For nearly as long as humans have had the knowhow to domesticate the horses there have also been races. Nowadays we probably picture the Grand National or the Kentucky Derby, as much social and cultural events, and a staple in any socialites calendar, but that image of the well-to-do wearing the latest expensive clothes and drinking designer cocktails hasn’t always been the most relevant. In his A Brief History of the Olympic Games author David C. Young writes that in one of the first Olympic games in 776 BCE one could find chariot races and mounted races, which makes horse races almost three thousand years old.
Before that however there are relics of horse races in modern-day Egypt, Iran and Syria. It is even believed that as long ago as 3000 BCE in Central Asia, where one can find the earlier traces of horse domestication, that there were already events designed to showcase the rider prowess in the saddle, although it was most likely without a saddle. By the time the Romans entered the scene, horseback riding as a sport had became a main event and then, like today, betting on the results of races was a major industry. Fortunately for both humans and horses, racing today is a lot less brutal than it was during the heyday of the Roman Empire and Republic. Chariot races were the most commonly seen events and often there were small boys who would throw water on the wooden chariot wheels as they drove passed to cool them in order to prevent them catching fire. Many of these boys died in the races, as well as many chariot drivers.
In the same region—Italy—about thousand years later horse racing was still a hugely popular sport, but the races had evolved to mounted riding as opposed to chariot races. Although these races were often associated with religious festivals the majority of the competitions served the purpose of getting young men and boys prepared for riding in wars in which equestrian skills were a necessary part of being a good soldier directly up until the tank usurped cavalry in the First World War.
In fact, even dressage, showjumping, and Vienna’s Spanish Riding School were all initially invented so that soldiers in waiting could practise their skills in the hopes of becoming better riders and subsequently better calvary soldiers.
While that image of oversized hats and fruity drinks and ample jewellery and enough cigar smoke to choke a horse may not be entirely wrong picture to conjure up when some mentions horse racing it’s important to remember that horse racing is as ancient as free time and partaking in a race—as jockey, spectator, or horse—one is participating in a very long and quite ancient tradition.