Thurles Greyhound Stadium is a

greyhound racing Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around a track. There are two forms of greyhound racing, track racing (normally around an oval track) and coursing; the latter is now banned in most countries. Tra ...

track located on Castlemeadows opposite the

Semple Stadium The Semple Stadium is the home of hurling and Gaelic football for Tipperary GAA and for the province of Munster. Located in Thurles, County Tipperary, it is the second largest GAA stadium in Ireland (after Croke Park), with a capacity of 45,690. ...

Thurles Thurles (; ''Durlas Éile'') is a town in County Tipperary, Ireland. It is located in the civil parish of the same name in the barony of Eliogarty and in the ecclesiastical parish of Thurles (Roman Catholic parish), Thurles. The cathedral ch ...

County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. Racing takes place every Thursday and Saturday evening and the facilities include a trackside restaurant, fast food facilities, a number of bars and totalisator betting. The stadium has a car park which is also used for overflow parking for

and a farmers market on Saturday mornings. Race distances are 330, 525, 570 and 600 yards.

History

Just off the Castlemeadows in Thurles is the Townpark Greyhound Stadium which opened on 13 September 1948. Major events to have taken place over the years at the track and they are called the Tipperary Cup, Guinness 575, the Champion Bitch Stakes and Puppy Stakes. A very large circumference of 509 yards allows greyhounds a good gallop although the track is considered slow. In 1962 the

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap ...

came to Townpark and would stay for 26 years until 1984 when it then moved to

Shelbourne Park Shelbourne Park is a greyhound racing stadium in the south Dublin inner city suburb of Ringsend. Greyhound Racing Opening The plans to open a greyhound track in Dublin were drawn up by Paddy O’Donoghue, Jerry Collins, Patsy McAlinden and Jim ...

. The premier hurdle event in Ireland was won no less than three times by Special from 1972–1974. The Thurles Greyhound Racing & Sports Association Limited continually ensured that the venue was kept in good order and it held many charity nights. The Racing Manager for many years was Eamonn Bourke before Paul Hayes took over the chair. In 2011 the stadium underwent significant refurbishment resulting in an extension to the main upstairs bar areas and facilities to cater for events.

Competitions

current and former *

Tipperary Cup The Tipperary Cup is a greyhound racing competition held annually at Thurles Greyhound Stadium, Thurles, County Tipperary, Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Eur ...

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap ...

* National Produce Stakes

Track records

Current Former

References

External links

Irish Greyhound Board
{{coord missing, County Tipperary Greyhound racing venues in the Republic of Ireland Sport in Thurles Sport in County Tipperary Sports venues in County Tipperary