About The Canon Gold Cup

A RAINBOW OF JOCKEY COLOURS AND 1 MILLION RAND OF GOLD

 

 

 

 

 

Traditionally closing the three-month Champions Season in KwaZulu-Natal, the Grade 1 Canon Gold Cup over 3 200 metres at Greyville on Saturday, 30 July is also the last Grade 1 feature event of South Africa’s 2011 racing season.

Having been run since 1921, it is another institution in South African racing. As the toughest marathon horseracing event, it demands the utmost from the big-chested stayers as they make their way around Greyville Racecourse before calling on all the stoutness of their hearts to find an extra kick for the final 400 metre battle to the line.

A race that commands the highest standard of jockeyship and enormous stamina from the runners, only two horses in the past 55 years have managed to win it two years running. Highland Night managed the feat in 2002 and 2003 with the gallant Chez Monty completing the golden double way back in 1950.

The day is also a major fashion experience with outfits a little less daring than are featured on Vodacom Durban July Day with the accent more on the conservative side with elegance and taste as the major ingredient.

This meeting is one of the biggest in the country and the crowds that join the fun on the day will see the runners in the main race pass the winning post twice - first as they jockey for position after the start in the main straight and then when they fight it out for glory in the finish.