The hippodrome is a sports and horse-breeding facility in Nizhny Novgorod whose history dates back to 1877. It has undergone several relocations, changes of ownership, and organizational transformations; since 1974 it has been located in Scherbinki at Gagarin Avenue, 234.[2][4]
History
In 1877, the Society of Horse-Racing Enthusiasts was established in Nizhny Novgorod, leasing a plot of land near the Arzamas road. Two unpaved tracks were laid there, each approximately one verst (1,067 m) in length with turns at the ends; races were held in droshkies. In 1878, the journal Konnozavodstvo published for the first time the results of trotting races in Nizhny Novgorod, held on July 23 of that year — this date is considered the founding date of the hippodrome.[2]
In 1894, the Society for the Encouragement of Trotting Horse Breeding was established, founding a new hippodrome on the Gordeyev meadows near the Nizhny Novgorod Yarmarka, where the All-Russian Exhibition took place in 1896. The track was unpaved, ellipsoidal, and approximately 1,450 meters long; two-story grandstands were built for spectators. In the early twentieth century, the surface of the racing track was treated with petroleum residues (about 400 tons) — no other track of this kind existed in Russia. At the same time, American-style sulkies on pneumatic tires came into use. The racing season lasted about two months and attracted horse breeders from Kazan, Moscow, and Penza.[2]
After the October Revolution, racing resumed on September 1, 1920, at the hippodrome of the provincial land administration — this was the first hippodrome to open in Soviet Russia (the Moscow one opened a year later, in 1921). Subsequently, the facility relocated several times: in 1938 it was moved to the settlement of Ratmanikha, in the early 1950s it opened in Leninsky District, and then moved to Scherbinki, where full-scale races on a 1,200-meter dirt track have been held since 1974. The horses are kept in six stables.[2]
The Soviet and post-Soviet period
In 1993, the federal state institution "State Stud Farm 'Nizhegorodskaya' with Hippodrome" (FSI GSF) was established on the basis of the hippodrome's assets. The institution administered 44 facilities: a hippodrome covering 265 hectares, a racing track 1.2 km long, a training track 1 km long, stables for 160 horses (at the time of liquidation — 20 GSF horses and 112 privately owned), as well as a land plot of 360 hectares in Nizhny Novgorod Region's Dalnekonstantinovsky District.[1]
In its final years of operation, the FSI virtually ceased performing its core functions, only occasionally hosting equestrian competitions, and earned income mainly from non-core activities — in particular, by leasing the tracks to extreme driving schools. In 2008, the regional authorities initiated the transfer of the hippodrome to regional ownership; however, the process was never completed because the FSI had no registered rights to the federal property.[1]
The 2011–2012 reorganization
On August 8, 2011, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree on the consolidation of the assets of 27 federal state stud farms under the Federal State Unitary Enterprise "Central Moscow Hippodrome," with its subsequent conversion into a joint-stock company with one hundred percent state participation. The process was scheduled for completion in May 2012, after which the regional hippodromes were to become branches of the newly created joint-stock company.[1]
As part of this process, liquidation proceedings were initiated at the FSI GSF "Nizhegorodskaya." The liquidation commission, formed by the territorial office of the Federal Agency for State Property Management in Nizhny Novgorod Region, was headed by the deputy head of the territorial office, Maxim Rabin; the powers of the institution's executive body were transferred to the commission. According to Anna Danchenko, deputy director of the consulting and valuation department at NAI Becar, investments of no less than 70 million dollars would be required for the hippodrome to function and develop successfully.[1]
Current Status
Following the reorganization, the racetrack continues to operate as a division of the Central Moscow Hippodrome. Every year during the summer season, traditional prizes are awarded, including the named prize "Land of Nizhny Novgorod," for which horses from various regions of the country have been invited to compete. The hippodrome also hosts students of the Nizhny Novgorod State Agricultural Academy for lectures and practical training. As of 2021, race days were held on Sundays from 12:00, with free admission.[2]
Sources
- Kommersant (Volga Region) — Horse Harness — Kommersant Nizhny Novgorod
- cmh.ru — Nizhny Novgorod Hippodrome
- mapy.com
- yandex.ru — Hippodromes in Nizhny Novgorod, hippodromes near me on the map — Yandex Maps