The Ffos Las racecourse (''strictly'': Ffos Las Racecourse & Conference Centre) is a Welsh horse racing,

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: * Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes i ...

sports and conferencing venue situated in

Ffos Las Ffos Las is a rural area between the villages of Carway and Trimsaran, north of the town of Llanelli in the Gwendraeth Valley in Carmarthenshire, Wales. The Ffos Las area is named after a farm which had existed at the site before mining operati ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. The Ffos Las racecourse was built at the site of an open cast coal mine after mining operations ceased.

Development

After the completion of the first phase of construction for a first race meeting in June 2009, the Ffos Las racecourse became the first new National Hunt racecourse to be built in the United Kingdom for 80 years, and Wales's third racecourse. Ffos Las Racecourse was built at a cost of £20 million. The racecourse development site is about in sizeTimes Online: Dai Walters digs deep to develop seam of opportunity at evolving Ffos Las
/ref> and is located in a natural amphitheatre setting. The racetrack itself is an oval which is 12 furlongs in length and has a flat topography. The initial phase of the development was completed in 2009 and features: * Turf National Hunt &

flat racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

* Enclosure & Grandstand * Hotel, pub, restaurant, etc. * Technical Facilities * Betting Facilities * Residential Development for racing staff

Opening meetings

The British Horseracing Board initially confirmed a programme of eight race meetings for 2009. FT.com - If you build it, will they come?
/ref> An extra fixture was added to the schedule later on creating a two-day flat event in September. The Ffos Las Racecourse opened on 18 June 2009 when it held its first race meeting to a sell-out crowd of 10,000. It was an evening National Hunt meeting which included a Ladies Night. The first ever race at Ffos Las was won by 15-8 second favourite Plunkett ridden by Donal Fahy, trained by Evan Williams, and owned by Hywel Jones. The first race at Ffos Las to feature

Arabians The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, No ...

was held on 27 June 2009. The first ever flat race at Ffos Las, the EBF/Jamie Yeates Memorial Maiden Stakes, was held on 21 July 2009. The race was dedicated to schoolboy and aspiring jockey Jamie Yeates from nearby Llanelli, who died under tragic circumstances the previous January. The winner of the race was Dream Queen ridden by Michael Hills. Dream Queen was trained by

Barry Hills Barry Hills (born 2 April 1937) is a retired British thoroughbred horse trainer. He lives in Lambourn, England. Biography Barry Hills had three sons in his first marriage, to Maureen Newson: John, Michael, and Richard. John (died 2014) was a ...

. The official opening ceremony, conducted by racing commentator Sir

Peter O'Sullevan Sir Peter O'Sullevan (3 March 1918 – 29 July 2015) was an Irish-British horse racing commentator for the BBC, and a correspondent for the Press Association, the ''Daily Express'', and ''Today''. He was the BBC's leading horse racing comme ...

, was held on 28 August 2009, with an audience of over 12,000. Following the final race of the day, there was concert with

Cerys Matthews Cerys Matthews (; born 11 April 1969) is a Welsh singer, songwriter, author, and broadcaster. She was a founding member of Welsh rock band Catatonia and a leading figure in the " Cool Cymru" movement of the late 1990s. Matthews programmes an ...

performing. The first ever race meeting featuring harness racing was held on 9 May 2010.

Notable races

Plans

The racecourse owners intend to introduce a new Celtic Festival in future years to be held around

St. David's Day Saint David's Day ( cy, Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Sant or ; ), or the Feast of Saint David, is the feast day of Saint David, the patron saint of Wales, and falls on 1 March, the date of Saint David's death in 589 AD. The feast has been regularly celebrat ...

. The racecourse developers plan for the venue to have a capacity for 20,000 people and there will be 120 horse boxes. Future developments at the racecourse will include: * Development of Hotel & Leisure Facilities * Equestrian Centre,

Eventing Eventing (also known as three day eventing or horse trials) is an equestrian event where a single horse and rider combine and compete against other competitors across the three disciplines of dressage, cross-country, and show jumping. This ...

, Point-to-Point * Racecourse Training Establishment * Live/work small holdings The racecourse management intend to stage other types of equestrian events at Ffos Las including Show jumping, hunter chase meetings,

pony racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

and harness racing.Discover Carmarthenshire - Ffos Las Racecourse
/ref>

Transport

First Cymru First Cymru is an operator of bus services in South West Wales. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup with its headquarters in Swansea. History In 1987, South Wales Transport was sold during the privatisation of the National Bus Company in a man ...

Buses operate a bus between

Llanelli Llanelli (" St Elli's Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of Swansea and south-east of the county town, Carmarth ...

and

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, RP: ; cy, Caerfyrddin , "Merlin's fort" or "Sea-town fort") is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community in Wales, lying on the River Towy. north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. The population was 14,185 in 2011, ...

, number 197 from Monday to Saturday, which stops at the racecourse entrance. The Ffos Las racecourse offers a dedicated shuttle bus service on race days between

Llanelli railway station railway station is the railway station serving the town of Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is located on the West Wales line and the Heart of Wales line west of by rail. The station and the majority of trains calling are operated by T ...

and the racecourse. By sea, Pembroke Dock is about 1 hour away to the west and

Fishguard Fishguard ( cy, Abergwaun, meaning "Mouth of the River Gwaun") is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, with a population of 3,419 in 2011; the community of Fishguard and Goodwick had a population of 5,407. Modern Fishguard consists of two p ...

is about 1 hour 15 minutes away to the west. Ferries from both Pembroke Dock and Fishguard sail to and from Rosslare in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...

Pembrey Airport Pembrey West Wales Airport ( Welsh: Maes Awyr Pen-Bre) is located west northwest of Llanelli ( south of Carmarthen) in Pembrey, Carmarthenshire, in Wales. Pembrey has one hard runway designated as 22LH/C and 04RH/C. The airport and its ICAO co ...

, which handles private, charter flights and fueling facilities 24/7. It is a 10-minute drive away from the racecourse with a restaurant and seven miles of blue ribbon beach. Helicopters can land at the racecourse by arrangement with the racecourse management and refuel at the airport if required. Ffos Las is approximately 12 miles (25 minutes) from Junction 48 of the M4 motorway.

References

External links

Ffos Las (official racecourse site)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ffos Las Racecourse Sport in Carmarthenshire Horse racing venues in Wales Buildings and structures in Carmarthenshire Sports venues completed in 2009 2009 establishments in the United Kingdom Ffos Las racecourse