1.
Grand National
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The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap steeplechase over 4 miles 514 yards with horses jumping 30 fences over two laps and it is the most valuable jump race in Europe, with a prize fund of £1 million in 2016. An event that is prominent in British culture, the race is popular amongst many people who do not normally watch or bet on horse racing at times of the year. The course over which the race is run features much larger fences than those found on conventional National Hunt tracks, the Grand National has been broadcast live on free-to-air terrestrial television in the United Kingdom since 1960. From then until 2012 it was broadcast by the BBC, between 2013 and 2016 it was shown by Channel 4, the UK broadcasting rights transfer to ITV from 2017. An estimated 500 to 600 million people watch the Grand National in over 140 countries and it has also been broadcast on radio since 1927, BBC Radio held exclusive rights until 2013, however, Talksport also now holds radio commentary rights. The most recent running of the race, in 2016, was won by Rule The World, the next Grand National is on 8 April 2017 and is sponsored by Randox Health. The Grand National was founded by Kieran Sanderson, a head and proprietor of the Waterloo Hotel, on land he leased in Aintree from William Molyneux. Lynn set out a course, built a grandstand, and Lord Sefton laid the stone on 7 February 1829. This same horse won again in 1837, while Sir William was the winner in 1838 and these races have long been disregarded because of the belief that they took place at Maghull and not Aintree. Contemporary newspaper reports place all the 1836-38 races at Aintree although the 1839 race is the first described as national, to date, though, calls for the Nationals of 1836–1838 to be restored to the record books have been unsuccessful. The Duke was ridden by Martin Becher, the fence Bechers Brook is named after him and is where he fell in the next year’s race. In 1838 and 1839 three significant events occurred to transform the Liverpool race from a local affair to a national event. Firstly, the Great St. Albans Chase, which had clashed with the steeplechase at Aintree, was not renewed after 1838, secondly, the railway arrived in Liverpool, enabling transport to the course by rail for the first time. Finally, a committee was formed to organise the event. These factors led to a highly publicised race in 1839 which attracted a larger field of top quality horses and riders, greater press coverage. Over time the first three runnings of the event were quickly forgotten to secure the 1839 race its place in history as the first official Grand National. It was won by rider Jem Mason on the named, Lottery By the 1840s
2.
Aintree Racecourse
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Aintree Racecourse is a racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England. The racecourse is best known for holding the world-famous Grand National steeplechase. The course is home of the Grand National steeplechase, one of the most famous races in the world, prior to the event being held at Aintree, the race was run in the nearby district of Maghull. Steeplechasing at Aintree was introduced in 1839, though flat racing had taken there for many years prior to this. It is regarded as the most difficult of all courses to complete successfully, with 16 steeplechase fences including renowned obstacles the Chair, Foinavon, Valentines, Canal Turn and these are so infamous that even their names strike fear into the most professional of jockeys. All fences bar the water jump are covered with spruce, unlike at any other course in British National Hunt racing, four other races take place over the National fences. These are the Topham Chase and the Fox Hunters Chase at the Grand National meeting, within the large National course there is also the smaller Mildmay course containing hurdles and fences. These fences are made of traditional National Hunt material, the National and Mildmay courses used to share the water jump, but the water jump is no longer used on the Mildmay course. The Grand National race is run over 4 miles 514 yards after being re-measured by the BHA in 2015, the race is considered among the most demanding steeplechases in the world. The lead has often changed hands during the 494-yard run-in after the final fence, there are usually 40 horses taking part in the race but fewer than ten may in fact complete the course. In 1928,42 horses started and only two finished the course, the record for the most victories in the Grand National is held by Red Rum, who won three times in the 1970s, in addition to coming second twice. Aintree has also used as a venue for motor racing. The British Grand Prix was staged there on five occasions, in 1955,1957,1959,1961 and 1962. The only driver to have competed in horse and motor race is Alfonso de Portago, who competed at the Grand National in his early days as well as in a sportscar race. He was to compete at the 1957 British Grand Prix at Aintree, michael Jackson concluded the European leg of his 1987–1989 Bad World Tour at the venue on 11 September 1988, to more than 125,000 people. McFly performed for the Liverpool Summer Pops in 2005, P. nk performed at the venue during her Im Not Dead Tour on 16 July 2007. Kaiser Chiefs and The Chemical Brothers performed in concert at Aintree Pavilion as part of Liverpool Music Week 2007, the racecourse contains a 9-hole golf course and driving range within its boundaries. Golfers have the chance to see the track from a different perspective
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Australia
