History of the Emirates Melbourne Cup

The Melbourne Cup was born following the quest of the Victoria Turf Club to put on a "good handicap" which would rival its counterpart, the Victoria Jockey Club. While 1860s racing administrators were enthusiastic and visionary in many ways, not in their wildest dreams would they have thought the Cup would become what we know it today - the greatest 3200 metre handicap horse-race in the world.

The history of the Cup dates back to 1861, the resultant brain child of Captain Frederick Standish, one time VRC Chairman and former Chief Commissioner of Police in Victoria. As a former member of the Victoria Turf Club he conceptually founded the great race with the club committed to offering modest prize-money and a hand beaten gold watch. The conditions for the race would state "a sweepstakes of 20 sovereigns, 10 sovereigns forfeit or 5 sovereigns if declared, with 200 sovereigns added money".

The uniqueness of the race stipulated handicap conditions and a distance of two miles. Whilst this is the discerning and attractive feature of the race as we know it today, some critics claimed the conditions for the race would promote mediocrity. "Surely the race demands set weights status at least!" was the cry. Whilst the conditions of the race are against the grain of other premier international races, these are the same qualities which make it so unique and endearing.

The Melbourne Cup has long been lauded as the race that stops a nation and the race which has become ingrained in the Australian culture. It is a race built on dreams, on hard luck and triumph. It is a race which is also survived by tragedy. But while the Cup continues to evolve it will remain the greatest 3200 metre horse race any where in the world and, by the nature of the conditions, arguably the most challenging to win.

early history

The race created considerable interest from its inception in 1861 and in front of an estimated crowd of 4000, Archer won the first Melbourne Cup. This was the time of death of Burke and Wills, two of Australia's daring pioneers who were the first to track the harsh Australian terrain from North to South.

It is recorded that the local community were in a state of mourning at this time and understandably the first Melbourne Cup was run under rather subdued circumstances. Archer's victory in 1861 was the first of two for the horse and the first of five for aspiring young trainer Etienne de Mestre who would quickly gain a reputation as a fine horseman from Nowra, located in central New South Wales.

The Cup is run at Flemington which in 1861 was a recognised venue for race-meetings conducted by the Victoria Turf Club. It is located on former river flats adjacent to the Maribyrnong River, 15 minutes by road from the central business district. Flemington was fairly rough and ready in the early days with no running rails or recognised course proper, however the Melbourne Cup quickly caught on as the race on the Australian Racing Calendar and a carnival boasting garden parties, gaiety and ladies showing off their latest finery. Cup Day was renowned for its carnival atmosphere with shooting galleries, lawn parties and social engagements predominantly engaged at the Flemington Racecourse.

It was the place to be seen for the social set, politicians and Australia's rich and famous as much in the early days as it is today. This reputation was assisted greatly by an enthusiastic committee of the Victoria Racing Club which was formed as an amalgamation of the Victoria Turf Club and the Victoria Jockey Club in 1864. The race gained popularity through the hard-working efforts of Robert Cooper Bagot, the first Secretary of the VRC and an inherent community passion for horse racing.

Melbourne was relatively young having been discovered in 1833 and, at the height of the Cup's inception, was experiencing the Gold Rush with many people flocking to Melbourne, and subsequently Bendigo and Ballarat, in the hope of a life changing experience. Gold diggers, who had found much of the gold within five metres of the surface, discovered fortunes which in turn sparked an immigration and development boom in Melbourne and the state of Victoria.

While the Cup was first run on a Thursday, the race is always run on the first Tuesday in November and was first run on a Tuesday in 1875 when Wollomai won the Cup. During this early period, Mr John Tait - a jeweller from Hobart, would make a strong impact as trainer of The Barb (1866), Glencoe (1868), The Pearl (1871) and The Quack (1872). He was considered the first trainer to run his training operation as a business. He mentored four time Cup winning trainer Walter Hickenbotham, who trained Carbine, one of the greats of all time.

By 1880, 100,000 people made the journey to Flemington to witness Grand Flaneur secure Australia's greatest race prize. With a Melbourne population of only 290,000, this attendance was quite phenomenal. These were flourishing times for Melbourne as the city continued to grow post gold rush period. Melbourne was alive and seen as fast and furious compared to its more subdued rivals in Sydney. There was strong building development with many other services emerging.

the arrival of carbine

The stock market crash of the 1890s rocked the confidence of many, however this era was greeted also by the emergence of Carbine, one of the grandest racehorses to grace the Australian turf. He would set a weight carrying record of 10 stone 5 pounds in the Cup and be revered as a sign of strength and courage at a time when nearly one third of the Melbourne workforce lost their jobs.

