Grand Criterium
| Group 1 race | |
| Location |
Longchamp Racecourse Paris, France |
|---|---|
| Inaugurated | 1853 |
| Race type | Flat / Thoroughbred |
| Sponsor | Qatar |
| Website | france-galop.com |
| Race information | |
| Distance | 1,600 metres (1m) |
| Surface | Turf |
| Track | Right-handed |
| Qualification | Two-year-olds excluding geldings |
| Weight | 57 kg Allowances 1½ kg for fillies |
| Purse | €350,000 (2016) 1st: €199,990 |
The Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère, formerly the Grand Critérium, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to take place each year in early October.
It is France's oldest and most prestigious event for juvenile horses. It is the country's equal richest race for this age group, along with the Prix Morny. Each has a current purse of €350,000.
The event was established in 1853, and it was originally called the Grand Critérium. It was initially contested over 1,500 metres at Chantilly. It was transferred to Longchamp in 1857, and extended to 1,600 metres in 1864. It was not run in 1870, because of the Franco-Prussian War.
The race was abandoned throughout World War I, with no running from 1914 to 1918. A substitute event called the Critérium des Deux Ans was staged at Maisons-Laffitte in 1918.
The Grand Critérium was cancelled in 1939 and 1940, due to World War II. On the second occasion it was substituted by a race at Auteuil, again titled the Critérium des Deux Ans. It was held at Le Tremblay in 1943 and 1944.
The present system of race grading was introduced in 1971, and the Grand Critérium was classed at the highest level, Group 1. For a period it took place in mid-October. It was brought forward to the Saturday of Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe weekend in 1989, and returned to its previous schedule in 1995.
France Galop, the governing body of French horse racing, restructured its program of Group 1 juvenile races in 2001. The Grand Critérium was cut to 1,400 metres and moved to the same day as the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. The latter event is traditionally held on the first Sunday in October. In 2015 the distance was increased to 1,600 metres again.
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