Today in Sports History #19 - Horse Racing - birth of the Grand National (February 26, 1839)
Today in Sports History covers an event in Horse Racing. Equestrian Sports is very popular in Great Britain which includes all types of sports that require the skill of riding, driving, steeplechasing or vaulting with horses.
On February 26, 1839 the Grand Liverpool Steeplechase was the first official annual running of a steeplechase which later became known as the Grand National.
The race was held at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool and attracted a field of 17 runners. The race was not run as a handicap chase (the Grand National was converted to a handicap race in 1843) and therefore all the runners carried twelve stone.
Winner of the first Grand National was Jem Mason riding on Lottery.
What is Steeplechasing?
Steeplechasing is horse racing that involves racing on a track where the horses also jump over obstacles. This type of horse racing is most common in the UK, where it is also called National Hunt racing.
Apart from the UK Steeplechasing is primarily conducted in Ireland (where it originated), Canada, United States, Australia and France. The name stems from the first 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.
Who is Lottery?
Lottery was the name of a famous horse in the middle of the 19th century. Lottery was the winner of the 1839 Grand National. Commentator claimed that Lottery could trot faster than most of his rivals could gallop, and it was widely believed that he would have won the National more than once but it failed with or without huge weight burden in the following years.
Sources: Wikipedia, HenryPoole.com, Horse & Hound, Marlborough Antiques
To see what happened in Sports History already - check the links below:
February 23: Olympics Lake Placid
February 17: Invention of the Bike
February 15: Olympic gold twice
February 12: Team Canada Ice Hockey
February 11: Mike Tyson knocked out
February 10: Mark Spitz Birthday
February 9: Volleyball invented
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