He was owned by the once wealthy Donald Wallace who was a founding partner of the Broken Hill Mining Company, but was later sold to England after Wallace fell on hard times. Carbine stood at the Duke of Portland's Welbeck Abbey and proved most successful. This was not an easy departure as thousands lined the port docks to see the champion son of Musket head off to his new home. Bred in New Zealand, he would find himself in the pedigrees of many a Melbourne Cup winner over the next 50 years. As a sign of the times, there was no trophy presented at the Melbourne Cup between 1894 and 1898 as Melbourne continued to face what were grim and dark financial times.

The twentieth century was welcomed in with Melbourne Cup victory going to Clean Sweep and by Federation in 1901, a new era was about to unfold in Australian turf history. This was an era which saw the likes of Walter Hickenbotham (1888, 1890, 1896 and 1905) continue to shine as a leading trainer, the emergence of a young James Scobie who would also train four Cup winners (1900, 1922, 1923 and 1927) and the arrival of Bobbie Lewis who would ride in 33 Melbourne Cups for four wins, four seconds and one third. This record would only be equalled by Harry White who rode four Cup winners in 1974, 1975, 1978 and 1979.

In 1903, Lord Cardigan would stamp his authority as a great stayer winning the Melbourne Cup, however it would be the grand mare Wakeful who ran second that would capture the hearts and minds of the adoring public. With a weight carrying record of 10 stone for a mare, Wakeful would be beaten in the shadows of the post by ¾ of a length. The winner would be in receipt of 3 stone four pounds of the second placegetter yet, in defeat, Wakeful was unusually portrayed as a winner.

Poseidon won the 1906 Melbourne Cup for trainer Ike Earnshaw, etching his name as the only horse to win the Caulfield Cup, Melbourne Cup, AJC and VRC Derby in the one season. In 1910, leviathan bookmaker Sol Green would win the Melbourne Cup with the first imported horse in Comedy King. The colt foal would travel by ship to Australia with his mother Tragedy Queen and not only win Australia's great race yet sire no less than two other Melbourne Cup winners in Artilleryman (1919) and King Ingoda (1922). His half sister, Jubilee Queen, would produce the 1921 Cup winner in Sister Olive.

Leading up to 1914, Melbourne was recovering financially yet would brace itself for World War I where nearly 120,000 Australians would lose their lives. The War would continue until 1918.

In 1915 Patrobas and Mrs Edna Widdis would signify the first female owner of the Melbourne Cup. In 1916 rain postponed the Cup for five days yet this would see the first gold cup presented to the winning owner. In 1919 the first three handled "Loving Cup" was presented to the connections of Artilleryman and soon this design would become an iconic symbol in Australian sport throughout the country. This was The Cup which everyone wanted to win.

phar lap becomes household name

A new grandstand was built at Flemington in 1924 and by 1930 the name of Phar Lap was ensconced in the Australian vernacular and arguably acclaimed as the best race-horse in the world. At least he was the best in Australia since Carbine (1890). Coincidentally, it would be the inclusion of Carbine in Phar Lap's pedigree which lured a battling trainer, Harry Telford, to bid 160 guineas for the plain looking chestnut at the 1928 Trentham, New Zealand Sales. This was the era of the Great Depression when half the work force were forced into unemployment. These were hard times and the emergence of Phar Lap was as much a counter punch to a stagnate economy as it was a sign of a truly amazing racehorse. He became an Australian symbol for hope, dreams and prosperity.

To put it in perspective, many people would take to the track when Phar Lap raced and bet what little money they had on the "Red Terror". For those who could not afford to lose, the prospect of better than bank interest exceeded the risks that came with it. Phar Lap would start the 11/8 on favourite in the 1930 Melbourne Cup - the shortest priced winner in the 145 year history of the Cup. The ease with which he won justified the price.

Phar Lap had already escaped death prior to the 1930 Cup when he was shot at by gangsters, however his death in 1932 in Menlo Park, California would rock the social fabric of a fragile Australian community. Days before, he won the richest race in the world. Days later, Australia's greatest ever living racehorse was dead. The mystery surrounding his sudden death still unearths new theories, even today, sixty two years later.