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Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the worlds sixth-largest country by total area, the neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east, and New Zealand to the south-east. Australias capital is Canberra, and its largest urban area is Sydney, for about 50,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians, who spoke languages classifiable into roughly 250 groups. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades, and by the 1850s most of the continent had been explored, on 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia has since maintained a liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states. The population of 24 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard, Australia has the worlds 13th-largest economy and ninth-highest per capita income. With the second-highest human development index globally, the country highly in quality of life, health, education, economic freedom. The name Australia is derived from the Latin Terra Australis a name used for putative lands in the southern hemisphere since ancient times, the Dutch adjectival form Australische was used in a Dutch book in Batavia in 1638, to refer to the newly discovered lands to the south. On 12 December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted, in 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as Australia. The first official published use of the term Australia came with the 1830 publication of The Australia Directory and these first inhabitants may have been ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians. The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, were originally horticulturists, the northern coasts and waters of Australia were visited sporadically by fishermen from Maritime Southeast Asia. The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland, and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the Dutch. The first ship and crew to chart the Australian coast and meet with Aboriginal people was the Duyfken captained by Dutch navigator, Willem Janszoon. He sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in early 1606, the Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent New Holland during the 17th century, but made no attempt at settlement. William Dampier, an English explorer and privateer, landed on the north-west coast of New Holland in 1688, in 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain. The first settlement led to the foundation of Sydney, and the exploration, a British settlement was established in Van Diemens Land, now known as Tasmania, in 1803, and it became a separate colony in 1825. The United Kingdom formally claimed the part of Western Australia in 1828. Separate colonies were carved from parts of New South Wales, South Australia in 1836, Victoria in 1851, the Northern Territory was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia
4.
Jockey
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A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing, the word is by origin a diminutive of jock, the Northern English or Scots colloquial equivalent of the first name John, which is also used generically for boy, or fellow, at least since 1529. A familiar instance of the use of the word as a name is in Jockey of Norfolk in Shakespeares Richard III. v.3,304, the current usage which means a person who rides a horse in races was first seen in 1670. Another possible origin is the Gaelic word eachaidhe, a horseman, the Irish name Eochaid is related to each, horse, and is usually translated as horse rider. This is phonetically similar to jockey Jockeys must be light to ride at the weights which are assigned to their mounts. There are horse carrying weight limits, that are set by racing authorities, the Kentucky Derby, for example, has a weight limit of 126 lb including the jockeys equipment. The weight of a jockey usually ranges from 108 to 118 lb, despite their light weight, they must be able to control a horse that is moving at 40 mph and weighs 1,200 lb. Though there is no limit for jockeys, they are usually fairly short due to the weight limits. Jockeys typically stand around 4 ft 10 in to 5 ft 6 in, Jockeys are normally self employed, nominated by horse trainers to ride their horses in races, for a fee and a percentage of the purse winnings. In Australia, employment of apprentice jockeys is in terms of indenture to a master, Jockeys often cease their riding careers to take up other employment in racing, usually as trainers. In this way the system serves to induct young people into racing employment. Jockeys usually start out when they are young, riding work in the morning for trainers and it is normally necessary for an apprentice jockey to ride a minimum of about 20 barrier trials successfully before being permitted to ride in races. An apprentice jockey is known as a bug boy because the asterisk that follows the name in the program looks like a bug, all jockeys must be licensed and usually are not permitted to bet on a race. An apprentice jockey has a master, who is a horse trainer and this allowance is adjusted according to the number of winners that the apprentice has ridden. After a four-year indentured apprenticeship, the apprentice becomes a jockey and usually develops relationships with trainers. Sometimes senior jockeys are paid a retainer by an owner gives the owner the right to insist the jockey ride their horses in races. Racing modeled on the English Jockey Club spread throughout the world with colonial expansion, the colors worn by jockeys in races are the registered colors of the owner or trainer who employs them. The practice of riders wearing colors probably stems from medieval times when jousts were held between knights, however, the origins of racing colors of various patterns may have been influenced by racing held in Italian city communities since medieval times
5.
