The Mystique of Sandown Racecourse

The Mystique of Sandown Racecourse

By Mari Sasshou
The Orchard
September 25, 2023

Sandown Racecourse is one of the four horse racing venues located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Built for the Victoria Amateur Turf Club, it is the only metropolitan racecourse built in the 20th century and was opened before a crowd of 52,000, in June 1965.

Sandown Racecourse is situated 25 kilometres from the Melbourne CBD on the Princes Highway in the suburb of Springvale in the City of Greater Dandenong.

The original course was a turfed oval shape, 1892 metres in circumference and 30 metres wide, with sweeping cambered turns and an uphill home straight of 407 metres.

With the increase in the number of overseas horses being attracted to the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival a Quarantine Centre was established at Sandown Racecourse and used for the first time in 1997.

The Sandown Racecourse also features a motor racing circuit on the outside of the racecourse, referred to as Sandown Raceway.

In October 2001, the Melbourne Racing Club commenced the redevelopment of Sandown Racecourse. This consisted of an additional 30 metre wide home turn and widening of the main straight from 30 to 45 metres, and widening of the turn out of the straight from 30 to 45 metres. This created two turf tracks. The course using the outer home turn and outside 30 metres in the main straight was named Sandown Hillside, and the course comprising the reconfigured inner home turn and full 45 metres wide straight was named Sandown Lakeside. The Lakeside course has a circumference of 1857 metres and a home straight of 407 metres and the Hillside course is 2087 metres in circumference with a home straight of 491 metres. Racing on the reconfigured tracks commenced on 25 January 2003 with the number of meeting hosted at Sandown being increased from 32 to 41 per season.

The Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival traditionally closes with the Sandown Carnival. This carnival features two meetings, Sandown Classic Day and Eclipse Stakes Day in November each year. The course can be reached in 40 minutes, from Flinders Street Station in the city via Sandown Park railway station on the Pakenham and the Cranbourne railway lines.