Ascot Racecourse is an internationally known racecourse which is located in southern England in the small town of Ascot, Berkshire. It is famous for Royal Ascot which is considered to be one of the world’s most famous horse race meetings, although it is also a major social event and broadly covered by the media. This meeting is considered to be the pinnacle of flat racing at international level, with the highlight being the Ascot Gold Cup.
Royal Ascot dates back to 1711, when the racecourse was founded by Queen Anne, and has remained part of the Crown Estate to this day. The first race, ‘Her Majesty’s Cup’ was held in August 1711, and from this time until 1945 the only racing here was the Royal Meeting. Today the racecourse stages 25 days of racing throughout the year, making it one of the leading racecourses within the United Kingdom.
Later in the year two other major race meetings take place, notably in July the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes, which is the highest quality race in the United Kingdom and one of the top races in the world, and in September the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, which is the top mile race in Europe.
Royal Ascot is on from the 14th June to 18th June 2011.
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