Horse racing has had a long and colourful history in Macau dating back several centuries.

It’s been established that horse racing was first staged in the then Portuguese Colony over 370 years ago.

If an account by famed English trader and writer Peter Mundy of his visit to Macau in 1637 is accepted, horse racing was already taking place on this small peninsula.

On his return to England, Mundy recorded in his memoirs how on a Sunday in November, he “went to the races in Macau”.

The race meeting was staged at a large levelled area in front St Domingo’s Church, which nowadays is the bustling San Malo commercial district.

In short, the tiny territory of Macau was the birthplace of horse racing in Asia.

By the arrival of the East India Company in 1713, horse racing was already a popular sport in the enclave, with a proper six furlong race track known as the Hipodromo in place.

Whilst it’s not widely known, the first race meetings of the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club were in fact staged in Macau from 1842 to 1844.

By 1845 most of the foreign traders had moved to Hong Kong and horse racing was then staged at Pok Fu Lam on Hong Kong Island.

With the opening of the Happy Valley racetrack in December 1846, racing gradually faded out in Macau for almost 80 years.

Horse racing resumed on the peninsula in 1927 with a new racecourse being built near Portas Do Cerco, with six race meetings held annually during the Hong Kong off season.

The sport continued to be a popular attraction in the enclave until the outbreak of the Pacific War in 1941.

Racing returned to Macau in the 1980’s only this time it was Harness Racing.

Whilst extremely popular worldwide, the concept of harness racing did not catch on well with Asian sporting fans, and the venture was closed down in 1989.

A Taiwanese group then seized the opportunity to transform the venue into a thoroughbred racing club.

So the present day Macau Jockey Club was in fact formerly the Macau Trotting Club.

The revamped Macau Jockey Club held its first race meeting on the sand track in September 10 1989, with the first turf raceday held on the newly constructed grass track in June 1990.

In 1991 the Macau Jockey Club was acquired by a consortium led by Dr. Stanley Ho, and is now one of the largest privately owned companies in Macau.

Under Dr Ho’s leadership the MJC has enjoyed huge expansion, and is now recognised internationally as a world class racing venue.