Share to ClassroomHorse Sold by King Wins Melbourne Cup
Point of Law, a horse that once belonged to King Charles, won the Melbourne Cup in Australia on Tuesday. It was only his sixth race. Jockey Ethan Brown rode him and moved to the front in the last 100 metres. A jockey is the person who rides a racehorse. The King sold the horse earlier this year. Brown was badly hurt in a fall in 2023, and he called the win "every jockey's dream".
The Melbourne Cup started in 1861 and is Australia's most famous race. The prize money is A$10.2 million. Horse racing is a very old sport. People raced horses in ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt, and it was part of the ancient Olympic Games. Today, the most common type is flat racing.
Many people bet money on horse races. Last year, people bet a record $382.5 million on the Melbourne Cup. But some people worry about the horses. In the United Kingdom, 186 horses died because of racing in 2019. This year, one horse, Asterix, could not run because a worker gave it medicine on race day, which is not allowed. Outside the course, protesters held signs saying "horse racing kills". A poll, or survey of opinions, found that only 9% of Australians are very interested in the race.
