Treasure Park
Hungary celebrates its legend Kincsem in the summer with a special highlight for horse racing lovers: the Austrian Derby is taking place in Budapest for the first time.
The first horse races are estimated to have taken place around 4500 BC. It took place around 2000 BC when people dared to ride on horseback. Galloping and chariot races were already part of the program of the ancient Olympic Games. Modern horse racing began in England in the late Middle Ages. Nowadays, races are held all year round in many countries around the world.
Gallop or trotting races
A basic distinction is made between the horses’ natural gaits, the gallop and the trot. Possibly due to their greater speed, horse racing enjoys greater popularity in most countries. A distinction is made once more between flat races that take place on a flat course and obstacle races.
By far the greatest interest in horse racing is horse racing on flat tracks. The usual distance of gallop races is between 1,000 m (sprint) and 3,000 m (stayer). Steeplechase races are held at a gallop; the horse and rider also have to overcome several obstacles. The length of the race track is between 2,800 and 7,300 m.
In harness racing, the horse is only allowed to run at the trot gait. The rider does not sit in the horse’s saddle, but in a single-axle sulky pulled by the horse. If the horses break into a gallop or other “unclean gait” during a race, there will be penalties or even disqualification. The distance of the races is between 1,600 and 3,200 m.
My treasure gewann einfach alles
The legendary Hungarian mare Kincsem is considered one of the world’s best racehorses of all time. Between 1876 and 1880 she took part in 54 horse races in many European cities, all of which she won. A record that has never been achieved to this day.
The “Kincsem Park” racecourse in Budapest was named following this legendary miracle mare. Nowadays, both harness racing and horse racing take place here on weekends. Legend has it that harness racing was invented in Hungary when farmers wanted to get their goods to the market quickly.
In Austria, too, many people show great interest in the traditional and fascinating horse racing sport. As every year, a highlight for horse racing lovers will be the Austrian Derby. This major horse race, which has been held for 156 years, is now being held in Hungary for the first time, where the Hungarians want to properly celebrate Kincsem’s 150th birthday.
Budapest’s Kincsem Park horse racing arena hosts the Hungarian Derby on July 7th and the Austrian horse race called the Danube Derby on August 4th.
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