A Horse Race is a Spectacular Event
A horse race is a contest between two or more horses that are either ridden by jockeys or pulled by sulkies and their drivers. The winner of the race is crowned champion, and prizes are awarded to first, second and third place finishers. Horse races are popular around the world and have been practiced since ancient times. The sport has evolved from a primitive contest of speed or stamina into a complex spectacle involving a large number of runners, sophisticated electronic monitoring equipment, and enormous sums of money, but its essential concept remains the same: whoever crosses the finish line first wins.
A classic succession “horse race” pits several recognized candidates against each other to win the position of chief executive officer (CEO). The process has been used by such admired companies as General Electric, Procter & Gamble and GlaxoSmithKline. Some executives and governance observers are uncomfortable with this approach — which some describe as overt competition for the top job that can have a negative impact on internal morale and performance — but it has produced a steady stream of exceptional leaders.
The most famous horse race in the world is the Breeders’ Cup Classic, which has a purse of $30.5 million and attracts the best horses, trainers and jockeys from around the globe. This year’s winner will receive a trophy, a figure of a horse and a helmet. The race was established in 1958 by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Faisal and has remained a popular spectator sport ever since.
An important feature of the Breeders’ Cup Classic is that it is a graded race. The racing secretary or track handicapper assigns weights to entrants that are designed to equalize the winning chances of each horse. Higher ratings, such as a Grade 1 or 2, indicate the quality of the field and its relative significance.
In addition to the prestige of winning the Breeders’ Cup Classic, a horse owner or trainer may be rewarded with a personal gift from the king. In 2018, Prince Mohammed bin Salman congratulated horse owner and trainer John Gosden and jockey David Egan after their horse Mishriff won the race and presented them with a trophy and a figurine of a horse.
Other important features of a horse race include the sex allowance, where female horses, or fillies, are given weights less than their male counterparts. Also, a horse may be eligible for a substitute race when an original race is canceled or postponed.
The sex allowance also means that a horse can be entered in multiple races during the same season, provided they are held within an appropriate time frame and that each race has a different purse. A horse race also can involve an antepost wager, where people bet on whether a particular horse will win or lose before the start of the race. While this type of betting is not legal in all jurisdictions, it is common and often involves the use of online bookmakers.
