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Tor Służewiec

Full of emotions horse racing season at Służewiec finished

30 listopada 2015

Last Sunday was the last racing day in the 71th season at the Służewiec Racecourse. During 54 racing days there were 463 races for Thoroughbred horses, Arabian horses and French trotters. In the finished season the Warsaw racecourse was visited by 47 percent more people than in the previous year, and the undisputed star of the finished season was Va Bank, the winner of triple crown and the Great Warsaw Race.
Traditionally, Derby Gala (5th July) and Autumn Gala (27th September) during which the Great Warsaw Race takes place (the favourite race of inhabitants of the capital), were the most popular among the audience in the 2015 season. Approx. 10 thousand spectators came to the course on both these days. Also a lot of people attended the inauguration day of the season (19th April) and Arabic Day (23th August) with the Europa Stakes, which since 2010 belongs to the global cycle of races named after the founder of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

From year to year we observe a growing interest in the rivalry of racing horses. Step by step the Służewiec Racecourse regains the status of a popular place on the map of Warsaw and more often is a part of weekend plans of Warsaw inhabitants says Wojciech Szpil, President of the Totalizator Sportowy.

The title of „Horse of the Year” was awarded to a sensational, unbeaten in its previous appearances three-year old horse of the trainer Maciej Janikowski – Va Bank. It was the biggest star of this year’s races. It won races for the following prizes with surprising ease, a few lengths in front of his rivals: Strzegom (1600 m), Ruler (1600 m), Derby (2400 m), St. Leger (2800 m) and Great Warsaw (2600 m). Horses such as Va Bank are a magnet for tens of thousands of spectators on courses around the world. In the 2016 season, it has still a lot to win at Służewiec: among others, for the first time the Award of the President of Totalizator Sportowy and for the second time St. Leger and the Great Warsaw. It is worth to see how it runs.

An important event of the finished season was the rivalry of young jockeys under the Young Horse Riders Championships. Races with the participation of racing adepts were always very exciting. Ireneusz Wójcik won in the final competition, who along with the title of 2015 Champion of Young Horse Riders received a scholarship from the LOTTO Million Dreams Foundation in the program „Scholarship to the medal”.

I am glad that so many young riders competed in this year’s championships. I am convinced that it will bring a lot of good to Polish horse racing. I keep my fingers crossed for Irek and I hope that he will follow the example of Stefan Mazur says Włodzimierz Bąkowski, director of the Służewiec Racecourse.

During the last season there were many interesting events on the Służewiec Racecourse. Students of Universities of the Third Age and members of the capital bar association had their day, and Ursynów district traditionally arranged a Family Picnic. These additional features of the course have been pointed out by the President of Warsaw Hanna Gronkiewicz, which for the second time in a row was a guest at Służewiec during the Great Warsaw and decorated the winning horse on the paddock.

In the recently finished season a carefully renovated – according to the indications of monuments conservator – II Tribune which was closed from 2007 was made available to the public. As a result, spectators were able to enjoy the struggles of horses and riders in a friendly environment.

Only the racing course is closed for winter, while on a vast training racecourse and next to the stables all the time there will be trainings preparing horses for the new season, which starts in April.