The Return of Royal Ascot

Royal Ascot is one of the most alluring racecourse events in Berkshire and it also seems like the most fashionable event in the London sporting calendar. It was established in 1711 by Queen Anne, who realized the potential for a racecourse at east riding out from Windsor Castle an “ideal for horses to gallop at full stretch.” The first meeting was taken place on August 11, 1711, with the first race “Her Majesty’s Plate” worth 100 Guineas and was an open invitation for any horse over 6 years of age.

For horse racing dedicated fans, Royal Ascot betting offers them a wide range of sites to choose from to participate in the entertaining event & enjoy. Now this race is attended by her Majesty Queen Elizabeth and members of the royal family. This race is famous for its dress code, Ladies’ Day, and also the race itself. The other well-known races are the Gold Cup, the Coronation Stakes, and the Diamond Jubilee Stakes.

Queen Anne’s Love for Horse Racing

Although it was a royal event from the beginning, it is only called Royal Ascot in June when Queen Anne attended this event, showing her deep love for horse racing. The Queen has also welcomed the significant success of the event at Royal Ascot for many years by owning winners including the Gold Cup in 2013.

Another famous day of this event is Ladies’ Day that happens on day three. The event it is an eye-catching and glamorous event that attracts the royal ladies towards the latest fashionable outfits. On this day, women are offered free or discounted tickets that were otherwise available to men.

Audience Restrictions in 2021

Under current lockdown restrictions, events are prohibited which means no large gatherings are allowed but with improving the situation the government has announced limited public gatherings according to director of racing Nick Smits words “it’s still an awaiting game for us” that means there is no plan to delay the event and it will start as scheduled the government has planned to remove the restriction on 21st June 2021 but the event is scheduled to take place a week before. Under the circumstances of covid-19, the world turned upside down that in June 2020, even the Queen could not attend the event. There were a handful of people in the field maintaining distance from each other. Parade of royals, the crowd of spectators in top hats was missing. Royal Ascot races took place in front of empty stands, while 300.000 spectators were allowed to attend. Only the horses and jockeys were there.

It is expected now about 2021 a smaller audience of a few thousand will be permitted to attend. Tickets are not on sale yet. There is a possibility that Ascot could be seen as lacking ambition this year due to the pandemic’s difficulties and restrictions. The fans could not be able to enjoy as much as in past years. But still, they are hoping for the best if the restrictions will be uplifted as the government has announced. Things have never been the same. Nations are still getting out of the dilemma of the pandemic but there is always a ray of hope as one can see last year Royal Ascot conducted in an isolated environment and this year optimism has emerged that the event will return to its glory days.