1969 The management at Aberdeen announce that the track is to close within weeks. The five acre site will be redeveloped with a supermarket and warehousing.
1971 Two months after the Government bowed to racecourse pressure and changed legislation to allow tracks to stage extra meetings – up to 130 in a year – GRA decide that they will not add allow West Ham to race three times a week during September as it is uneconomic to do so.
1991 The tightest finish of this, and most other years, occurs in an S4 event at Wembley. Distances: sh, sh, dht, sh, sh. Four spots covered the field.
2002 Stadia UK submit planning permission for a new track in Milton Keynes.
1957 Balliantrim, new track record holder for 415 yards at Charlton didn’t have to travel far. He was reared in the back garden of a house opposite the stadium.
1965 When the Crayford management are made aware of a large number of off-course bets being placed on three dogs in forecast combinations, they withdraw the other three runners. They then stage the race as a four-runner event with a reserve taking the place of one of the three withdrawn dogs. The race appears to go to plan and the reserve finishes fourth. However, subsequent tests reveal that the three withdrawn dogs had all tested positive for drugs. At White City, a whole race is cancelled when on of the runners failed a pre-race chromatography test and at Norwich a meeting is abandoned following “the public reaction to rumours that some of the runners had been interfered with.”
2011 Milldean Panther is installed as 16-1 favourite for the 2012 Irish Derby after winning his first race at Shelbourne Park. The John O’Flynn trained black, who arrived in Dublin unbeaten in seven races, clocked a flying 28.13 on a puppy race supporting the 2011 Irish Derby Final, just five spots outside Premier Fantasy’s 525 yard track record.
1946 Shannon Shore is retired to stud after contesting the Golden Crest Final at Eastville. During his racing career Shore won the ’44 Wimbledon Puppy Derby followed by the ’45 Pall Mall and Golden Crest. He also reached the Derby Final. Shore, who is a litter brother to double Irish Derby finalist Celtic Chief, will return to Ireland.
1965 Corsican Reward who won the biggest three hurdle events in the calendar, the Springbok, Grand National and the Merit Hurdle, is sold to stud in Australia. Connections had previously exported the successful Which Chariot.
2007 Scottish Derby winner Fear Me is retired after rearing a gracilis muscle in the Champion Stakes at Romford.
1995 The last 20 litters apparently sired by top Victorian sire Chariot Supreme are being DNA tested after two breeders issue writs on stud keeper Kevin Richards claiming the pups are by two of the kennels other sires Wary Suspect and Pure Talent.
1973 Romping To Work (Swanky Pa-Go To Work), who went out of the Coursing Oaks in the second round, twice lowers the Harolds Cross track record on her way to landing the track Oaks.
1946 Gloucester racegoers are stunned by puppy Scurrimore Dan. The unbeaten 18 month old British bred pup is recording winning times a full second faster than any other dog at the track. The son of Monarch of the Glen is nearly 85lbs (38.5kg) and completely white.
1951 There is friction among the bookies at Catford when the ‘8/6 ring’ announce that they will not deduct betting tax from winnings. Their colleagues in the cheaper rings refuse to follow suit.
1998 A Rye House open sees the first two in the market returned at 4-5f. They finish first and second in a five runner race. With the other trio returned at 33-1 (twice) and 50-1 the event still returns to 118%.