In 1931, the first on-course totalisator emerged at a Melbourne Cup and Peter Pan would win the first of his two Cup victories starting in 1932. His second was in 1934 recording one of the great Melbourne Cup victories after tracking wide and having to carry the impost of 9 stone 10 pounds. He was trained by the "Prince of Trainers" in Frank McGrath, who would record three cup victories. He would be known as a noted survivor of an infamous race fall when seventeen horses fell entering the straight in the 1885 Caulfield Cup won by Grace Darling. McGrath was lucky to be alive.

In 1939 the battling Harry Bamber would provide hope for all dreamers around the country when his mare Rivette won both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups double. Modestly bred and in the hands of a trainer who was down to his last dollar, Rivette became the first mare to win the Cups double and set his trainer up for life. This feat would be repeated by Let's Elope (1991) and Ethereal (2001) in later years.

The 1940s saw the arrival and dominance of jockeys Billy Cook (1941 & 1945) and Darby Munro (1944 & 1946) as well as the amazing riding performance of fifteen year old Ray Neville (1948) who, with only nine previous rides, would claim a controversial photo finish on Rimfire. The photo finish was first introduced to Flemington race-meetings in 1946 and as this was the first Cup decided by the camera, struck immediate controversy with many declaring the camera was set on the wrong angle. This theory was vehemently denied by administrators at the time.

a new dawn in cup history

1950 marked a new dawn in Melbourne Cup history as Adelaide trainer Jim Cummings would win the Cup with Comic Court. Strapping for his father that day was a youthful Bart Cummings who realised, at that point, he was destined to make an impact on Australia's greatest race. As trainer of no fewer than 11 Cup winners including five quinellas, Bart Cummings has left an indelible print on Melbourne Cup history. As a breeder, owner and trainer of Cup winners and still a leading Sydney based trainer one feels he still has time to add to this tally.

In 1954 the amazing Rising Fast would sweep all before him when he broke many records in winning the Caulfield Cup, Cox Plate and Melbourne Cup in the one year. He is the last horse to do this.

Toparoa (1955) would provide Tommy Smith with his first of two Melbourne Cups yet he was denied victory in 1957 when owner, Mr E.A Haley, decided not to run his champion 3YO Tulloch in the Melbourne Cup. Up until his death in 1998, Smith claimed he would have been the greatest certainty in the Cup if his owner elected to run. Facing a forthright media who lobbied to have the horse withdrawn on grounds of "fairness to the horse", a frail Mr Haley weakened to pressure and withdrew the 3YO from final declarations. After Prince Darius finished ¾ length second in the Cup to Straight Draw (1957), Smith was convinced a Cup went beckoning. Prince Darius had been beaten by Tulloch the Saturday before in the Derby by 8 lengths!

The Centenary Cup of 1960 saw the New Zealander, Hi Jinx, beat all comers and, in 1962, Even Stevens not only landed some of the biggest wagers in Cup history when he took out the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups double, but saw the first of the New Zealanders fly directly into Melbourne from New Zealand.

The 1965 Melbourne Cup offered connections a healthy $62,000 in prize-money and was just prior to decimal currency being introduced. This Cup saw the emergence of Bart Cummings as he would land the quinella with Light Fingers and Ziema. It also saw the arrival of a freshly faced Roy Higgins who, at 22, would win the coveted prize after returning from an unsuccessful riding stint in Europe. This was the start of a long and successful partnership between Cummings and Higgins which netted another Cup winner for the combination in 1967 (Red Handed).

Mick Robins surely holds the record for the most inexperienced trainer to win the Melbourne Cup. After only taking out a licence four months before the race, he trained Rain Lover to victory in 1968 and then backed up with the same horse in 1969 to become only the third horse to win two Melbourne Cups. Think Big would join this elite group in 1974-75. Robins was foreman for Graeme Heagney, who had elected to take up a training opportunity overseas at the time. Heagney recommended Robins train the horse and to his credit was equal to the task training Rain Lover to two Cup wins, the first of which was by 8 lengths.

Rain Lover also highlighted the efforts of the bothers Malcolm and Clifford Reid who owned four Cups between them. Clifford, who owned Rain Lover (1968-69), also owned Rainbird (1945) and Malcolm owned 1963 winner, Gatum Gatum.

new zealanders continue to dominate

The 1970s continued the dominance of New Zealand bred horses with five out of the ten winners in this decade bred in the Shaky Isles. In 1972 the metric system was introduced and for the first time the Cup was run over the 3200 metres, marginally less than the traditional two mile measurement. One of the wettest Cups on record was recorded in 1976 when Bob Skelton guided Van Der Hum through the slush at Flemington. Visibility was so poor race-callers could not pick up final runners until the closing stages of the race. Some patrons were aptly attired in snorkel and flippers and seen swimming along the lawns at Flemington as the heavens opened like never before.

