Harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...

(also known as trotting), is a popular sport in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, with significant amounts of money wagered annually. In Sweden there are 33 harness racing tracks, which hold over 850 meetings annually. There are approximately 3,000 drivers and 6,000 trainers with about 18,000 horses in training.

Betting on horse racing Betting on horse racing or horse betting commonly occurs at many horse races. Modern horse betting started in Great Britain in the early 1600s during the reign of King James I. Gamblers can stake money on the final placement of the horses taking pa ...

is common in Sweden, the Swedish Horse Racing Totalisator Board being the second-biggest betting company there.

Racing

Harness racing in Sweden is conducted with Standardbred or, in some races Scandinavian coldblood horses, racing around a track while pulling a driver in a two-wheeled cart called a "sulky". Racehorses compete in the gait of

trotting The trot is a ten-beat diagonal horse gait where the diagonal pairs of legs move forward at the same time with a moment of suspension between each beat. It has a wide variation in possible speeds, but averages about . A very slow trot is someti ...

. Races are most often conducted over distances from 1,609 metres (1 mile) to 3,140 metres. Most harness racing tracks typically measure 1,000 metres but there are examples of both longer and shorter tracks. Racing is administered by the Swedish Trotting Association, which is a part-owner of ATG, the Swedish Horse Racing Totalisator Board. Races are started in one of two ways, either from behind a mobile barrier, using a mobile start or from a circular starting system. The mobile barrier is a car with two long arms, behind which the horses line up before moving to the starting line. When the wings of the gate swing back, the starting vehicle speeds off, thus releasing the horses.

Major races

Johnny Takter & Iceland Elitloppet 2010 001

Elitloppet is an annual, invitational

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

harness event that has taken place at

Solvalla Solvalla is a horse racing track located in Bromma, Stockholm, Sweden. It opened in 1927 and is the largest harness racing venue in the Nordic countries. The last Sunday in May, Solvalla annually hosts Elitloppet, one of the most prestigious ...

Racetrack in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

since 1952. The competition is regarded as one of the most prestigious international events in trotting. Other important Group One races include the Swedish Trotting Derby,

Swedish Trotting Criterium The Swedish Trotting Criterium (Swedish: ''Svenskt Travkriterium'' or only ''Kriteriet'') is an annual national Group One harness event for trotters that is held at Solvalla in Stockholm, Sweden. It is considered one of the classic trotting event ...

, Åby Stora Pris,

Olympiatravet Olympiatravet (literally "The Olympic Trot") is an annual Group One harness event for trotters that is held at Åby Racetrack in Mölndal, 10 km south of Gothenburg, Sweden. The event was carried through for the first time in 1979. In 200 ...

and Hugo Åbergs Memorial.

History

In the 19th century, the sport became more organized since the first clubs and meetings were held in different parts of Sweden. In 1898, parimutuel betting became illegal.Svensk travsport
Retrieved 2020-3-15 In 1907,

Jägersro Jägersro is a neighbourhood of Malmö, situated in the Borough of Husie, Malmö Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden. Jägersro trav & galopp is a horse racing facility located in the neighbourhood. It was opened in 1907 and is the oldest one of ...

Racetrack in Malmö was inaugurated. Today, it is the oldest race track for trotting in the country.Svensk travsport
Retrieved 2020-4-10 The ban on parimutuel betting was lifted in 1923. In the 1927,

opened in Stockholm. It is today the largest harness racing venue in the Nordic countries. In 1950, the horse Scotch Fez won the

Prix d'Amérique Prix d'Amérique is a harness race held at the Hippodrome de Vincennes in Paris, France. The race takes place on the last Sunday of January every year, and has been doing so since 1920, with the exception for the years 1940-1941 when it was cancell ...

with driver

Sören Nordin Ernst Sören Nordin (5 September 1917, in Forsa, Hälsingland – 6 September 2008) was a Swedish harness racing driver and trainer who later started a stable in America. Nordin won 3,221 races in 10 different countries as a driver, he won the Sw ...

. It was the first international significant victory for Swedish harness racing.Svensk travsport
Retrieved 2020-4-10 The first Elitloppet was run in 1952 under the name of Solvallas Jubileumslopp (approximately "Solvalla's Jubilee Race"). Winner the opening year was the German horse Permit. The following year, the event changed name to Elitloppet. In 1993, the Swedish mare

Queen L. Queen L. (born 21 May 1986) was a Chestnut (coat), chestnut standardbred horse, Standardbred trotter by Crowntron out of Attila L. by Tibur. Her most prestigious victories include the Swedish Trotting Derby (Swedish: ''Svenskt Travderby'') (19 ...

, driven by

Stig H. Johansson Stig Henry Johansson (born 26 July 1945 in Forsa, Hälsingland, Forsa, Hälsingland, Sweden) is a Swedish trotting trainer and former driver. He started his career as a professional trainer in 1969, and has during a large part of the career been a ...

, became the first horse born in Sweden to win the

References

External links

The Swedish Trotting AssociationATG, the Swedish Horse Racing Totalisator Board
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harness Racing In Sweden