Simon Holt (commentator)
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Simon Holt (commentator)
Simon Holt (born 18 April 1964) is a British horse racing commentator. From the beginning of 2000 to the end of 2016, he was the main race commentator for Channel 4. Commentary career Holt became a racecourse commentator in 1988, and made his TV debut for Channel 4 on 30 September 1994 at Newmarket. He rose through the commentating ranks quickly, and was race-calling alongside Graham Goode for the SIS feed for the Grand National in 1990. The pair went on to commentate on the race together until 1997. Holt was also racecourse commentator at Newmarket during the Guineas meeting whilst positioned out in the country, and has been grandstand commentator at Royal Ascot since the mid-1990s. From the beginning of 1995 he was heard regularly, sometimes as a race commentator but sometimes in the now defunct job of betting and results reader. He replaced Raleigh Gilbert as Channel 4's second commentator, calling the first part of the race at tracks such as Newmarket before handing over t ...
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Horseracing In The United Kingdom
Horse racing is the second largest spectator sport in Great Britain, and one of the longest established, with a history dating back many centuries. According to a report by the British Horseracing Authority it generates £3.39 billion total direct and indirect expenditure in the British economy, of which £1.05 Billion is from core racing industry expenditure and the major horse racing events such as Royal Ascot and Cheltenham Festival are important dates in the British and international sporting and society calendar. The sport has taken place in the country since Roman times and many of the sport's traditions and rules originated there. The Jockey Club, established in 1750, codified the ''Rules of Racing'' and one of its members, Admiral Rous laid the foundations of the handicapping system for horse racing, including the weight-for-age scale. Britain is also home to racecourses including Newmarket, Ascot and Cheltenham and races including The Derby at Epsom, The Grand Natio ...
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King George VI Chase
The King George VI Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Kempton Park over a distance of about 3 miles (4,828 metres), and during its running there are eighteen fences to be jumped. The race is scheduled to take place each year on 26 December, and features as part of the course's Christmas Festival. The event was first run in February 1937, and it was named in honour of the new British monarch, King George VI. It was only run twice before World War II, during which Kempton Park was closed for racing and used as a prisoner-of-war camp. The two pre-war runnings were each contested by four horses. The winner of the first, Southern Hero, remains the race's oldest ever winner. After the war the racecourse re-opened, and the event returned in 1947 on a new date – Boxing Day. In the 1960s it was a handicap. The King George VI Cha ...
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1964 Births
Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople meet in Jerusalem. * January 6 – A British firm, the Leyland Motor Corp., announces the sale of 450 buses to the Cuban government, challenging the United States blockade of Cuba. * January 9 – ''Martyrs' Day'': Armed clashes between United States troops and Panamanian civilians in the Panama Canal Zone precipitate a major international crisis, resulting in the deaths of 21 Panamanians and 4 U.S. soldiers. * January 11 – United States Surgeon General Luther Terry reports that smoking may be hazardous to one's health (the first such statement from the U.S. government). * January 12 ** Zanzibar Revolution: The predominantly Arab government of Zanzibar is overthrown by African nationalist rebels; a ...
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The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was founded by Arthur B. Sleigh in 1855 as ''The Daily Telegraph & Courier''. Considered a newspaper of record over ''The Times'' in the UK in the years up to 1997, ''The Telegraph'' generally has a reputation for high-quality journalism, and has been described as being "one of the world's great titles". The paper's motto, "Was, is, and will be", appears in the editorial pages and has featured in every edition of the newspaper since 19 April 1858. The paper had a circulation of 363,183 in December 2018, descending further until it withdrew from newspaper circulation audits in 2019, having declined almost 80%, from 1.4 million in 1980.United Newspapers PLC and Fleet Holdings PLC', Monopolies and Mergers Commission (1985), pp. 5–16. Its si ...
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Fontwell Park
Fontwell Park Racecourse is a horse racing course located in the village of Fontwell in West Sussex, England, owned by ARC Racing. It features an oval hurdles course. Fontwell Park was founded by Alfred Day who trained racehorses at The Hermitage, by the Chichester to Arundel road, from 1887. Day returned the name Fontwell to common use after researching the history of the area, and by 1924 he had purchased enough land to open the racecourse. The hurdles track was a normal shape, but the steeplechase course was laid out in a figure of eight shape to use the space on the site. The first meeting took place on 21 May 1924. The grandstand and the weighing room were built with thatched roofs. The opening race was won by Gem, the 5/4 favourite Gem, ridden by jockey Fred Rees. At the course in October 1949, Princess Elizabeth (now Queen Elizabeth II) had her first winner as an owner when Monaveen won the Chichester Handicap Chase. In 1984, John Francome rode his 1,036th career winn ...
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Brighton Racecourse
Brighton Racecourse is an English horse racing venue located a mile to the northeast of the centre of Brighton, Sussex, owned by the Arena Racing Company. Location and layout It is situated on Whitehawk Hill, on the edge of the South Downs, about four hundred feet above sea level and a mile from the coast. The geology of the downs is Middle Chalk; therefore the going is nearly always good. The track has the form of a horseshoe one-and-a-half miles in length. This makes it one of the few British courses not to form a complete circuit, like Epsom with which Brighton is sometimes compared. The finishing straight is about four furlongs in length, with a steep descent followed by a slightly-less-steep climb to the winning post. It is a left-handed course, used for flat racing only. The longest race run today is 1 miles. However, the course used to extend a further half-mile across the golf course towards Roedean. This made four-mile races possible, starting at the winning post and go ...
