Miscellaneous

The World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings for 2007 have just recently been released by the IFHA, or International Federation of Horse racing Authorities. Two official rankings are released every year to coincide with all the racing seasons. The IFHA therefore releases a publication in January and in August each year. Racing seasons in some countries run from the 1st of January to the 31st of December, some from the 1st of August to the 31st of July, and South America runs their racing season from the 1st of July to the 30th of June. This month, the International Federation of Horse racing Authorities once again released a publication.

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Harness Racing in South Africa is only now started to take off, whereas in Europe, North America, Australasia and Australia harness racing has been enjoyed for many years. Dean Latimer and Swedish based harness racing enthusiast Peter Jansson are working tirelessly to promote this type of horse racing in South Africa. As a new horse racing division, many horse lovers have shown their support and interest in developing the sport.

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The Nez Perce tribe were the first to breed the Appaloosa horse breed. They lived in the Northwest Pacific in America, the Palouse River running through their land. It was because of the river that the settlers who moved into this region named the breed Palouse horses, which later developed to the name of Appaloosa. They were mostly bred as carthorses and farm horses and were not considered favorable to race. But in the late 1900s the almost forgotten horse breed started to make its way onto the horse racing circuit.

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Richard Hughes has been in the saddle since that age of five. And with well-known National Hunt jockey and trainer Dessie Hughes as his father, one could possibly say that Richard Hughes was born to ride. He has become a famous name in the horse racing industry and has built up a magnificent career as a jockey. With a breathtaking record and years of experience, Hughes is looking forward to his first chance at riding freedom in approximately seven years.

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The Racing Medication and Testing Consortium was established in the year 2000, with their main objective being to take on the serious issues within the racing industry, and any form of horse racing, and find solutions for them. May it be live horse racing, cart races or steeple racing, the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium is involved to ensure that guidelines in regard to medication are adhered to for the safety of the horses and their jockeys.

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The industry of horse racing is one of adventure, excitement and adrenalin. It is at the many racecourses around the world that speed, strength and endurance are tested everyday, and spectators support the racecourses for the thrill and for the love of the sport. Not many of those spectators realize how much work is done before the starting gates open, or what goes on behind the scenes. Horse racing is not just a sport that opens doors for racehorses, jockeys, owners and trainers but has many career opportunities available at the racecourses, such as regulation careers.

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At first glance, you would think that you were looking at a Thoroughbred horse. But then he walks out into the sun and an almost blinding metallic glow ripples across his coat and muscles and you know, you are looking at something quite unique and spectacular. It is the Akhal-Teke, an ancient horse breed that has in recent years has proved to be a formidable horse and one of the most versatile horse breeds on earth. But why would people even consider using the Akhal-Teke in Horse Racing? It is a horse with many hidden talents, and if Alexander the Great refused to ride any other horse, you must consider the nobility and wonder that this breed possesses.

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There are only a few horse movies and books that are as legendary as ‘National Velvet’. This delightful story is one that inspires the impossible and it is one that every female horse lover or jockey should read or see at least once in their lives.

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The sport of horse racing is almost as old as time itself. Since the point in time where man understood that he could sit astride a horse's back, he has challenged fellow riders to race. More commonly known examples of ancient races exist in the chariot races held at Roman coliseums. But ancient Norse mythology has revealed that horse racing was a part of life even then.

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Every year hundreds of spectators gather together at a stadium to watch the start and finish of a magnificent horse race. But this is no thoroughbred flat race – it is a hard-hitting cross-country race run on small, sturdy ponies that are jockeyed by young children. The event is known as Mongolian horse racing.

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