Horse Racing
May 2015QIPCO Guineas Festival
This classic event showcases two major events in the racing calendar, the QIPCO 2000 Guineas for colts, inaugurated in 1809, and the QIPCO 1000 Guineas for fillies, inaugurated in 1814.
Both these races are run over a mile, and are seen as the first major test of each new three-year-old generation.
The races are run at The Rowley Mile, home of flat racing for over three centuries. The racecourse itself has changed very little over its long history - only the stands have been renewed - and it is revered as hallowed racing turf.
The Rowley Mile, used for spring and autumn racing, is one of two racecourses at Newmarket (the July racecourse hosts summer meetings). The Millennium Grandstand was built in 1999 at the cost of 16 million pounds.
Within the premier enclosure there is a dress code - no jeans, trainers or collarless shirts, although jackets and ties are not compulsory. The Grandstand and Paddock enclosures operate a smart casual dress code - smart jeans and tailored shorts are permissible, but vest tops and beachwear are not.
