The Racecourse is the part of Durham University

Durham University

The University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...

's sports facilities. It contains squash

Squash (sport)

Squash is a high-speed racquet sport played by two players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball...

, tennis

Tennis

Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

 and fives

Fives

Fives is a British sport believed to derive from the same origins as many racquet sports. In fives, a ball is propelled against the walls of a special court using gloved or bare hands as though they were a racquet.-Background:...

 courts, cricket

Cricket

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

, rugby

Rugby football

Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...

, hockey

Hockey

Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...

 and football pitches and rowing

Watercraft rowing

Watercraft rowing is the act of propelling a boat using the motion of oars in the water. The difference between paddling and rowing is that with rowing the oars have a mechanical connection with the boat whereas with paddling the paddles are hand-held with no mechanical connection.This article...

 houses. It is located along the River Wear

River Wear

The River Wear is located in North East England, rising in the Pennines and flowing eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea at Sunderland.-Geology and history:...

 and has been used as a sports ground since at least 1733.

As well as use by Durham University, the Racecourse is known for hosting two annual events, the Durham Regatta

Durham Regatta

Durham Regatta is the premier rowing event in the North East of England, held each year on the second weekend in June on the River Wear which provides a picturesque setting for regattas and head races....

 and Durham Miners' Gala

Durham Miners' Gala

The Durham Miners' Gala is a large annual gathering held on the second Saturday in July in the city of Durham, England. It is associated with the coal mining heritage of the Durham Coalfield, which stretched throughout the traditional County of Durham. It is also locally called "The Big Meeting"...

. Its cricket ground is used for first class cricket and is the home of Durham University Centre of Cricketing Excellence

Durham University Centre of Cricketing Excellence

Durham MCC University is a cricket coaching centre based at Durham University in Durham, County Durham, England and the name under which the university's cricket team plays....

 (Durham UCCE).

History

The Racecourse was first recorded as being used for 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 1733; previously the site had been a smithy

Smithy

Smithy may refer to:* Forge, also called a smithy, the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith* Smith , sometimes referred to as a smithy, a person involved in the shaping of metal objects...

 for the Prior of Durham. At its peak, the course had a stone grandstand and attracted 90,000 spectators for a two day event in 1873. The Racecourse was also used for other sports in the Nineteenth Century, notably cricket

Cricket

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

 and the Durham Regatta. The land is now owned by the University, which has used it as sports field since the early twentieth century.

Durham Miners' Gala

Durham Miners' Gala was first held at the Racecourse in 1872, which was the gala's second edition. All editions of the gala have since been held at the Racecourse. The event is typically held in mid July, though has on occasions been held in August. The Racecourse is the location of the speeches held at the culmination of the Gala march. At its peak, 250,000 people attended the Gala.

Cricket Ground

The Racecourse's most significant facility is its cricket

Cricket

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

 ground. It had the honour of hosting Durham’s

Durham County Cricket Club

Durham County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Durham. Its limited overs team is called the Durham Dynamos. Their kit colours are blue with yellow trim and the shirt sponsor was...

 first match as a first-class county in 1992, against Leicestershire

Leicestershire County Cricket Club

Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....

. Between 1992 and 1994, Durham played seven games there in the County Championship

County Championship

The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...

, seven List A games and a three-day game against Australia

Australian cricket team

The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...

. Since Durham moved into The Riverside Ground

Riverside Ground

The Riverside Ground, officially called the Emirates Durham International Cricket Ground, is a cricket venue in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, England. It is home to Durham County Cricket Club....

, which was completed in 1995, the ground has changed purpose to host many of Durham UCCE’s

Durham University Centre of Cricketing Excellence

Durham MCC University is a cricket coaching centre based at Durham University in Durham, County Durham, England and the name under which the university's cricket team plays....

 matches, which has so far included eleven first-class matches as well as their games in the Northern Rock North East Premier League. In 2007, it also hosted a game between the touring West Indies team and the MCC

Marylebone Cricket Club

Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...

.

The ground has hosted 20 first-class matches and seven List A matches.

Game Information:

Game Type	No. of Games
County Championship Matches County Championship The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...	7
limited-over county matches	7
Twenty20 matches Twenty20 Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in England for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board , in 2003. A Twenty20 game involves two teams, each has a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. Twenty20 cricket is also known as T20 cricket...	0

Game Statistics: first-class:

Category	Information
Highest Team Score	West Indies West Indian cricket team The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as the West Indies or the Windies, is a multi-national cricket team representing a sporting confederation of 15 mainly English-speaking Caribbean countries, British dependencies and non-British dependencies.From the mid 1970s to the early 1990s,...  (534/8dec against MCC Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of... ) in 2007
Lowest Team Score	Durham UCCE (46 against Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws... ) in 2006
Best Batting Performance	Runako Morton Runako Morton Runako Shakur Morton is a West Indian cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-handed offbreak bowler.A lively, often unpredictable character, Morton was expelled from the West Indian cricketing Academy in July 2001 for bad behaviour but continued to play for the Leeward Islands in the...  (201 Runs for West Indies West Indian cricket team The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as the West Indies or the Windies, is a multi-national cricket team representing a sporting confederation of 15 mainly English-speaking Caribbean countries, British dependencies and non-British dependencies.From the mid 1970s to the early 1990s,...  against MCC Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...  in 2007
Best Bowling Performance	Simon Brown Simon Brown Simon Brown, born in 1956 in Sydney, New South Wales, is an Australian Science Fiction writer.He originally trained as a journalist and worked for a range of Australian Government Departments, including the Australian Electoral Commission and the NSW Railways Department...  (7/70 for Durham against Australia Australian cricket team The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877... ) in 1992

Game Statistics: one-day matches:

Category	Information
Highest Team Score	Surrey Surrey County Cricket Club Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...  (330/6 in 39 overs against Durham Durham County Cricket Club Durham County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Durham. Its limited overs team is called the Durham Dynamos. Their kit colours are blue with yellow trim and the shirt sponsor was... ) in 1992
Lowest Team Score	Derbyshire Derbyshire County Cricket Club Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the England and Wales domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Derbyshire...  (169 in 44 overs against Durham Durham County Cricket Club Durham County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Durham. Its limited overs team is called the Durham Dynamos. Their kit colours are blue with yellow trim and the shirt sponsor was... ) in 1993
Best Batting Performance	Darren Bicknell Darren Bicknell Darren John Bicknell is an English former cricketer. He is a left-handed batsman and a slow left-arm bowler.Born in Guildford, Darren is the brother of former England seam bowler Martin Bicknell. However, he struggled to have similar international impact in the 1990s, the selectors instead...  (125 Runs for Surrey Surrey County Cricket Club Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...  against Durham Durham County Cricket Club Durham County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Durham. Its limited overs team is called the Durham Dynamos. Their kit colours are blue with yellow trim and the shirt sponsor was... ) in 1992
Best Bowling Performance	Neil Lenham Neil Lenham Neil John Lenham born is a former English cricketer who played for Sussex and captained England under 19's in 3 tests and 3 ODI's earlier in his career....  (5/28 for Sussex Sussex County Cricket Club Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...  against Durham Durham County Cricket Club Durham County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Durham. Its limited overs team is called the Durham Dynamos. Their kit colours are blue with yellow trim and the shirt sponsor was... ) in 1993