Beldale Ball (1980) was the first of the modern day overseas horses to win the Cup. Owned by pools millionaire Robert Sangster and his then wife, Susan, Beldale Ball was formerly trained in Europe and exported to Australia destined for a Cups campaign. Ridden by dual cup winning jockey, John Letts, Beldale Ball was the first Cup victory for the Hayes training dynasty which would net three Cup winners. Colin - or C.S as he was known - won in 1980 and 1986 (At Talaq) and son David Hayes in 1994 (Jeune).

Master Caulfield trainer, Geoff Murphy would win the 1982 Melbourne Cup with Gurner's Lane promoting the advent of racing syndicates where the William Street No.2 Syndicate offered many people the chance to race a subsequent Caulfield and Melbourne Cup winner. This victory would deny modern day champion Kingston Town Cup glory when in the shadows of the post Gurner's Lane got up by a long neck. Like many Melbourne Cups before, it was a case of what might have been, as jockey Malcolm Johnson admitted to taking off too early on one of the true greats of the turf.

For sheer amazement Kiwi's victory in 1983 had to be seen to be believed. After trailing most runners into the long Flemington straight, Kiwi - ridden by a youthful Jim Cassidy - produced a devastating run to beat all comers to the line. His trainer Snowy Lupton from New Zealand openly admitted he used Kiwi to "round up the sheep" when the horse was out spelling. At least he stayed fit.

first million dollar cup

Black Knight (1984) provided legendary trainer, George Hanlon with his third Melbourne Cup victory and in 1985 a Royal Visit to Flemington by The Prince and Princess of Wales saw the first million dollar cup run. Under overcast conditions, a young Victorian in John Meagher would train the Cup winner in What A Nuisance which in turn provided owner Lloyd Williams with his second Cup victory. A prolific owner of racehorses in the modern era, Williams would also part own 1981 winner in Just A Dash and have many Cup runners through the eighties and nineties.

At Talaq (1986) would provide Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum with his first victory in the race and Empire Rose typified determination in 1988 as in the previous year she would go down by a narrow margin when second to Kensei. With the likes of Sheikh Hamdan adding to a growing list of prominent international owners eyeing the lucrative Cup prize, the Melbourne Cup was well on the way to becoming an international event.

By the late eighties prizemoney continued to rise and with it brought fresh young faces on the Melbourne Cup landscape. Shane Dye, the confident and sometimes cocky New Zealand jockey and Lee Freedman, who depicts the image of a media savvy and educated trainer, would combine to win the 1989 Cup with Tawrrific.

Freedman would quickly etch his name as a trainer of some repute winning a further four Melbourne Cups with Subzero (1992), Doriemus (1995) and Makybe Diva (2004 and 2005) and be inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame at the young age of 46 years. Interestingly, Freedman is a relation of Midge McLachlan who rode the Cup winners in 1909, 1910 and 1917. Shane Dye would be listed as one of the more daring modern day riders who would never doubt his own ability - at least not in public.

a cummings resurgence

While the Cup started to move more firmly into the sights of the younger brigade, a man seemingly forgotten in the 1980s burst back onto the scene at the start of the 1990 season. Bart Cummings, who had broken all records before him, was on the rise again and produced Kingston Rule to win the Melbourne Cup in 1990. Owned by wealthy merchant banker, David Hains, Kingston Rule would record the fastest time in Cup history with 3:16.3 and also provide jockey Darren Beadman with the first of his two Cup victories. He would also ride Saintly to victory for Cummings in 1996.

Bart Cummings trained Let's Elope to win both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups in 1991 and by this stage Cummings was training the best in his career. Before the decade was out he would add Saintly (1996) and Rogan Josh (1999) to the list. With 11 Cup victories to his name, if anyone could rightly be called the Cups King, it was James Bartholomew Cummings.

In honour of his achievements the VRC commissioned a bronzed statue of the outstanding trainer, which is now positioned in the "Birdcage Area" at Flemington. The club also presented Cummings with his own replica of the Cup, usually privileged to the owners, in honour of his tenth Cup victory.

