Charting the history of Singapore Turf Club: From 1842 to the home stretch
The Singapore Turf Club will close its doors in October 2024, marking the end of horse racing here after more than 180 years.
Its home in Kranji will be handed back to the Government by 2027 for redevelopment.
The Straits Times charts the milestones of the club and horse racing in Singapore.
Oct 4, 1842
The Singapore Turf Club is founded as the Singapore Sporting Club by Scottish merchant William Henry Macleod Read and a group of horse racing enthusiasts. It is then located in Farrer Park.
The first race is held to mark the 24th anniversary of Singapore’s founding by Sir Stamford Raffles and is watched by more than 300 spectators. The inaugural Singapore Cup race offers prize money of $150. The race day is declared a national holiday.
Singapore Sporting Club changes its name to Singapore Turf Club. The first Singapore Gold Cup is held in the same year.
1933
To cater to growing racing interest, the club sells its Serangoon Road Racecourse to the Singapore Improvement Trust for $1.5 million and uses $850,000 to purchase 98ha of the Bukit Timah Rubber Estate for a new site. More than $3 million goes into building the Bukit Timah Racecourse, which is officially opened by Sir Cecil Clementi, the governor of Singapore, on April 15 at a ceremony attended by 5,000 members and guests.
Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip and Princess Anne visit the club for the Queen Elizabeth II Cup during the Queen’s state visit. A 26,000-strong crowd shows up to see the royals.
History is made when female jockeys Irene Pateman and Paula Wagg from Australia become the first two women granted local permits to ride.
The Singapore Totalisator Board (Tote Board) is formed and it appoints the Bukit Turf Club to take over racing and 4D operations from the Singapore Turf Club.
January 1989
Singapore is put on the world racing map when Colonial Chief wins the Second Hong Kong Invitation Cup in Sha Tin. Colonial Chief is also the first horse to top $1 million in prize money.
Tuneful Melody creates history as the first locally bred horse to win a major feature race, the $250,000 Raffles Cup.
Bukit Turf Club is named Singapore Turf Club once again to give Singapore more prominence onthe world racing map.
Aug 22, 1995
Rock star Rod Stewart’s first concert in Singapore is held at the club, drawing a turnout of 8,000.
After five years of construction, the $500 million 124ha Kranji Racecourse opens. The five-storey grandstand can seat 30,000 spectators and the stables have air-conditioned rooms, swimming pools, exercise tracks and a veterinary hospital, as well as more than 1,000 stalls.
The first of the live races hosted at the Kranji Racecourse is the $350,000 Singapore Cup.
Then President S R Nathan officiates the opening of the Kranji Racecourse and a 30,000-strong crowd witnesses the inaugural $3 million Singapore Airlines International Cup. It is Singapore’s biggest horse racing event and the world’s seventh-richest horse race. It features top horses and jockeys from France, Hong Kong, Italy, the United Arab Emirates and Britain.
The $3 million Singapore Airlines International Cup is granted Group One status, the highestrecognition accorded by the International Cataloguing Standards Committee in London to anythoroughbred race.
Aug 18, 2010
The Singapore Turf Club Riding Centre hosts the 2010 Youth Olympic Games’ equestrian show-jumping event.
Local equine celebrity Rocket Man becomes the only local horse to win the International Group 1 race at the Dubai Golden Shaheen.
The $2 million KF1 Karting Circuit, Singapore’s first international-standard permanent karting facility, is launched. It features a 960m-long dual directional circuit, the only one of its kind in the world, designed by world-renowned Formula One track architect Herman Tilke.
Singapore Pools takes over all horse betting operations from Singapore Turf Club, while the latterfocuses on horse racing.
2020
Covid-19 hits and the club suspends all local race meetings, starting from the circuit breaker period, which begins on April 7. During the pandemic, community recovery facilities for foreign workers are built at the racecourse.
Then Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing says that the Singapore Tourism Board and Tote Board are exploring concepts for the redevelopment of the facility as a leisure destination. The redevelopment is to complement nature attractions in Mandai, such as the Sungei Buloh nature park.
June 5, 2023
The Government announces that the club will close by 2027 for redevelopment, with the last race – the 100th Grand Singapore Gold Cup – to be held on Oct 5, 2024.
