Seoul Racecourse Park

Directions
Seoul Racecourse Park is located next to Seoul Grand Park in the southern Seoul suburb of Gwacheon. To get there, take subway Line 4 to Seoul Racecourse Park station, leave by exit 2 and follow the crowd down the covered walkway to the track.

History
Gwacheon is Seoul Race Park’s third home. In the early part of the 20th century, races were held in Sinseol-dong near Dongdaemun. After the Korean War, a racetrack was constructed at Ttukseom on the north bank of the River Han, where Ttukseom Resort is currently located. Ttukseom was home to racing for 36 years, however, in 1988 the Olympic Games were held in Seoul and the Korea Racing Authority (KRA) was given the task of organising the Equestrian events. They purchased the site in Gwacheon and after the games, it was converted into a racetrack with the first race taking place in autumn 1989. The KRA’s website has a good section on the history of racing in Korea including a picture of the old Sinseol-dong race track and on the second floor of the Luckyville grandstand there is a small photo gallery showing the history of racing in Seoul.

The Track and Facilities
Races are held on an oval-shaped artificial track with a two furlong home straight. The track can accommodate around 80,000 people and has two main grandstands, the older “Happyville” near the winning line and the newer “Luckyville” which are joined together and cover the entire home straight. There is a “Foreigner’s Lounge” on the fourth floor of Luckyville which provides a great view over the entire course and has an information desk with English language race-cards and guides on how to bet. In the centre of the track there is a “family park” with pony rides, water slides etc. Entrance to the track is just 800 won. There are two self-service restaurants in the grandstands serving standard Korean food priced between 3000-6000 won. There are also numerous kiosks both inside and outside selling Korean lunchboxes, mandu, and general snacks and drinks. Alcohol is not allowed in the track and the buildings are all no-smoking. From May 2008 until August 2009, the Happyville grandstand is undergoing major interior remodelling which will result in closure of half of the grandstand during the work.

Races
There are usually 11-12 races every Saturday and Sunday plus the opportunity to bet on at least one race from Jeju or Busan. The majority of races are sprints with distances of between 1000 meters and 2300 meters. Highlights of the season include the Korean Derby in May, the Minister of Agriculture Cup in October, and the Grand Prix Race in December. See this page for a list of the top horses currently running at Seoul.

Form Guides
The English language form sheet available in the Foreigner’s Lounge is detailed enough to give a general idea of which is the best horse in the race, however, for those looking for more detailed guides plus “expert” predicitions, it is a good idea to buy one of the many form guides that are available both inside and outside the track. Although all in Korean, it is easy to work out which horses they predict and the layout of the card is exactly the same as that used in just about every country. There are two types of guide available. First are ones with names such as “Ace”, “Speed” and “New World” which cost 1000 won and have the day’s card with predictions for each race ,and second are the more detailed ones of which “Seoul Gyongma” is the most poular, costing 4000 won and with a lot more background information for serious punters. If you buy a form guide from one of the many sellers on the way out of the subway station, you are usually given a “signpen” to bet with. See this page for more information about how to bet.