The 14½ inch high "Loving Cup" is presented to the owners of each Cup winner and a 2/3 height miniature is presented to the jockey and trainer. In 2000 the gold content of the owners' Melbourne Cup trophy was increased to 18 carat and by 2005 the value of the gold cup trophy had escalated to $80,000. 2003 was also the inaugural year in which the VRC introduced the Melbourne Cup Tour whereby the Cup trophy journeyed to over 20 destinations around Australia covering 15,000 kilometres in the process. This opportunity of taking "the people's Cup" back to the people was an overwhelming success with further tours planned for New Zealand, England and Ireland in the coming years.

internationalisation of the cup

If there was ever a turning point in the history of the Melbourne Cup then no doubt it was 1993. For the first time in the history of the race, the winner was trained off a European preparation. Vintage Crop, who would provide the first Cup victory for astute Irish trainer Dermot Weld, would ignite a new enthusiasm for the 3200 metre event. The Cup was no longer an Australian horse race, it was an international event providing a fitting challenge for the world's most noted trainers.

It was at this time that the Melbourne Cup Carnival reached new heights. Attendances continued to climb, overseas media interest grew and by 2000, the Cup attendance would reach the highest in its history with 121, 015 recorded on the day. With Derby Day and Oaks Day also reaching the 100,000 crowd figure, it is no wonder that the Melbourne Cup Carnival was once again touted as the greatest racing carnival in the world.

One reflects on the carefully chosen words of the great Mark Twain who was heard to say almost one hundred years earlier, "No where in my travels have I encountered a festival of the people that has such a magnetic appeal to a whole nation. The Cup astonishes me!" In light of the ongoing development of the Cup, one feels that this is still the case today.

first female trainer

With the victory of Ethereal in 2001, Sheila Laxon became the first woman to train a winner of the Melbourne Cup. The media friendly Laxon, whose former husband Laurie Laxon trained Empire Rose to win in 1988, would set a new bench mark for women in racing. As the Cup now boasts a female Cup victory for owner and trainer, the Cup only waits on the first female jockey to take out the Cup. One suspects that will not be too far away.

In 2002, jockey Damien Oliver carried the hearts of all Australians as he secured his second Cup winner only seven days after his brother Jason died tragically in a track accident in Perth. Oliver relinquished several lucrative rides at the Derby Day meeting three days earlier and many thought he would step down from his Cup Day mounts. But in the spirit and legend with which the race has become associated with, Oliver rode the race of his life winning aboard Media Puzzle. This was one of those unique occasions where you'd swear history had a predetermined course. Oliver would bury his brother 24 hours later in Perth. Tragically both Damien and Jason's father also died in a race fall back in the 1970s.

The latest chapter in the Cup's history is no less enthralling with Glen Boss and David Hall combining for Cup victory with Makybe Diva. An import of sorts as the Desert King filly failed to sell at the yearling sales in England, her owner Tony Santic is a wealthy tuna fisherman from Port Lincoln, South Australia. Jockey, Glen Boss, would write his own history as only 16 months earlier he broke his neck in a race fall in Hong Kong. He was millimetres away from becoming a paraplegic. David Hall would add to his family history with the race as his cousin, Greg Hall, rode Subzero to victory in 1992. Glen Boss would repeat the performance in 2004 and again in 2005 when Makybe Diva would become only horse to win three Melbourne Cups. Carrying 55.5kgs in 2004, she created a new weight carrying record for a mare in the race and surpassed that yet again in 2005 when she carried 58kg.

In 2006 Delta Blues became the first Japanese trained horse to win the Melbourne Cup opening a new front of competition for the coveted handicap event. Ridden by Yasunari Iwata, Delta Blues defeated stable-mate Pop Rock (Damien Oliver). Both horses were trained by Katsuhiko Sumii.

The Cup continues to capture the imagination of an adoring public. It continues to become the one race which every jockey, trainer and owner wants to win. It is a race built on aspiration and inadvertently provides inspiration to so many who feel the challenges of life are grand. It started off as a "good handicapper's" race yet quickly evolved to be one of the most sought after horse races in the world. It is the race that stops the nation and the jewel in the crown on the Australian racing calendar.

In 2007 Efficient became only the sixth grey horse to win the Cup in the 147 year history of the race and the first horse since Phar Lap to win the VRC Derby - Cup double within twelve months.

Bart Cummings celebrated the 50th anniversary of his first Melbourne Cup runner (Asian Court, 12th in 1958) by producing Cup winner number 12 with Viewed. Fittingly, it was also Cummings' 250th Group 1 winner.

Viewed, ridden by Blake Shinn, scored by the barest of margins from Bauer, trained by Luca Cumani, who was also second the previous year with Purple Moon.

The win by Viewed saw owner Dato Chin Nam become the first owner to win the Cup four times, having been successful previously with Think Big (1974, 75) and Saintly in 1996.