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Plumpton Racecourse
Plumpton Racecourse is a National Hunt racecourse in the village of Plumpton, East Sussex near Lewes and Brighton. Racing first took place at Plumpton in 1884. Its most notable race is the Sussex National Handicap Chase History Plumpton Racecourse opened in 1884, however the very first events at the course took place in 1876 with Thomas Henry Case undertaking hare coursing. In 1961, Isidore Kerman bought the course and significantly improved the facilities, with the Southdown Stand opening in 1987 under his stewardship. The Queen Mother had her first winner at Plumpton with Super Fox in 1963. In 1998, the course was sold to Adrian Pratt and Peter Savill who continue to operate Plumpton Racecourse today. Several notable charity races have taken place at Plumpton. In March 1980, HRH The Prince of Wales finished second to television presenter, Derek Thompson, in the Mad Hatters private sweepstake. He rode favourite Long Wharf. In October 2001, television presenters Alice Plunk ...
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Royal Ascot
Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and three Grade 1 Jumps races. Ascot Racecourse is visited by approximately 600,000 people a year, accounting for 10% of all UK racegoers. The racecourse covers , leased from the Crown Estate and enjoys close associations with the British Royal Family, being founded in 1711 by Queen Anne and located approximately from Windsor Castle. Queen Elizabeth II used to visit the Ascot Racecourse quite frequently, sometimes even betting on the horses. Ascot currently stages 26 days of racing over the course of the year, comprising 18 flat meetings between April and October, and 8 jump meetings between October and March. The Royal Meeting, held in June each year, remains the highlight of the British summer social calendar. The prestigious King Geo ...
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Prix De L'Arc De Triomphe
The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance of 2,400 metres and scheduled to take place each year, usually on the first Sunday in October. Popularly referred to as the "Arc", it is the world's most prestigious all-aged horse race. Its roll of honour features many highly acclaimed horses, and its winners are often subsequently regarded as champions. It is currently the world's second-richest turf race (behind The Everest). A slogan of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, first used on a promotional poster in 2003, describes the event as "''Ce n'est pas une course, c'est un monument''" – "It's not a race, it's a monument". History Origins The Société d'Encouragement, a former governing body of French racing, had initially restricted its races to thoroughbreds born and bred in Fran ...
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Jim McGrath (Australian Commentator)
James McGrath may refer to: *J. Howard McGrath (1903–1966), sixtieth Governor of Rhode Island *James McGrath (Australian politician) (born 1974), Senator from Queensland *James McGrath (Canadian politician) (1932–2017), Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland, Canada *James McGrath (Wisconsin politician) (1836–?), Wisconsin State Assemblyman *James Francis McGrath (1859–1902), fisherman and political figure in Newfoundland * James Frank McGrath, religion professor at Butler University in Indianapolis, USA *Jim McGrath (Australian commentator) (born c. 1952), Australian horse racing commentator, who works for the BBC *Jim McGrath (British commentator) (born 1955), British horse racing commentator, and Managing Director of Timeform *Jimmy McGrath (1907–?), English footballer *James M. McGrath (1902–1975), physician and politician in Newfoundland *James McGrath (artist) James McGrath (born in Sydney, 1969) is a contemporary Australian artist and architect. He is known for h ...
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RTÉ
(RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, television, RTÉ Radio, radio and RTÉ.ie, online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on 31 December 1961, making it one of the oldest continuously operating public service broadcasters in the world. RTÉ also publishes a weekly listings and lifestyle magazine, the ''RTÉ Guide''. RTÉ is a statutory body, overseen by a board appointed by the Government of Ireland, with general management in the hands of the RTÉ Executive Board, Executive Board, headed by the Director-General. RTÉ is regulated by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. RTÉ is financed by Television licensing in the Republic of Ireland, television licence fee and through advertising, with some of its services funded solely by a ...
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Sinndar
Sinndar (27 February 1997 – 26 November 2018) was an Ireland, Irish Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and sire (horse), sire. In a racing career that lasted from September 1999 until October 2000, he ran eight times and won seven races. He was notable for his unique achievement in winning Epsom Derby, The Derby, Irish Derby Stakes and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in the same year. Background Sinndar, a dark-coated bay horse with a white stripe (horse marking), stripe and white hind feet, was bred by his owner the Aga Khan IV, Aga Khan in Ireland. He was sired by Grand Lodge (horse), Grand Lodge out of the mare Sinntara. Apart from Sinndar, Grand Lodge (winner of the Dewhurst Stakes and the St James's Palace Stakes) sired the winners of over six hundred races including Grandera, Indian Lodge (Prix du Moulin de Longchamp, Prix de la Forêt) and Queens Logic (undefeated two-year-old champion). Sinntara was a staying Conditions races, Listed race winner, descended from a high ...
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