The Hollywoodbets Durban July Handicap is a South African Thoroughbred horse race held annually on the first Saturday of July since 1897 at Greyville Racecourse in

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN) is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the government merged the Zulu people, Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu language, Zulu) and ...

. Raced on

turf Sod is the upper layer of turf that is harvested for transplanting. Turf consists of a variable thickness of a soil medium that supports a community of turfgrasses. In British and Australian English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', ...

, the

July Handicap is open to horses of all ages. It is South Africa's premier horse racing event and currently offers a purse of R5 million. First held in July 1897 at a distance of 1 mile (approx 1600m), the distance was modified several times until 1970 when it was changed to its current 2200 meters (11

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 foot (unit), feet, 220 yards, 40 rod (unit), rods, 10 chain (unit), chains, or a ...

s). The 128th edition was held on Saturday 6th July 2024. The winner was Oriental Charm, who was ridden by JP van der Merwe and trained by Brett Crawford. The horse was owned by Messrs Greg Bortz, Leon Ellman and Ms Gina Goldsmith, and was bred by Cheveley Stud.

Field for 2024

Below is the final field for the 2024 Hollywoodbets Durban July to be run at Hollywoodbets Greyville racecourse on Saturday 6 July, Race 7, 16h00. Should a horse be scratched early, then the reserve runner will take up the barrier position of the scratched horse.

Records

Only five horses have ever won the Durban July Handicap back-to-back. * Campanajo (1897, 1898) * Corriecrian (1907, 1908)
Milesia Pride (1949, 1950)
* El Picha (1999, 2000) * Do It Again (2018, 2019) Another horse named Pamphlet won twice in 1918 and 1920 Do It Again holds the record for the most appearances in the Hollywoodbets Durban July with 6 runs (from 2018 to 2023). He is also the most decorated horse in the race having won the race on two occasions, and never finishing out of the places. * Gondolier: Ran 5 races, finally winning the race in 1985 * Beau Art: Ran 5 races and placed first in 1980 * Flaming Rock won his first Durban July in 1991 and then ran in the race 3 times more before retiring. Most wins by a trainer: * Sydney C. Laird - 7 : (1961, 1963, 1966, 1967, 1971, 1973, 1978) * Terence M. Millard - 6 : (1983, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990) * Mike de Kock - 5 (2001, 2004, 2010, 2011, 2022) * Justin Snaith - 5 (2008, 2014, 2018, 2019, 2020) Trainer F. Murray won the race four years in a row from 1910 through 1913. Most wins by a jockey: * 5 : Anton Marcus (1993, 2000, 2005, 2007, 2018) * 4 :
Harold "Tiger" Wright
- (1942, 1947, 1949, 1955), Anthony Delpech (1998, 2004, 2010, 2011) Piere Strydom (2016,2012, 2001, 1996) * 3 : Bertie Hayden (1971, 1973, 1978), Felix Coetzee (1984, 1988, 1990), Richard Fourie (2014, 2019, 2020) Of note to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

n racing fans, the 1963 race was won by Colorado King who subsequently raced in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and won the 1964 Hollywood Gold Cup plus set a World Record for nine furlongs in winning the American Handicap at

Hollywood Park Racetrack Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred horse racing, race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to The Forum (Inglewood, California), the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, t ...

. As well, the 2002 winner, Ipi Tombe, became the first horse bred in

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

to ever win a race at historic

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States that hosts the annual Kentucky Derby. It opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was prominent in Kentucky for many years. The first ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

. In 2013, S'manga Khumalo became the first black African jockey to win the Vodacom Durban July when riding Heavy Metal to victory for trainer Sean Tarry. In 2017, Candice Bass-Robinson became the first female trainer to win the Vodacom Durban July following the victory of Marinaresco. In 2021, Michelle Rix, along with her father Harold Crawford, became the second female trainer with the victory by Kommetdieding. In 2021, Ashwin Reynolds became the first owner of colour to own a Vodacom Durban July winner following the victory of Kommetdieding.

Winners of the Durban July Handicap since 1978

Winners from 1897 to 2023

References

External links

Website for the Durban July

Durban July fan site

SAHorseRacing.com
{{Authority control Horse races in South Africa Open middle distance horse races Horse races established in 1897 Winter in South Africa