Horseracing is a worldwide sporting event. In Australia, it is the Melbourne Cup as the big time thoroughbred horse racing event. In fact, this cup is known to be "the race that stops a nation". The horserace is mainly 3,200 meter length and opened for horses that are three year olds and above.
Not only is Melbourne Cup known for its popularity, but also because of the purse in every race. In fact, this event is the one providing the highest "two-mile" handicapping in the world.
For the last three years of this event, the total purse (money and trophy) was more than $6 million (in Australian dollars) with the 2012 event having total purse of Australian $ 6.2 million. This horse race is considered as a national icon.
The event is managed and overseen by the Victoria Racing Club and held regularly on the Flemington Racecourse that is located at Melbourne, Victoria. Every race is held on the first Tuesday of November at 3 pm. The event started way back in 1861 and started as two-mile race (that is approximately 3,218 meters). The distant was shortened to 3,200 meters because the country adopted the International System (metric system) in the 1970s. It was 1972 that the race used the 3,200 meters distant. In the history of the Melbourne Cup, it is Kingston Rule who holds the fastest time, which is 3 minutes and 16.3 seconds that he won in 1990.
For the 2012 edition of the Melbourne Cup with more than 105,000 audience, it was Green Moon and his jockey Brett Prebble who came away as the winners. The race horse is owned by Lloyd Williams and trained by Robert Hickmott. This was the fourth title for Williams as an owner. Green Moon won by a length to the runner up, Fiorente and one and a quarter length ahead of the third place Jakkalberry.
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