Curragh

directions

Flat turf:

Curragh Racecourse sits on the northern edge of the Curragh Plains in County Kildare, a huge sweep of open grassland that has been associated with horses for well over a thousand years. The name comes from the Irish Cuirreach, meaning “place of the running horse,” and that’s exactly what it has been throughout its history. Chariot racing was recorded here in early medieval times, match races between noblemen took place in the seventeenth century, and organised racing began in the 1720s. By the nineteenth century it had become the recognised home of Irish flat racing, reinforced by the Curragh of Kildare Act of 1868, which protected the plains for racing and training.

The track itself is a right‑handed, sweeping, horseshoe‑shaped circuit a little over two miles. It’s a proper galloping course with long, flowing bends and a demanding uphill finish that exposes anything lacking stamina. The straight five and six furlong course is used for the speed races, and the mile chute feeds into the main track for the Guineas. Horses need balance, rhythm and the ability to quicken off a long, sustained pace; it’s one of the fairest but most testing flat tracks in Europe.

All five Irish Classics are run here: the 2,000 and 1,000 Guineas in May, the Irish Derby in late June or early July, the Irish Oaks in July, and the Irish St Leger in September. Alongside them sit major Group 1 races such as the Phoenix Stakes, Moyglare Stud Stakes, Flying Five, Pretty Polly and Tattersalls Gold Cup. In total the Curragh stages just over twenty fixtures each season, from spring to late autumn, but every one of them feels significant because of the venue’s status.

The wider Curragh is also the centre of Ireland’s training landscape. More than a thousand acres of training grounds surround the racecourse, with turf gallops, peat gallops and several all‑weather surfaces. Many of Ireland’s leading trainers base their operations here, and the Old Vic woodchip gallop is one of the most famous training strips in the country.

The racecourse underwent a major redevelopment between 2017 and 2019, replacing the old grandstand with a modern structure that offers far better sightlines across the plains. Despite the upgrade, the Curragh still feels open and elemental, with the vast grassland stretching away behind the stands and the sense that racing here is part of a much older tradition.


Curragh Racecourse
The Curragh
Co. Kildare
R56 RR67
Ireland

Directions to stable yard

Runners & Entries at Curragh

	18Jul26 Early closer	0:00 Liverpool FC Foundation Scurry Handicap
		Sondad -
	13Sep26 Early closer	00:00 Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sale
		Homestead -
	26Sep26 Early closer	00:00 Goffs Million
		Midnight Curfew -

Winners at Curragh (1)