The Royal Ascot By Numbers

Books could be written about England’s oldest and most prestigious racing festival. That’s why we’ve decided to sum up all the pomp, pageantry and world class thoroughbred racing in the following analysis of the Royal Ascot meeting by numbers:

  • 4 - The height, in inches, to which the Ascot turf is permitted to grow for the Royal Ascot meeting

  • 5 - The number of days in the Royal Ascot programme
  • 6 - The percentage of the total annual flat racing attendance figures accounted for by the Royal Ascot meeting
  • 7 - The number of group one races run during the course of the Royal Ascot meeting
  • 12 - The number of ground staff employed to keep the Ascot turf in shape
  • 16 - Cumulative number of group races run during the five days of the meeting
  • 30 - The total number of races run during the course of the Royal Meeting at Ascot
  • 39 - The number of kitchens operating full-time to cater to the crowds at Royal Ascot
  • 73 - The climb, in yards, that racehorses have to complete to reach the finishing post on Ascot racecourse
  • 100 - The first prize paid out at the Royal Ascot, in Guineas
  • 185 - The amount paid in millions of pound sterling to furnish Ascot with its space-age grandstand
  • 1711 - The year first took place on Ascot Downs
  • 1768 - The year the inaugural Royal Meeting toke place at Ascot
  • 1845 - The year the Royal Enclosure was introduced at Ascot Racecourse to protect the Royal Family from members of the public
  • 2002 - The year the Royal Meeting was extended from 4 to 5 days, necessitating the creation of five new races
  • 2005 - The only year that the Royal Ascot meeting was not held at Ascot Racecourse. The race was moved to York Racecourse that year due to the redevelopment of the racecourse.
  • 4023 - The distance run in the longest race at the Royal Ascot meeting – the Ascot Gold Cup
  • 6000 - The number of temporary staff recruited by Ascot Racecourse for the Royal Meeting
  • 11,000 - The average number of lobsters washed down by the champagne
  • 16,000 - The amount of beer consumed, in gallons, at the Royal Ascot meeting
  • 185,000 - The average number of bottles of champagne served at the Royal Ascot meeting annually
  • 300,000 - The average annual attendance for the Royal Ascot meeting
  • 450,000 - The prize money presently paid out in Royal Ascot’s richest races, the Prince of Wales’s Stakes and the Golden Jubilee Stakes