Excitement for the 98th Gazi Race takes place today

The Gazi Race, held for the 98th year in honor of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, will start at the Istanbul Veliefendi Hippodrome. Known as the derby of Turkish horse racing, a total of 22 thoroughbreds—17 colts and 5 fillies—will take to the track to compete for the trophy.

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Excitement for the 98th Gazi Race takes place today

The most special race in Turkish horse racing, Turkey's derby, the Gazi Race, will be run for the 98th time today. The race, which has been held since 1927 in honor of the Great Leader Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, will start at 17:15. A total of 22 horses will participate in the 2,400-meter turf track race, which three-year-old thoroughbred English horses can only run once in their racing careers.

The winner of this special race will earn its owner a prize of 13 million 500 thousand Turkish Lira. The second-place finisher will receive 5 million 400 thousand, the third 2 million 700 thousand, the fourth 1 million 350 thousand, and the fifth 675 thousand Turkish Lira. In addition to the first-place prize, the owner of the winning foal will receive a total of 20 million 967 thousand Turkish Lira, including registration fees, installments, and the owner's premium. If the owner is also the breeder of the foal, the prize will reach 24 million 848 thousand 250 Turkish Lira.

A TRADITION STARTING WITH NERİMAN

Emphasizing that horse racing is a social necessity for modern societies, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk issued an order in 1927 for the Gazi Race to be organized. The thoroughbred named Neriman, owned by Ali Muhiddin Hacıbekir and ridden by İhsan Atçı, won the first Gazi Race in 1927. Atatürk watched this race alongside İsmet İnönü. The first-place prize at the time was 2 thousand Turkish Lira. In later years, Presidents İsmet İnönü won with his horse 'Olgo', and Celal Bayar won with his horse 'Cap Gris Nez'.

THE RECORD BELONGS TO BOLD PILOT

The record for the most wins in the Gazi Race belongs to the legendary jockey Mümin Çılgın. Çılgın is the person who has won this race the most, with nine victories. The stable with the most wins in the Gazi is Eliyeşil, with 13 victories. The track record belongs to Bold Pilot. Bold Pilot's record, set in 1996 under the guidance of Halis Karataş with a time of 2.26.22, has yet to be broken. The record for consecutive wins belongs to Ahmet Çelik, who has won seven times and will take to the track today with the thoroughbred named Son of Cooger.

The thoroughbreds, their owners, and jockeys competing in the 98th Gazi Race are as follows:

1 - Blue Sunset - Gökhan Kocakaya

2 - Borrego - Hayrullah Doğan

3 - Cesur Ali - Ali Yıldız

4 - Countach - Ferit Yardımcı

5 - Dragon Flame - Akın Sözen

6 - Festival Fever - Mustafa Çiçek

7 - Iron Sky - Görkem Özçelik

8 - King Davut - Erhan Aktuğ

9 - Madras - Özcan Yıldırım

10 - Mr Baybars - Halis Karataş

11 - Ride the Lightning - Mehmet Kaya