Summer Cup

THE Summer Cup is nearly as old as Johannesburg itself and has a rich and fascinating history. It was first run in 1887, a year after the dusty mining camp that was to become Johannesburg sprang up on the farm Turffontein following the discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand. The race is run at the Turffontein Racecourse over a distance of 10 furlongs or 2000m.

The Summer Cup is a Grade 1 race for 3-year-olds and older. It is a competitive handicap and it is held each year in November. The current purse for the race is R2 million. The Summer Cup is sponsored by SANSUI and in 2011 will be hosted by Gauteng.

DANCEWITHTHEDEVIL (Gavin Lerena) mows down her opposition to win the 2011 Sansui Summer Cup proudly hosted by Gauteng. The mare was bred and is owned and trained by St John Gray.

Summer Cup is over 100 years old

Summer Cup King Mike de Kock.

THE Summer Cup is nearly as old as Joburg and it's fitting the race is run at a venue that overlooks the city's landmark mine dumps.

These dumps form an integral part of the history of the Summer Cup. Well into the 1880s news about the discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand resulted in an influx of people desperately seeking fortune. They came from all walks of life in coaches and ox wagons, as well as on foot and horseback.

Johannesburg was then a bleak region dotted with the occasional marsh, but what those who settled had in common was that they were prepared to gamble their lives on the chance of making a quick fortune.

The first horseracing in Joburg took place in December 1886 and the inaugural Summer Cup was run the following year as the Johannesburg Handicap. The race was won by outsider Haco, a five-year-old trained by Mr Du Plessis and ridden by J Bundy. Second, the 13-8 favourite, finished fourth.

No one could have imagined that from its humble beginning the Summer Cup would become one of SA's most famous racing events. In its heyday the Summer Cup was the highlight of the Johannesburg feature-race season and one of the city's social events of the year.

But after Cape challenger King's Guard's victory in 1971, the name of the race was changed to accommodate a sponsor. As the years rolled by further changes to the name, conditions and date diminished the event's glitter and it eventually became the Champion Stakes, run in April. In 1999 horseracing and tote betting company Phumelela reintroduced the Summer Cup to the racing calendar in its traditional format.

Many famous horses have won down the years and they include Pamphlet (1917), Lenin (1940), Cuff Link (1963), Caradoc (1966) and Home Guard (1970).

One horse who really grabbed attention was Java, trained by Jack Butler. He pulled off a remarkable Summer Cup hat-trick from 1956 as a four-year-old before going on to claim the honours again the following two years.

Elevation was to repeat those exploits almost 20 years later. Trained by the inimitable George Azzie, the chestnut landed his first victory in 1972, when the race was run as the Holiday Inns for the first time. He went on to score again in 1973 before completing a fantastic hat-trick under a big weight in 1974.

Trainer Mike de Kock has won the race a record nine times with six of those victories coming since the race's reintroduction.

Year	Horse	Owner	Trainer	Jockey
1999	El Picha	Messrs Brian B Roux, TM Millard & A Swersky	GV Woodruff	R Hill
2000	Delta Form	Mr & Mrs MA Airey, Messrs WI Geary, OV Leibrandt, RJ Simpson & BB Sinclair	MF de Kock	G Figueroa
2001	Ingleside	Mr B Kantor	MF de Kock	K Shea
2002	Eventuail	Mr & Mrs L Jaffee	GV Woodruff	P Strydom
2003	Wolf Whistle	Mrs PM Sargent, MP Egan, HR Enderle, WW Fenner, PK Harris	MF de Kock	K Shea
2004	Tyson	Messrs MK Naidoo & R Pancham	ST Pettigrew	P Strydom
2005	Ilha Da Vitoria (BRZ)	Mrs M Slack	MF de Kock	W Marwing
2006	Malteme	Messrs MC Gerber, J Gerber, GL Blank, DI Catterall, MA Currie, GC Chamberlain & PG Joubert	A G Laird	B Smith
2007	Strategic News	Messrs CG Snyman, JJ Snyman, L Steyn, MG Gramenie, DL Cunha, & LL Cunha	D Cunha	G Schofield
2008	Rudra	Messrs Tony Moodley, P Bayvel, M F de Kock, M C Gerber and F Ladeira	MF de Kock	K Shea
2009	Aslan	Brooklyn Bullet Trust (Nom: Mr A J Joseph) and Mrs L M Leisher	S Tarry	F Coetzee
2010	Flirtation	Mr C and Mrs B A Livanos	MF de Kock	R Simons
2011	Dancewiththedevil	Mr St John D Gray	St John Gray	G Lerena

Event details: Joburg’s greatest horseracing event. The racing action starts in the day and continues into the night under floodlights. Five of the 10 races carded are feature races and many of South Africa’s top horses will be in action. There will be loads of entertainment between races and the Neo Africa Sound Experience powered by Sansui in the Entertainment Village will be a big winner!

History: The Summer Cup is nearly as old as Joburg. The first horserace in Johannesburg took place in December 1886 and the inaugural Summer Cup was run the following year. No one could have imagined that from its humble beginning in 1887, the Summer Cup would become one of South Africa’s most famous racing events. In the 1970s and ’80s various changes to the race diminished its glitter, but in 1999 horseracing and tote betting company Phumelela reintroduced the Summer Cup in its traditional format. Many famous horses have won the race down the years including Java and Elevation, who both won the race three years running.

Feature races:

• Sansui Summer Cup hosted by Gauteng (Grade 1) 2000m R2,000,000
• Dingaans (3-year-olds; Grade 2) 1600m R500,000
• Merchants (Grade 2) 1160m R450,000
• Fillies Mile (3-year-old fillies; Grade 3) 1600m R275,000
• Racing Association Handicap (Grade 3) 3200m R225,000

Betting: Bet with South African horseracing and tote betting company Phumelela at a TAB, by phone, online or via mobile.

FLIRTATION gives incomparable Mike de Kock his ninth Sansui Summer Cup win when she beats Mother Russia in 2010.