The Sport of Kings?
June 19, 2007
[©Newsquest (Herald & Times). Licensor www.scran.ac.uk.]
Today sees the start of Royal Ascot, perhaps the Blue Riband event of the horse racing calendar. The Queen will be in attendance as a spectator, but also as an owner and she will of course be hoping that her horses win.
But….is horse racing really that grand? Do you need blue blood to appreciate this sport? Or is it simply a more aesthetic way for fools to be parted from their money? Given the recent scandals that have hit the headlines recently(http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/horse_racing/6721525.stm) does horse racing really deserve the gravitas it claims through its links to arictocracy and monarchy? (Some of course may say that the two are perfectly suited and that the notions of monarchy and aristocracy are equally corrupt in these “democratic” times we live in…..but that is another argument for another day!) Is monarchial and aristocratic endorsement enough to gloss over the seedier side of illegal payments, race fixing and, in some cases, gambling addiction?
Please feel free to comment on this below….and for a bit of fun, try this little quiz from the BBC to see how “Toff” you are.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/horse_racing/2951808.stm
June 19, 2007 at 1:56 pm
I like the Toff Quiz that was good fun, and it’s official I’m 69% Toff, but that leaves 31% for my ‘rebel scum’ activities. I really cannot understand why we torture and abuse animals in the sporting industries or any industry for that matter.
You may remember the recent Hong Kong racetrack scandal. The coverage reported how a steward came across a row of embedded poisonous darts on the racetrack, and the intention of these devices has never been established.
So, I’ve got 31% of ‘rebel scum’ in me, therefore I shall transform into the Queen of Hearts and say “Goodbye blue bloods …off with their heads”!
June 19, 2007 at 9:53 pm
I got 77%. :-0
How can I look my comrades in the eyes ever again?
Thanks for doing the quiz, glad you enjoyed it.
As for the horses, I’m not a big fan, but my 2 year old boy is mesmerised by them so anything that keeps him quiet for a couple of minutes is to be applauded!!
June 22, 2007 at 9:49 am
Hi Keith, very timely topic for an activity – I’ve been enjoying all the outrageous photos of Ascot hats in the papers this week. I’ve no experience of the ‘gees gees’ myself but am very interested in the tip that they keep 2 year olds quiet, so I may make a trip down to Musselburgh at the next opportunity! The Toff Quiz is great fun – as I suspected I’m not much of a toff, though a fondness for champagne helped boost my score a bit!
June 22, 2007 at 9:50 am
ps great image, but I should probably point out that only thumbnails from Scran are permitted on publicly accessible web pages like this one – larger sizes need to be limited to licensed users only, so kept behind authentication systems such as WebCT etc.
cheers
Elaine