Racing doesn’t get much bigger than Golden Slipper Day. Taking place in March, the meeting at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse features no less than five Group 1 races — the most of any day in the Australian racing season.
The Rosehill Guineas, The Galaxy, Ranvet Stakes and George Ryder Stakes are all acclaimed races in their own right, but, in truth, only serve as a collective curtain-raiser for the main event: the Golden Slipper.
The 1200m Golden Slipper takes the title of the world’s richest race for two-year-olds, now worth a staggering $5 million. First run in 1957, the Golden Slipper counts such sprinters as Sepoy, Pierro and the legendary Manikato among its alumni of winners.
Rosehill, Australia
1200m
18th March 2023
$5m
2022 winner: Fireburn
The Grand Finals of Australian Racing, otherwise known as The Championships, is a star-studded two-day event held at Royal Randwick Racecourse over consecutive Saturdays in April.
Eight Group 1 races take place over the two weekends, including two of Australia’s biggest and most lucrative races, as the party atmosphere in Sydney peaks and some of the world’s best horse racing talent take to the turf.
Day One opens with the first four Group 1 races: the ATC Sires Produce Stakes for juveniles, the Australian Derby for three-year-olds, the TJ Smith Stakes for the sprinters and, most importantly, the showpiece Doncaster Mile.
One week later, Randwick serves up another heady helping of horse racing action, with the Queen Of The Turf Stakes, ATC Oaks and Sydney Cup setting the stage for one of Australia’s richest and most widely-anticipated showdowns: the Queen Elizabeth Stakes.
Randwick, Australia
2400m
12 – 16 April, 2022
$21.2m
Doncaster Mile
Headlining the first day of The Championships, the Doncaster Mile (or the Doncaster Handicap) brings together the best middle-distance gallopers aged three years and older from Australia and beyond. $3 million is the reward for the racers that can cover the 1600m track in the quickest time.
Inaugurated in 1866, the Doncaster Mile is steeped in history and serves as one of Australia’s oldest and most traditional races. Among its long list of winners are legendary horses such as Winx, Sunline and Super Impose, with the latter two taking the crown on multiple occasions.
Queen Elizabeth Stakes
The Queen Elizabeth Stakes is the jewel in the crown of The Championships’ second and final day. A plentiful purse of $5 million makes this one of the most lucrative races over Autumn with the Golden Slipper and All-Star Mile the only other two races to offer prize money of $5 million.
The 2000m, weight-for-age race dates back to 1954 and has since built a reputation as one of Australia’s most enthralling contests. No doubt the most celebrated winner in recent memory, all-time great Winx rode to victory in three successive years between 2017 and 2019.
Sydney Schedule 2023
- Sydney Autumn Carnival Feature Races
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