Horse Racing Throughout the History
Man has been known to use race horses for racing since this specie was first domesticated. Historical evidences uncover that as early as 4500 BC, the actual nomadic individuals of Central Asia has already developed techniques of horse racing. In fact, the Greeks are known to have incorporated horse racing in the Olympics since 638 BC.
Both the chariot horse racing and also the mounted horse racing were popular during these ages. These types of later became an obsession among Romans once they have adopted the activity.
For thousand of years that followed, this kind of sports was considered to be performed only for the noble men and royalties.
Modern racing is said to have started in the 12th century when the first breeding between Arabian as well as English horses were made. They were sparred by the return of the noble knights in combat to the mother land after the Crusades. They are known to possess produced sturdy race horses with excellent speed. Thus, breeders maximized the potentiality of a racehorse as well as put all of them into tracks. This particular breed is the Thoroughbred that we know of these days which is still typically the most popular breed in the United Kingdom.
King Charles II was known to have held horse races in his private courses throughout 1660 to 1685.
Through the 16th century, the English had been known to make a number of racecourses. Queen Anne that started the Ascot in 1711 is known to have made horse racing an official sport.
Halfway in 1700�s, the Jockey Club was created through the initiation of the elite figures involved with horse racing. This particular organization was the first legion of jockeys that established the comprehensive rules and regulations including the standards as covered by the actual sports activities. Thus, these people became the overseers of the sports and sanctioned horse racing occasions.
The Jockey Club was also the initiator for the legislation of breeding among race horses. Thus, James Weatherby, an accountant of the Jockey Club during those occasions, traced back the family lines of all racing breeds in England. His researches brought forth the book of the General Stud Book, that was essentially, the basis of authority in terms of the breeds that may be put to race. According to the General Stud Book, only individuals pedigrees which have descended from the line of the “foundations sires” are considered as Thoroughbreds. The foundation sires are the: Byerley Turk, Darley Arabian as well as Godolphin Arabian.
Only in 17th century did the activity arrive in America for which the initial racetrack was seen in the actual Long Island. While it has become a favorite past time among Americans, no one initiated the formalization of horse racing until after the Civil War. Because of the already-established obsession plus the industrial development, as well as widespread betting on horse races, the activity grew largely by the year 1890 when 314 operating tracks are known to be on regular operation in the united kingdom.
Due to the lack of a governing body, this activity had become purely dominated by criminal elements. In 1894 though, the most notable and high-ranking stable owners met as well as organized the American Jockey Club which was patterned on the system as used by the Jockey Club in England.
These days the sport has reached various countries around the world. Governing bodies were also formed to regulate the horse racing events.