Horse Racing in South Africa.

South African sport has a long and rich history that can be tracked back to 1797 with the first recorded race club meeting occurring just 5 years later in 1802, Now a hugely popular sport in South Africa there are frequent horse racing events taking place around the country.

Previously operating under the name of 'The Jockey Club of South Africa' the national horse racing body which was founded in 1882 is now known widely as the 'National Horse Racing Authority'.

Racing is primarily controlled by two bodies and separated by state. Phumelela Gaming controls racing in the Free State, Northern Cape and Gauteng while Gold Circle has the reins in Western Cape and Kwazuku-Natal.

Three major racing events that stand above the rest are the 'Summer Cup', 'The Vodacom' and 'The J&B Met'. Johannesburg hosts the 'Summer Cup' while Cape Town's star is 'The J&B Met', Durban's primary event is 'The Vodacom' which was run in 1897 at it's present home Greyville.

The big-money betting industry is controlled and regulated by Saftote in which Phumelela and Gold circle work their totalizator. A USA-based company in Maryland whom designed the software also controls it. All Tote equipment has been approved by the 'South African Bureau of Standards'

For Melbourne Cup betting on the 2011 Melbourne Cup we suggest checking Races.com.au for all your horse racing news.