Sydney Carnival

The Sydney Carnival, or Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival, consists of a series of major horses staged at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse and Royal Randwick Racecourse, situated in the suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, over a six-week period in March and April each year. The Sydney Carnival includes 45 Group races and, at the last count, was worth $33 million in prize money.

At Rosehill Gardens, the highlight of the Sydney Carnival is Golden Slipper Day, which features the Golden Slipper, a Group 1 contest run over 1,200 metres or approximately 6 furlongs and open to two-year-old colts, fillies and geldings, plus four other Group 1 races. The Golden Slipper, alone, is worth $3.5 million in prize money, making it the most valuable race for juveniles run anywhere in the world.

At Royal Randwick, The Championships, billed as 'The Grand Finals of Australian Racing', are staged on the first and second Saturday in April. As the name suggests, The Championships feature twelve races over a variety of distances, open to different age groups and collectively worth over $21 million in prize money. Highlights of The Championships Day One incude the $3 million Doncaster Mile and the $2 million Australian Derby, while highlights of Day Two include the $4 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the $2 million Sydney Cup. In 2019, the incomparable racemare Winx was retired from racing after winning the Queen Elizabeth Stakes for the third year running.