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Spring Racing Carnival

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The Spring Racing Carnival is the name of an Australian Thoroughbred horse racing series held annually in Melbourne during October and November.

The Carnival and its status in the wider community

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Although racing in Australia is held every day except Good Friday and Christmas Day, the Group One races in Melbourne are held almost exclusively throughout the carnival, which is traditionally placed between the football and cricket seasons. During the winter (where football is dominant), and summer (where cricket is dominant), racing takes a 'back seat' position in relation to the cricket or football in terms of media coverage and attendances. However, in spring and autumn, the mass media turns its attention to the racing. There is also an Autumn Racing Carnival, a time where Group One races are also held.

Economic impact

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The Spring Racing Carnival is a major contributor to the Victorian economy. According to a study conducted by market research company IER, the 2022 Spring Racing Carnival was estimated to have delivered $422.1 million in gross economic benefit to Victoria in 2022, with the Spring Racing Carnival contributing more than $3.6 billion in gross economic benefit to Victoria in the past decade, almost $1 billion more than the Australian Open tennis reported for the same period.[1][2][3]

The 2017 Spring Racing Carnival injected $444.5 million into the Victorian economy, and created jobs for more than 20,000 staff and contractors, in addition to providing boosts to the retail and hospitality sectors.[4]

The 2018 Spring Racing Carnival provided an economic return to the state of $447.6 million, with the event also directly employing more than 21,000 staff and contractors who worked for more than 800 companies in the lead-up and during the event.[5]

The 2019 Spring Racing Carnival has been credited with injecting US$196.2 million directly into the Victorian economy; when considering total spending by all attendees at the Spring Racing Carnival, the event generated a gross economic benefit of US$521.8 million.[6]

Attendance[7]

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Year Derby Day Melbourne Cup Oaks Stakes Melbourne Cup Carnival Total Caulfield Cup[8] Cox Plate[9]
2024 81,612[10] 91,168[11] 50,873[12] 62,022 285,675[13] 25,676
2023 73,056 84,492 46,596 58,021 262,165 25,121 21,021
2022 71,327 73,816 45,046 54,019 244,208 24,289 19,000
2021 5,000 10,000 10,000 10,000 35,000 0 0
2020 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2019 80,214 81,408 57,296 57,268 276,186 28,000 24,648
2018 91,194 83,471 61,355 67,567 303,587 30,000 38,035
2017 87,526 90,536 63,673 68,873 310,608 30,000 32,617
2016 90,136 97,479 60,888 70,351 318,854 26,000
2015 85,943 101,015 57,560 68,711 313,229 30,000 27,620
2014 90,244 100,794 64,430 70,051 325,519 32,000 28,216
2013 95,223 104,169 66,757 65,047 331,196 33,056 30,986
2012 98,823 106,162 71,825 74,546 351,356 35,500
2011 92,336 105,979 71,659 85,112 355,086 30,097 30,000
2010 90,361 110,223 75,088 77,506 353,178 23,697 31,546
2009 108,178 102,161 80,112 78,478 368,929 43,210 31,000
2008 117,776 107,280 89,338 81,652 396,046 51,328 34,000
2007 115,705 102,411 95,230 84,067 397,413 48,529 34,561
2006 129,089 106,691 104,131 78,158 418,069[14] 47,551[15] 34,256[16]
2005 115,660 106,479 100,263 61,382 383,784 52,000 44,189[17]
2004 115,542 98,161 110,677 45,734 370,114 51,015 32,187
2003 97,059 122,736 101,179 55,793 376,767 46,873 30,109
2002 101,898 102,533 103,269 47,593 355,293
2001 93,029 92,477 101,201 42,760 329,467
2000 92,581 121,015 96,406 42,311 352,313
1999 76,514 104,028 83,870 31,728 296,140
1998 75,805 100,607 77,301 31,249 284,962
1997 64,528 94,143 75,482 26,357 260,510
1996 64,099 90,149 67,086 25,736 247,070
1995 60,404 74,843 62,388 25,318 222,953
1994 54,467 81,650 50,176 22,624 208,917
1993 49,029 74,766 46,744 22,162 192,701
1992 45,729 86,206 50,925 21,495 204,355
1991 46,781 94,632 54,023 22,587 218,023
1990 47,497 92,536 50,196 21,414 211,643
1989 47,226 96,722 51,673 23,712 219,333
1988 44,848 93,440 48,490 23,341 210,119
1987 41,878 81,012 45,329 22,196 190,415
1986 42,824 87,129 42,649 21,051 193,653
1985 40,522 79,126 39,051 18,675 177,374
1984 39,771 82,740 40,812 19,739 183,062
1983 40,017 80,776 38,633 22,162 181,588
1982 42,519 91,152 37,028 19,725 190,424
1981 39,729 87,641 37,353 24,378 189,101
1980 38,032 101,261 37,098 25,262 201,653

Sweeps

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The carnival, and particularly the Melbourne Cup attracts the interest of many people otherwise uninterested in horse racing, and special forms of very low-stake gambling are often used for this event. One common form for groups such as office staff is the "sweep", where each participant adds a small fee to a "pot" and draws the name of a horse like a raffle. Prize money is distributed to the person who draws the winning horse (occasionally smaller prizes are awarded to placegetters and the last-placing horse). A more complex and high-stakes form of the sweep is the "Calcutta", often held as a fundraising event for community organisations, which begins as in the sweep (though usually with a much higher initial stake), but which allows ticket holders to trade their tickets through an auction system.

