Sanlucar de Barrameda is famous for its horse racing which takes place along a 1,800m stretch of beach at the mouth of the Río Guadalquivir during the month of August, this year on the 25th, 26th and 27th. This is a thrilling spectacle where real racehorses thunder across the sand watched by a large noisy crowd of spectators. There is nothing amateur about this event and you can expect to see spectator stands, bookies, paddocks and of course the winner's enclosure. Now an international event with horses from other European countries taking part and many famous names amongst the spectators. With more than 165 editions on its back, it is the oldest equestrian activity in Spain and one of the oldest ones in Europe. It has also been declared of International Tourist Interest since 1997.
Run by the "Horseracing Society of Sanlúcar de Barrameda", in its by-laws it expressly states that one of the activities that the society will carry out will be the holding of horse races, with the first ones being held on the beaches of Sanlúcar de Barrameda, in the afternoon of August 31st, in 1845. This marked the beginning of one of the most exhilarating horse races in the country.
It has traditionally been admitted that the origin of the “Horse Races on the Sanlúcar de Barrameda beach" started with the informal competitions, that was held by the owners of horse stock that was used for transporting the fish from the former port of Bajo de Guía to the local markets and nearby towns. It was effectively a past-time while they waited for the fishing trawlers to come back into port. But, how exactly the races started is ambiguous. Another story is that people raced donkeys along the banks for fun and eventually upgraded to horses.
As of 1981, the “Horse Races on the Sanlúcar Beaches" have gathered momentum with the re-founding of the former Horseracing Society of Sanlúcar de Barrameda and the approval of its by-laws on March 3rd of that year. Since then, the horse races, under the exclusive direction of the society, have reached a scale that was unheard of until then, exceeding the splendour achieved in the first decades of the 20th century. The competition days were expanded to two periods of three days each; the Sanlúcar races were given official status and they were integrated into the national equestrian circuit – along with Madrid, San Sebastián and Seville, Dos Hermanas and Mijas- and received decisive support from the “Society for the Promotion of Horse Breeding of Spain”, which made them famous worldwide.
After many years during which the Horseracing Society of Sanlúcar de Barrameda was solely responsible for holding the annual equestrian competitions on the beach of Sanlúcar, as a social event most representative of its annual activities, the organizing of horse races fell under the authority of the City Council, which included them in its summer programmes.
Today, the Horse Races on the Sanlúcar beaches, now privately managed, are thriving and enjoying strong support and stand out as one of the main events of the summer in Andalucía. This unique show on the world stage, declared as an International Tourist Interest, captures the attention of thousands of Sanlúcar residents and visitors, who every afternoon of the races approach the Sanlúcar beaches to enjoy the purebreds competing on a natural racetrack, which in the afternoons of the month of August give us a low tide. So if you happen to be near Sanlúcar de Barrameda in August, don't miss an afternoon at the races!
This year the races are on 25th, 26th and 27th or August and tickets are available online here -
http://www.carrerassanlucar.es/es/