The Racecourse is an open area on the River Wear in Durham, England of total that has been used as a sports ground since at least 1733. It forms part of Durham University's sports facilities as well as hosting local sports clubs. The Racecourse cricket ground, which has hosted first class matches, has been used since at least 1843, and is the home ground of Durham University's cricket team. The Racecourse also contains

squash Squash may refer to: Sports * Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets * Squash (professional wrestling), an extremely one-sided match in professional wrestling * Squash tennis, a game similar to squash but pla ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

and

fives Fives is an English sport believed to derive from the same origins as many racquet sports. In fives, a ball is propelled against the walls of a 3- or 4-sided special court, using a gloved or bare hand as though it were a racquet, similar to ...

courts, rugby,

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

and football pitches, and boathouses. As well as use by Durham University, the Racecourse is known for hosting two annual events, the

Durham Regatta Durham Regatta is a rowing regatta held annually on the second weekend in June on the River Wear in Durham, North East of England; It is known as the Henley of the North, but began several years before the more prestigious Henley Royal Regatta. ...

and

Durham Miners' Gala The Durham Miners' Gala, founded by Pete Doherty, is a large annual gathering and labour festival held on the second Saturday in July in the city of Durham, England. It is associated with the coal mining heritage (and particularly that of miner ...

. With the exception of the riverside path, which is owned by Durham County Council, the Racecourse is owned by Durham University.

History

Before it was a racecourse, the Racecourse was known as Smelt Haugh or Smiddy Haughs and is thought to have been a smithy for the Prior of Durham. It was first recorded as being used for horse racing in 1733. At its peak, the course had a stone grandstand and attracted 80,000 spectators for a two-day event in 1873. Racing continued at the site until around 1887. From 1815 there was an annual boat procession along the River Wear at the Racecourse, celebrating Wellington's victory at the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

. In 1834 this became the

, the second oldest regatta in England. The

(established 1871) has been held annually at the Racecourse since 1872. Cricket has been played on the Racecourse since at least 1843, when Durham University played the first recorded game there. This predates Cambridge's first game at

Fenner's Fenner's is Cambridge University Cricket Club's ground. History Cambridge University Cricket Club had previously played at two grounds in Cambridge, the University Ground and Parker's Piece. In 1846, Francis Fenner leased a former cherry orchard ...

(1848) and Oxford's first game at The Parks (1881), making the Racecourse the oldest university cricket ground in England. In the 1840s the land was owned by the

Bishop of Chester The Bishop of Chester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chester in the Province of York. The diocese extends across most of the historic county boundaries of Cheshire, including the Wirral Peninsula and has its see in the ...

, who leased it to Durham City Cricket Club (established in 1829) in 1844. By the late 1840s, however, the lease had passed to the university. Durham City Cricket Club continued to play at The Racecourse cricket ground until 1887, when they moved "amid mutterings of discontent" to Green Lane Cricket Ground at the east end of the Racecourse. Horse racing was also stopped by the university at the same time, so that from 1888 the ground was solely used by the university. On 16–17 June 2012 the Racecourse hosted the

Olympic torch The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olym ...

as part of the

London 2012 The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

Olympic torch relay The Olympic torch relay is the ceremonial relaying of the Olympic flame from Olympia, Greece, to the site of an Olympic Games. It was first performed at the 1936 Summer Olympics, and has taken place prior to every Games since. Although in the pa ...

Cricket ground

The Racecourse's most significant facility is its

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

ground, which has been used by Durham University since 1843. It has a capacity of 8,500 (2015). The Racecourse cricket ground stands at the east end of the Racecourse. It had the honour of hosting

Durham County Cricket Club Durham County Cricket Club (rebranded as Durham Cricket in February 2019) is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Durham. Founded in 1882, D ...

's first match as a first-class county in 1992, against Leicestershire. Between 1992 and 1994, Durham CCC played seven games there in the

County Championship The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It bec ...

, seven List A games and a three-day game against Australia, which was notable for being Ian Botham's last match as a professional cricketer. Since Durham CCC moved into The Riverside Ground, which was completed in 1995, the ground has continued to host Durham University, Durham University Centre of Cricketing Excellence and Durham MCC University matches, which included 19 first-class matches against County sides as well as games in the

MCC Universities Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence. ...

Championship and

BUCS British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) is the governing body for higher education sport in the United Kingdom. BUCS was formed in June 2008 following a merger of British Universities Sports Association (BUSA) and University College Sport ...

Premier League. It was also used from 2000 - 2008 as the home for Durham CCC's Academy team, which played 50 North East Premier League matches on the ground. In 2007, it also hosted a three-day match between the touring

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

team and the MCC. and a one-day match between the MCC and the touring Bangladesh A team in 2008. It hosted three women's one-day internationals in 2002 and a Durham Women one-day match against Lancashire Women in 2014, retrospectively considered to have been List A matches. The ground has hosted 28 first-class matches (excluding one abandoned without play) and 12 List A matches as of August 2022. Game Information: : Game Statistics: first-class: : Game Statistics: one-day matches: :

Other sports facilities

University of Durham Sports Pavilion - geograph

The Racecourse has around of university sports fields. In addition to the cricket ground, these include grass pitches for rugby, football and hockey. The cricket pavilion also houses two fives courts and two squash courts. The Durham Amateur Rowing Club boathouse is located at the east (up stream) end of the Racecourse, while St Cuthbert's Society Boat Club is at the west (down stream) end. In the eastern part of the Racecourse is Durham City's Green Lane Cricket Ground, which has been used for cricket since at least 1866 and was used by

(then a minor county) in the

Minor Counties Cricket Championship The NCCA 3 Day Championship (previously the Minor Counties Cricket Championship) is a season-long competition in England and Wales that is contested by the members of the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), the so-called national cou ...

in 1899, 1904 and 1975 to 1984, and in the Minor Counties Trophy in 1988 and 1989. It hosted a single List A match for the county in 1979 and has hosted 16 List A matches for Durham Women. There is a

bowling green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...

adjacent to Green Lane cricket ground which is used by Durham City Bowling Club.

Durham Miners' Gala

Durham Miners' Gala was first held at the Racecourse in 1872, which was the gala's second edition. All editions of the gala have since been held at the Racecourse. The event is typically held in mid-July, though has on occasions been held in August.Durham Miners' Gala
Durham Miners' Museum; accessed 18 April 2008 The Racecourse is the location of the speeches held at the culmination of the Gala march. At its peak, 250,000 people attended the Gala.

Durham Regatta

Durham Regatta has been held annually at the Racecourse since 1834 and is the second oldest regatta in England. The short (regatta) course starts at the east end of the Racecourse and ends at the west end, while the long (championship) course continues around the city and through

Elvet Bridge Elvet Bridge is a medieval masonry arch bridge across the River Wear in the city of Durham, in County Durham, England. It links the peninsula in central Durham and the Elvet area of the city, and is a Grade I listed building. Building Buildi ...

to finish just before Prebends Bridge.

References

External links

Cricinfo Website - Ground Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Racecourse Cricket grounds in County Durham Sport at Durham University Durham University Sport in Durham, England Sports venues completed in 1733 Defunct horse racing venues in England University sports venues in the United Kingdom