I have found an older picture of something that I need to have in my blog, This is a wonderful area of my eternal Paris and we love it, I like to tell you about the hippodrome or racecourse of Longchamp in Paris dept/city no, 75 in the Île de France region of my belle France. Therefore, here is my take on the Hippodrome de Longchamp !! Hope you enjoy it as I.
A bit of history tell us that the Hippodrome de Longchamp is a horse racing field located in the Bois de Boulogne, It was built in 1857 on the Domaine de l’Abbaye Royale de Longchamp that was destroyed at the time of the French revolution, It all started under the pressure of the Duke of Morny, the Bois de Boulogne (see post) was chosen in 1853 to set up a racetrack. An imperial decree of August 1854 formalizes the choice of the site: the Plaine de Longchamp. On May 23, 1856, the city conceded it to the Société d’Encouragement. The hippodrome was inaugurated on Sunday April 27, 1857 in the presence of the Emperor Napoleon III, the Empress Eugenie and the Grand Duke Constantin. The winning horse of the first race is called Éclaireur. The Paris Grand Prix was created in 1863, the Ispahan Prize in 1873 and the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in 1920. Before the Great War or WWI, the Paris Grand Prix was the best -equipped horse race in the world, It was bombed in 1870 and 1943, Longchamp served as cattle park in 1914. The herds of oxen and sheep are brought together from the northern regions invaded by the enemy. For its part, the American Red Cross set up ambulances to receive the wounded. Finally still during the 1914-1918 war, Longchamp became an aviation camp, On the other hand, the interwar period is a kind of golden age,The original wooden and plaster stands, restored after the 1870 Franco-Prussian war, were replaced in 1904 by stone constructions. New forums were built between 1962 and 1964. The ancient stands of 1904 were not destroyed but moved to the southwest of the racetrack where they still remain in the extension of the new ones, The hippodrome closes its doors in the fall of 2015 to reopen them at the end of large renovations called “New Longchamp”, April 8, 2018. A new building of 160 meters is built, as well as a brasserie, a gastronomic restaurant prolonged with a roof terrace and a tavern, The Hippodrome de Longchamp covers 57 hectares between the Seine and the Bois de Boulogne ; its different tracks occupy 17 hectares: The Grande or large track (2,750 meters), The moyenne or average (2,500 meters), the Petite or small (2,150 meters), The nouvelle or new (1,400 meters), The ligne droite or straight line (1,000 meters). It has 46 different departures, course of 1,000 to 4,000 meters with an arrival line of 650 meters second post. From the top of the main tribune, it is possible to see the summit of the Eiffel Tower and the Tours of the Defense business district. (see posts).
Famous artists have painted Longchamp race scenes. Among them, Édouard Manet who paints the Les Courses à Longchamp or Longchamp races in 1867 or Edgar Degas with Chevaux de course à Longchamp or racing horses in Longchamp. In 1883, a statue of the gladiator horse produced by Isidore Bonheur in 1866 was at the entrance to the racetrack. The Pope John Paul II celebrates a solemn mass on August 23, 1997 in front of several hundred thousands of faithful on the occasion of the World Youth Days. The hippodrome is mentioned in Chapter 11 of Nana, novel by Émile Zola , and a stage of the comic strip A cowboy in Paris (2018) from the Lucky Luke series takes place
Longchamp has long been from 1921, a place anchored in the history of cycling for a very long time with in particular the Critérium des AS19. The race is won four times in Longchamp by Louison Bobet (1949, 1950, 1953, 1954), and also four times by Jacques Anquetil (1959, 1960, 1963 and 1965). A road reserved for bikes goes around the racetrack over a length of about 3,600 meters: the speed ring, The longchamp cycling ring is the most used “bike” segment in France.
The official France Galop on the racecourse of Longchamp : https://www.francegalop-live.com/en/racecourses/parislongchamp/
The Paris tourist office on the racecourse of Longchamp : https://parisjetaime.com/eng/culture/hippodrome-parislongchamp-p1448
There you go folks, a wonderful memory of my eternal Paris and belle France, I used to drive by every day when working in Suresnes, Just crossing over to be in Paris proper, The racetrack is wonderful, and worth the detour even in off race days, Again ,hope you enjoy the post on the Hippodrome de Lonchamp !! as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 