Special guests

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For the fashion part of the Spring Racing Carnival many special guests over the years have come to the races. Paris Hilton, Nicky Hilton, Carson Kressley, Eva Longoria, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Naomi Campbell, Nicole Kidman, Gigi Hadid and Hilary Swank.

Carnival race meetings

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The Spring Racing Carnival is made up of meetings held by the metropolitan clubs, where Group One races take place, and also at Geelong and Bendigo. With numerous group races during August and September at metropolitan tracks Flemington, Caulfield and Moonee Valley, the Spring Racing Carnival officially starts on the Group 1 Turnbull Stakes Day at Flemington, one week after the AFL Grand Final. The Spring Racing Carnival officially ends on the final day of the carnival at Sandown in mid-November.

Caulfield Carnival

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The Melbourne Racing Club holds three race meetings at Caulfield Racecourse, each with major Group one races.

Geelong Carnival

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The Geelong Racing Club hosts its Group 3 Geelong Cup at the Geelong Racecourse on the Wednesday between the Caulfield Cup and Cox Plate. The meeting also has a couple of Listed races, The 3YO Geelong Classic and The Rosemont Stud Stakes. The day is a public holiday in Geelong's metropolitan area.

Moonee Valley Carnival

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The Moonee Valley Racing Club holds a two-day carnival at the Moonee Valley Racecourse. The Manikato Stakes is held on the Friday night following the Caulfield Cup. The club's highlight is the Weight for Age Cox Plate race held on the next day with a host of other Group races including the Moonee Valley Gold Cup, Crystal Mile and Moonee Valley Vase.

Bendigo Carnival

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The Bendigo Jockey Club hosts its Group 3 Bendigo Cup on the Wednesday between the Cox Plate and the VRC Derby Day.

Melbourne Cup Carnival

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The Victoria Racing Club's meetings attract the most attention from the media and the wider community.

  • The Victoria Derby is held on the Saturday before the Melbourne Cup. It is a set-weights race for three-year-old horses. Other well known races on this day include the Cantala Stakes, Empire Rose Stakes and Hotham Handicap (the winner of this receiving a final spot in the Melbourne Cup field). Traditionally, the Melbourne Cup field is announced following the conclusion of the last race on this day.
  • The Melbourne Cup[18] handicap race is held on the first Tuesday in November, and is a public holiday in Melbourne, but the Cup is witnessed by those all around Australia as well as internationally.
  • The VRC Oaks race is held on the Thursday following the Cup. It is a three-year-old fillies race, and traditionally the race meeting has been known as 'ladies' day'.
  • The Mackinnon Stakes is held on the Saturday following the Oaks, and traditionally it has been known as 'family day'. Other notable races run on this day are the VRC Sprint Classic and VRC Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

Sandown Carnival

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The Melbourne Racing Club holds the last official meeting of the Spring Racing Carnival at Sandown Racecourse. This day includes the Group 2 Sandown Guineas and the Group 2 Zipping Classic and occurs in mid November, one week after Mackinnon Stakes day.

References

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Notes

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  1. ^ "MELBOURNE CUP CARNIVAL REMAINS THE BIGGEST ECONOMIC GENERATOR IN AUSTRALIAN SPORT". SEN. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  2. ^ Rolfe, Peter. "Melbourne Cup carnival tops the list of financial generators, delivering $3.6bn for Vic economy". Herald Sun. News Corp. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  3. ^ "Melbourne Cup Carnival remains the biggest economic generator in Australian sport". Victorian Racing Club. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  4. ^ "Melbourne Cup Carnival Keeps Victoria Ahead Of The Pack". Premier of Victoria. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  5. ^ "Melbourne Cup Carnival generates record economic return for Victoria". Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  6. ^ "VICTORIAN SPRING RACING CARNIVAL - MAJOR RACING EVENTS AND TOURISM" (PDF). ASIAN RACING FEDERATION JURISDICTIONS – AN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  7. ^ "Track records and attendances". Victorian Racing Club. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  8. ^ "Caulfield Racecourse Crowds". Austadiums. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  9. ^ "Moonee Valley Racecourse Crowds". Austadiums. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  10. ^ "Over 80,000 fans flock to Flemington for Penfolds Victoria Derby Day". Victoria Racing Club. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  11. ^ "Fairytale finish as Knight's Choice wins the Lexus Melbourne Cup". Victoria Racing Club. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
  12. ^ "Treasurethe Moment wins memorable Crown Oaks". Victoria Racing Club. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  13. ^ "Melbourne Cup Carnival closes with a celebration of champions". Victoria Racing Club. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  14. ^ Cup Carnival Crowd Record Smashed
  15. ^ Tawqeet brings BMW Caulfield Cup glory for Hayes and Dunn
  16. ^ MVRC News Archive – Moonee Valley Racing Club
  17. ^ Economic Benefits Summary
  18. ^ "Melbourne Cup 2018 | Horses, Field, Race Time, Results & Form Guide". www.racenet.com.au. Retrieved 8 August 2018.

Bibliography

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  • Power, Emily, ed. (2012). Fashion & Flemington: Celebrating 50 years of Fashions on the Field. Richmond, Vic.: Slattery Media Group. ISBN 9781921778599.
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