for Thoroughbred

Thoroughbred

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...

 horse racing

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

 in the Bukit Timah

Bukit Timah

Bukit Timah is an area in Singapore and a hill in that area. Bukit Timah is located near the centre of the Singapore main island. The hill stands at an altitude of 163.63 metres and is the highest point in the city-state of Singapore...

 area of Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

. Built by the Bukit Timah Turf Club, it was opened on April 15, 1933 by the Sir Cecil Clementi

Cecil Clementi

-Early life and education:Born in Cawnpore, India, Clementi was the son of Colonel Montagu Clementi, Judge Advocate General in India, and his wife, Isabel Collard. He attended St Paul's School and Magdalen College, Oxford, where he studied Sanskrit and the classics. In 1895, he won the Hertford...

, Governor of Singapore. There was no racing from 1941 through 1946 as a result of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

During its sixty-six years, Bukit Timah Race Course was visited by numerous Singapore and foreign dignitaries including a 1972 visit by racing fan a Thoroughbred owner, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

 and Prince Philip

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....

 and Princess Anne

Anne, Princess Royal

Princess Anne, Princess Royal , is the only daughter of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...

. In honor of her visit, the Queen Elizabeth II Cup was established.

In 1959 the Singapore Derby

Singapore Derby

The Singapore Derby is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually in mid July at Kranji Racecourse in Singapore. Contested on turf over a left-handed course, the domestic Group One race is run over a distance 2000 meters and is open to four-year-old horses only.Inaugurated in 1880 at the Serangoon...

 was revived at Bukit Timah Race Course and was the feature race on its final day of operation on July 25, 1999. Closed to make way for the new Kranji Racecourse

Kranji Racecourse

The Singapore Racecourse is a venue for Thoroughbred horse racing in the Kranji area of Singapore. Built and operated by the Singapore Turf Club, it opened in 2000 as a modern replacement for the Bukit Timah Race Course....

, real estate developers

Real estate development

Real estate development, or Property Development, is a multifaceted business, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of improved land or parcels to others...

used the site to construct the Turf City shopping complex.