Southwell Racecourse

rdf:langString Southwell Racecourse

rdf:langString Southwell

rdf:langString Southwell

rdf:langString Arena Racing Company

rdf:langString Southwell Racecourse (pronounced /ˈsʌðəl/ or /ˈsaʊθwɛl/) is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located 2 miles (3 km) east of Southwell in Nottinghamshire, England. It is one of only six racecourses in the UK to have an all-weather track and is the only one with a Fibresand surface. Fibresand is a mixture of sand and wispy fibres. Southwell has applied to change the track surface from Fibresand to Tapeta (a mixture of sand, wax and fibre) in 2021. National Hunt racing on a turf course also takes place at Southwell. In 2007, the Great Yorkshire Chase (now Skybet Chase) was held at Southwell, while Doncaster Racecourse was closed for redevelopment. Southwell racecourse will always be associated with female jockey Hayley Turner, who grew up locally and had her first job in racing with a trainer based adjacent to the track. The racecourse was forced to close temporarily in December 2012 when flooding caused major damage to both the track and the buildings on site. Meetings scheduled for the all-weather flat course were transferred to Wolverhampton and Lingfield. The course successfully re-opened on 5 February 2013 with a seven-race flat meeting. Initial meetings following the re-opening had a limited capacity while renovations continued.