Wales
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Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, and it had a population in 2011 of 3,063,456 and has a total area of 20,779 km2. Wales has over 1,680 miles of coastline and is mountainous, with its higher peaks in the north and central areas, including Snowdon. The country lies within the temperate zone and has a changeable. Welsh national identity emerged among the Celtic Britons after the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century, Llywelyn ap Gruffudds death in 1282 marked the completion of Edward I of Englands conquest of Wales, though Owain Glyndŵr briefly restored independence to Wales in the early 15th century. The whole of Wales was annexed by England and incorporated within the English legal system under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542, distinctive Welsh politics developed in the 19th century. Welsh Liberalism, exemplified in the early 20th century by Lloyd George, was displaced by the growth of socialism, Welsh national feeling grew over the century, Plaid Cymru was formed in 1925 and the Welsh Language Society in 1962. Established under the Government of Wales Act 1998, the National Assembly for Wales holds responsibility for a range of devolved policy matters, two-thirds of the population live in south Wales, mainly in and around Cardiff, Swansea and Newport, and in the nearby valleys. Now that the countrys traditional extractive and heavy industries have gone or are in decline, Wales economy depends on the sector, light and service industries. Wales 2010 gross value added was £45.5 billion, over 560,000 Welsh language speakers live in Wales, and the language is spoken by a majority of the population in parts of the north and west. From the late 19th century onwards, Wales acquired its popular image as the land of song, Rugby union is seen as a symbol of Welsh identity and an expression of national consciousness. The Old English-speaking Anglo-Saxons came to use the term Wælisc when referring to the Celtic Britons in particular, the modern names for some Continental European lands and peoples have a similar etymology. The modern Welsh name for themselves is Cymry, and Cymru is the Welsh name for Wales and these words are descended from the Brythonic word combrogi, meaning fellow-countrymen. The use of the word Cymry as a self-designation derives from the location in the post-Roman Era of the Welsh people in modern Wales as well as in northern England and southern Scotland. It emphasised that the Welsh in modern Wales and in the Hen Ogledd were one people, in particular, the term was not applied to the Cornish or the Breton peoples, who are of similar heritage, culture, and language to the Welsh. The word came into use as a self-description probably before the 7th century and it is attested in a praise poem to Cadwallon ap Cadfan c. 633. Thereafter Cymry prevailed as a reference to the Welsh, until c.1560 the word was spelt Kymry or Cymry, regardless of whether it referred to the people or their homeland. The Latinised forms of names, Cambrian, Cambric and Cambria, survive as lesser-used alternative names for Wales, Welsh
6.
Horse racing
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Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys or driven over a set distance for competition. Horse races vary widely in format, often, countries have developed their own particular horse racing traditions. Variations include restricting races to particular breeds, running over obstacles, running over different distances, running on different track surfaces, Horse racing has a long and distinguished history and has been practised in civilisations across the world since ancient times. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in Ancient Greece, Babylon, Syria and it also plays an important part of myth and legend, such as the contest between the steeds of the god Odin and the giant Hrungnir in Norse mythology. Chariot racing was one of the most popular ancient Greek, Roman, both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC and were important in the other Panhellenic Games. This was despite the fact that racing was often dangerous to both driver and horse as they frequently suffered serious injury and even death. In the Roman Empire, chariot and mounted horse racing were major industries, fifteen to 20 riderless horses, originally imported from the Barbary Coast of North Africa, ran the length of the Via del Corso, a long, straight city street, in about 2½ minutes. In later times, Thoroughbred racing became, and remains, popular with the aristocrats and royalty of British society, historically, equestrians honed their skills through games and races. Equestrian sports provided entertainment for crowds and honed the excellent horsemanship that was needed in battle, Horse racing of all types evolved from impromptu competitions between riders or drivers. The various forms of competition, requiring demanding and specialized skills from both horse and rider, resulted in the development of specialized breeds and equipment for each sport. The popularity of sports through the centuries has resulted in the preservation of skills that would otherwise have disappeared after horses stopped being used in combat. There are many different types of racing, including, Flat racing. Jump racing, or Jumps racing, also known as Steeplechasing or, in the UK and Ireland, National Hunt racing, Harness racing, where horses trot or pace while pulling a driver in a sulky. Breeds that are used for flat racing include the Thoroughbred, Quarter Horse, Arabian, Paint, Jump racing breeds include the Thoroughbred and AQPS. In harness racing, Standardbreds are used in Australia, New Zealand and North America, light cold blood horses, such as Finnhorses and Scandinavian coldblood trotter are also used in harness racing within their respective geographical areas. There also are races for ponies, both flat and jump and harness racing, Flat racing is the most common form of racing seen worldwide. Track surfaces vary, with turf most common in Europe, dirt more common in North America and Asia, individual flat races are run over distances ranging from 440 yards up to two and a half miles, with distances between five and twelve furlongs being most common. Short races are referred to as sprints, while longer races are known as routes in the United States or staying races in Europe
