Musselburgh Racecourse have launched the inaugural £100,000 Queen’s Cup which will be run for the first time on Easter Saturday (15 April).
Kirsty Purves paraded in Her Majesty The Queen’s racing silks against a regal backdrop of The Palace of Holyrood House in Edinburgh (pic courtesy of robmcdougall.com), to mark Musselburgh’s first staging of the staying open heritage handicap over 14 furlongs.
Her Majesty gave approval for the race to be named in her honour after she visited the East Lothian track last July to mark Musselburgh’s 200th year of staging horseracing. The Queen’s Cup is part of a £250,000 Easter Saturday racecard which also features the £50,000 Royal Mile Handicap.
Musselburgh Racecourse chief executive Bill Farnsworth, said: “We are delighted to kick off our 2017 Flat season with a high value new race, The Queen’s Cup, which we hope will become established as the first leg of the season’s major staying handicaps, sitting alongside the Chester Cup, the Northumberland Plate and York’s Betfred Ebor.”
Judy Murray will swap tennis for turf as guest of honour on Easter Saturday and will present The Queen’s Cup to winning connections. She said: “I love the excitement of a day at the races.
"The mix of the strength and speed of the horses, the skill of the jockeys and the roar from the stands, makes it a fantastic sporting day out.
"It’s a real thrill to have been invited to present the first ever Queen’s Cup and I’ve no doubt it’s going to be a contest to remember.”
