Horse Racing Planet | Where the world is Flat

North America

Keeneland: Art Collector posts Kentucky Derby claims as Swiss Skydiver is swamped
Europe

Son of my father: landmark success for Cieren Fallon on Oxted – here’s the July Cup takeaway
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‘I can’t believe I’ve won a G1 as an apprentice’ – Cieren Fallon on his July Cup win on Oxted
North America

Coronavirus: Luis Saez and Victor Espinoza join growing list of US jockeys who test positive
Europe

See what 3.5m guineas buys you as Darain scores by nearly five lengths on debut

Aidan O’Brien barred from Irish racecourses for two weeks over Covid-19 breach

Aidan O’Brien will not be able to saddle his runners at this weekend’s Darley Irish Oaks meeting at the Curragh after breaching Irish racing’s Covid-19 protocols.

Del Mar top gun Flavien Prat latest big name in spate of coronavirus positives

California-based jockey Flavien Prat, three-time leading rider at Del Mar, is the latest high-profile US rider to test positive for coronavirus.

Andrasch Starke has German Derby record in sights on Wonderful Moon

Andrasch Starke has a chance to make history on big-race favourite Wonderful Moon in the IDEE Deutsches Derby at Hamburg on Sunday.

Ladies first: Swiss Skydiver and Monomoy Girl top star-studded US bill on Saturday

Top filly Swiss Skydiver takes on the boys at Keeneland on Saturday, when champion Monomoy Girl is in action at Belmont.

‘Oxted is definitely a G1 horse’ – Cieren Fallon dreams of July Cup glory

Cieren Fallon Jr is looking forward to his first G1 ride on Oxted in the Darley July Cup.

Dubai dirt star Midnight Sands joins Brendan Walsh on Breeders’ Cup mission

Midnight Sands, a five-time winner on the dirt in Dubai, has gone into training in the US with the Breeders’ Cup in mind.

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Italy: Il Palio di Siena Famous equine throwback to a medieval age of jousting and pageantry as mixed-breed horses representing ‘contrade’ (neighbourhoods) partnered by bareback riders (‘fantini’) hurtle around a picture-postcard Tuscan city-centre piazza in front of thousands of frenzied spectators. Fists and whips are much in evidence. It happens twice a year, on July 2 and August 16; apart from 2020, owing to coronavirus.
Germany: Duhnen mudflats A mixed racecard (also featuring trotters) is held annually in July on what is effectively the seabed at Duhnen, a North Sea resort on the outskirts of the port city of Cuxhaven. Set against the dramatic backdrop of the Elbe estuary, an international shipping lane, the racing surface is exposed by the ebbing tide. About 30,000 spectators attend, watching from the nearby dyke.
Germany: ‘Seejagdrennen’ (lake chases) Germany’s abbreviated jumps programme (less than 20 races) features four examples of ‘Seejagdrennen’, wherein horses have to negotiate a large body of water. Best-known are the two at Bad Harzburg in Lower Saxony in July, though the lake is deeper at Hamburg, requiring some equine doggy paddle during the Deutsches Derby meeting. Quakenbruck hosts the other one.
Japan: Ban’ei racing on Hokkaido Staged only at the suburban racetrack of Obihiro on ‘horse island’ Hokkaido, ban’ei (‘pull play’) involves sturdy draught horses twice the weight of thoroughbreds pulling heavy iron sleds along a straight 200-metre sand track featuring a pair of inclines. You can bet on it, there’s a starting gate and ‘jockeys’ wear conventional silks.
USA: Twin-horse chariot racing Ben Hur-style is the order of the day at the Golden Spike Event Center in Ogden, Utah, on the edge of the Rockies just north of Salt Lake City. Teams compete in a series of drag races over 440 yards lasting about 22 seconds; the ‘American Chariot Racing World Championships’ are held in March.