Longchamp Racecourse

Longchamp Racecourse is an important centre for thoroughbred racing in France, and hosts the final two French Classics of the French flat racing season, the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and the Grand Prix de Paris. The racecourse is built on the banks of the river Seine, on the Route des Tribunes in the Bois de Boulogne near Paris.

Longchamp racecourse is famous for its extensive racing facilities, with no less than 46 starting posts scattered amongst the interlacing tracks that make up the various courses. The Longchamp Racecourse’s most famous feature is the hill located on the course, which provides one of the most exhausting climbs in thoroughbred racing.

Longchamp Racecourse Layout

Longchamp Racecourse features three interlocking oval tracks covering distances ranging from 2150 metres to 2750 metres. The track also features a 1000 metre straight course. All the racetracks at Longchamp are right-handed.

Longchamp Racecourse Facilities

Longchamp Racecourse can accommodate up to 50,000 spectators, and offers world class grandstand viewing to racegoers. The racecourse also features a restaurant which offers panoramic views of the racetracks and surrounding countryside, parking for 5,000 vehicles, facilities for 7,000 members of the press, as well as various hospitality suites.

Longchamp Racecourse History

Racing at Longchamp Racecourse dates back to 1857 when the venue held its first thoroughbred race. This event attracted Emperor Napoleon III and an enormous crowd of well-heeled spectators, many of whom travelled from Paris to Longchamp by using yachts on the Seine River.

Over the next several decades the Longchamp Racecourse found a special place in the hearts of French racing fans, and more money was invested in developing racing infrastructure in the area and in setting up training facilities. During this period the racecourse was celebrated in paintings by several world-renowned artists, including Edouard Manet and Edgar Degas.

During the last century the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe emerged as the most prestigious race to be held annually at the Longchamp Racecourse. The event offers the biggest purse of any thoroughbred horse race in Europe, and attracts capacity crowds to this historic venue.