The Valley 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 ...

stadium in Twyn Road,

Ystrad Mynach Ystrad Mynach is a town in the Caerphilly County Borough, within the ancient county of Glamorgan, Wales, and is north of the town of Caerphilly. The urban area has a population of 19,204, and stands in the Rhymney Valley. Before the Industr ...

Hengoed Hengoed () is a village on the west side of the Rhymney Valley - between Ystrad Mynach to the south and Cefn Hengoed to the north. Across the valley it looks towards Maesycwmmer. The village is in the county borough of Caerphilly, in the tradit ...

, Wales. In 2023, the stadium became affiliated to the

Greyhound Board of Great Britain The Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) is the organisation that governs licensed greyhound racing in Great Britain. It does not govern independent tracks or Northern Irish tracks and therefore has no jurisdiction over them. History It was f ...

(GBGB).

Location

The track, known as 'The Valley', is on Twyn Road (CF82 7SP) sandwiched between the Caerphilly Road and A469 and the east bank of the

Rhymney River The Rhymney River ( cy, Afon Rhymni) is a river in the Rhymney Valley, South Wales, flowing through Cardiff into the Severn Estuary. The river formed the boundary between the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire until in 1887, ...

(on the north side of the Dyffryn Business Park).

Licensing

It is the only remaining

track in Wales and, until August 2023, was independent (not affiliated to the GBGB but, instead, licensed by the local authority). In August 2023, it received a licensing regulation from the Greyhound Board of Great Britain

History

Planning for the stadium was given during April 1975. The stadium opened to greyhound racing on 20 July 1976, with the first ever winner being a greyhound called 'Boss' who won in a time of 19.20 seconds over 310 yards. The circuit was 410 yards in circumference consisting of race distances of 310, 515 and 720 yards. The track also staged occasional '100 yard dash' races. The principal events held at the track were the Welsh Greyhound Derby (the richest greyhound race in Wales) and the Glamorgan Cup. In 2011, the stadium underwent a significant renovation including an indoor lounge with seating, panoramic viewing, television race replay monitors and a fully licensed bar. In February 2020, flooding caused a temporary closure after the

burst its banks,. However, the greyhound owners and supporters put in hundreds of hours of voluntary work to help repair the racing surface and repaint the stadium, which reopened only three weeks later. In 2021, restrictions imposed by the Welsh Government to combat the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

meant that the stadium had to shut for 161 days. When it reopened on 22 May 2021 the first post-lockdown meeting sold out. In October 2019, Star Sports Bookmakers (sponsors of the

English Greyhound Derby The English Greyhound Derby is the most prestigious race on the British Greyhound racing in the United Kingdom, greyhound racing calendar, with a history stretching back to 1927. It was first held at White City Stadium, but moved to Wimbledon ...

) announced an interest in acquiring the Valley Greyhound Stadium with a view to its operating as a

licensed track in 2021. However, the economic crisis caused by 2020's COVID pandemic led to the plans being shelved. In December 2021, Dave Barclay (owner and promoter of

Harlow Stadium Harlow Stadium is a greyhound racing track located in Harlow, Essex, England. The stadium also has executive suites, a restaurant, a number of bars and conference and banqueting facilities. Racing takes place in the evening on Monday and Wedne ...

), announced that he had completed a deal to buy the Valley Greyhound Stadium with a view to its operating as a Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) licensed track by the end of 2023. In the meantime, the stadium continued to stage independent greyhound racing every week. The final 'flapping' race took place on 29 July 2023, when a puppy called Pandy Charlie won the last independent race at the track. In August 2023, the stadium received licensing regulation from the GBGB and held their first under rules on 3 November 2023. The first winner was Catunda Spirit.

Present racing

Racing usually takes place on Saturday evenings. Major competitions are held regularly and licensed bookmakers attended every meeting. The venue is popular with families with free entry for children. Greyhound owners and trainers encouraged children to interact with the greyhounds after they had raced.

Gallery

File:Valley Greyhound Stadium main stand.jpg File:Valley Greyhound Stadium.jpg File:Valley Greyhounds Stadium bar.jpg File:Bookmakers at Valley Greyhound Stadium.jpg File:Evening racing at the Valley Greyhound Stadium 02.jpg File:Meeting the dogs at the Valley Greyhound Stadium, Ystrad Mynach.jpg

Location

Licensing

History

Present racing

Gallery

References

See also