Prague-Velká Chuchle Racecourse
The winner's paddock at Velká Chuchle
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| Location | Radotinská 69, 159 00, Prague 5 |
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| Coordinates | 50°0′33.5″N 14°23′21.9″E / 50.009306°N 14.389417°ECoordinates: 50°0′33.5″N 14°23′21.9″E / 50.009306°N 14.389417°E |
| Owned by | TMM, s.r.o. |
| Operated by | TMM, s.r.o. |
| Date opened | September 26, 1906 |
| Race type | Canter racing, Harness racing |
| Notable races | Czech Derby, Czech St Leger, Czech 2000 Guineas |
| Attendance | 2500 - 5000 (average) |
| Official website | |
The Prague-Velká Chuchle Racecourse is a racetrack where canter and harness horse racing is held. It is located on the southern outskirts of Prague, in the administrational district of Velká Chuchle. Races are held there from April to mid-November. The track measures 2180m in length.
The Praha-Velká Chuchle racetrack is the center of premier horse racing in the Czech Republic. It hosts more races than any other Czech racecourse, and its hosted races include the three most prestigious flat races in the country; the Czech Derby, the Czech St Leger, and the Czech 2000 Guineas. These three races make up the Czech Triple Crown of flat racing, which only seven horses have accomplished in the history of the Czech Republic. The latest, as of 2013, to have done so is the Polish thoroughbred Age of Jape.
The Böhmischer Rennverein, a Czech horse racing club, campaigned to set up a new horse racecourse in the Prague area. The club was very prestigious; its members included the Archduke Karl Franz Josef, the Governor Earl Karl Coudenhove, and the Lord Mayor of Prague, Dr Karel Groš.
This track was located at the Prague Indalidovna, and racing began there from the 1860s. A track was shortly later set up at Císarská louka (the Imperial Meadows).Kincsem, widely recognized as one of the most successful horses of all time, won three times at this racetrack. However, the 1890s brought flooding that destroyed the track. After the river was regulated to reduce risk of flooding, racing at Císarská louka ended when the area of the island it was located on decreased.
A racetrack at Karlovy Vary was opened in 1899, but it was decided by the Rennverein that this was not near enough to Prague, which was the desired centre of racing in the Czech Republic.
Funded by the Rennverein,the construction of a very modern racetrack began in 1899 on land rented at Velká Chuchle. On September 28, 1906, the track was unveiled. The very first horse to win at the track was the mare Vision, ridden by her owner, veterinarian Francis Bartosch, during the Opening Stakes.
The racetrack was made popular by the various famous jockeys of the time that participated there. These included the Velká Pardubická winners Slinn (1901), Buckenham (1899, 1900, 1904) and Ultirck Rosák (1902,1903). The racetrack hosted important English racing personalities such as trainer John Reeves and jockey Walter Earl, the presence of which brought importance to Prague, given that the capital city was at that time Vienna.
Although the press raved of the opening day at Velká Chuchle, the track remained relatively unknown. Indeed, the only race of great importance held there between 1906 and 1914 was the annual Velká pražská steeplechase.
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Wikipedia