Grand Annual
Encyclopedia
The Grand Annual is an Australia
n Thoroughbred
steeplechase
for horses run at Warrnambool, Victoria
during its annual May Racing Carnival. The distance is officially listed as about 5500 metres because many sections of the race are run in open paddocks with little or no fences. The race is the longest horse race run in Australia on a public course. There are 33 obstacles, more than any other steeplechase in the world.
Horse run clockwise and counter-clockwise at various points of the race and features a section in open paddocks. When re-entering the racetrack itself horses turn left on the first lap and right on the second. This has created problems on many occasions when horses have tried to veer left rather than right second time around.
Knowledge of the course and stamina are vital to the chances of horse and rider. With the Great Eastern Steeplechase
and VRC Grand National it is considered to be one of the top three Australian steeplechase races.
The Grand Annual was first run in 1872. It was known as the Warrnambool Handicap Steeple until 1877, the Grand National Steeple from 1878 until 1881, the Warrnambool Handicap Steeple again until 1894, and the Grand Annual Steeple since 1895.
The 2009 event was the 132nd running (the race was not held between 1942 and 1946 and was abandoned in 1971). The winner is notable for not having raced for two years and two days prior to contesting this event.
The race record is held by Hoki (1996) at 6min 38.4 sec.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n 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...
steeplechase
Steeplechase (horse racing)
The steeplechase is a form of horse racing and derives its name from early races in which orientation of the course was by reference to a church steeple, jumping fences and ditches and generally traversing the many intervening obstacles in the countryside...
for horses run at Warrnambool, Victoria
Warrnambool, Victoria
-Cityscape:The original City of Warrnambool was a 4x8 grid, with boundaries of Lava Street , Japan Street , Merri Street and Henna Street . In the nineteenth century, it was intended that Fairy Street – with its proximity to the Warrnambool Railway Station – would be the main street of...
during its annual May Racing Carnival. The distance is officially listed as about 5500 metres because many sections of the race are run in open paddocks with little or no fences. The race is the longest horse race run in Australia on a public course. There are 33 obstacles, more than any other steeplechase in the world.
Horse run clockwise and counter-clockwise at various points of the race and features a section in open paddocks. When re-entering the racetrack itself horses turn left on the first lap and right on the second. This has created problems on many occasions when horses have tried to veer left rather than right second time around.
Knowledge of the course and stamina are vital to the chances of horse and rider. With the Great Eastern Steeplechase
Great Eastern Steeplechase
The Great Eastern Steeplechase is an Australian Thoroughbred steeplechase horse race held annually at Oakbank, South Australia on Easter Saturday and Monday at the Oakbank Racecourse as part of the Oakbank Easter Racing Carnival....
and VRC Grand National it is considered to be one of the top three Australian steeplechase races.
The Grand Annual was first run in 1872. It was known as the Warrnambool Handicap Steeple until 1877, the Grand National Steeple from 1878 until 1881, the Warrnambool Handicap Steeple again until 1894, and the Grand Annual Steeple since 1895.
The 2009 event was the 132nd running (the race was not held between 1942 and 1946 and was abandoned in 1971). The winner is notable for not having raced for two years and two days prior to contesting this event.
The race record is held by Hoki (1996) at 6min 38.4 sec.
The winners
|
|
|