Newmarket is known around the world as the Home of Horseracing because it is in Newmarket that the sport’s international roots are most firmly planted.
Newmarket Heath became the focus of racing in Britain in the 17th century when the king decided to bring his court and his sport to the town – and it has remained the focal point of racing, not just of Britain but of the whole racing world, ever since then.
The horses and people who have played the most prominent roles in Newmarket’s racing history have been instrumental in shaping the bloodstock world.
The administration of the sport in all racing nations is based upon the rules established for racing at Newmarket by the Jockey Club, whose head-quarters are in Newmarket High Street; and the international stud books are based on the bloodlines of horses through the centuries who have raced – and, in many cases, been bred and trained – in Newmarket.
Newmarket remains the place to which racing lovers from all around the world like to make what amounts to a pilgrimage; and out of Newmarket’s history, heritage and unique position in the racing world has come the ‘Legends of the Turf’ project.