Veliefendi Race Course
Veliefendi Hipodromu

Location	Veliefendi, Bakırköy, Istanbul, Turkey
Owned by	Jockey Club of Turkey (TJK)
Date opened	1913; 111 years ago (1913)
Screened on	TJK TV [1]
Course type	Flat/ Thoroughbred
Notable races	Gazi Race (since 1927) Prime Minister's Race (since 1951)

Veliefendi Race Course ( Turkish: Veliefendi Hipodromu) is a horse racing track located at Veliefendi neighborhood in Bakırköy district of Istanbul, Turkey. ^[2]

It is the country's oldest and biggest race course founded on a former grassland that was historically a farm belonging to Şeyhülislam Veliyüddin Efendi, an 18th-century superior authority of Islam in the Ottoman Empire. ^[3] The race course was constructed in the years 1912/13 by German specialists upon the initiative of Enver Pasha. ^{[4] [5]}

The race course hosts also music events. In 2006, Turkish pop singer Nez held a concert. ^[6]

Physical attributes

The race course covers an area of 59.6 ha (147 acres) consisting of facilities for racing, training and barns. The race course has three interleaved tracks as:

• a 2,020 m (2,210 yd) long and 27–36 m (89–118 ft) wide turf oval,
• a 1,870 m (2,050 yd) long and 17.5–19 m (57–62 ft) wide synthetic track for all-weather racing and
• a 1,730 m (1,890 yd) long and 16–17 m (52–56 ft) wide sand oval for training. ^[7]

The track's seating capacity is 7,600. The complex comprises offices, a museum, an exhibition hall, a racehorse hospital, an apprentice training center as well as social and recreational facilities. ^[7]

Major races

• Gazi Race (Gazi Koşusu), is the most prestigious Turkish Oaks, and is held since 1927 in memory of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who was awarded the honorific title "Gazi" ( Ghazi). Initially run in Ankara, the event was later transferred to Veliefendi Race Course. The award is about TL 1.4 million (approx. US$850,000 as of June 2011), and since 1970 is accompanied with a silver equestrian statue of Atatürk. ^{[8] [9] [10]}
• Prime Minister's Race (Başbaşkanlık Koşusu) is a Turkish Oaks held since 1951. The winner is awarded TL 1,105,000 (approx. US$330,000 as of July 2018) and a trophy bestowed by the Turkish prime minister. ^[11]

Incidents

During a race on July 31, 1949, four race horses, including two favourite horses, did not leave the starting gate upon the referee's start sign, and were disqualified. The bettors protested about a possible swindle by the referees and the racehorse owners, and demanded a rerun. As the referee commission rejected the demand, the crowd set the referee tower, the bleachers, the administration and box offices on fire. ^[12]

In July 1953, bettors throw horsemen with stones and beat a jockey named Muhacir Ahmet (literally: Ahmet The Immigrant) they believed he had swindled. Two years later local newspapers published about swindles at Veliefendi Race Course, and during a race on July 13, 1955, the bettors stoned the administration building, and Muhacir Ahmet was beaten once again. ^[12]

In 2008, the track held its first-ever farewell ceremony for a racehorse, honoring Ribella, a popular mare. ^[13]

References

40°59′14″N 28°53′20″E / 40.98709°N 28.88881°E / 40.98709; 28.88881