Colonial Downs is Virginia’s only pari-mutuel horse racetrack, and it’s located in New Kent County at Exit 214 off I-64. The track features a summer thoroughbred racing season, a fall harness racing season, and an ever growing year-round slate of special events.

 

 

Eighty percent of the summer thoroughbred races are held over the Secretariat Turf Course, which at 180 feet wide, is the widest grass surface of any track in North America. The 1¼ mile dirt track is the country’s second largest, next to Belmont’s. The large dirt track enables harness horses to pace or trot a one mile distance while encountering just one turn, the only track anywhere to offer this unique configuration.

 

 

 

The Virginia Derby is Colonial’s annual showcase event. The 2011 Virginia Derby is held July 16, the $600,000 Grade II event draws over 9,000 fans to the New Kent oval. Thoroughbred racing’s top three year old turf horses, along with the sport’s top jockeys and trainers compete 1¼ miles in the Virginia Derby. The $500,000 Grade II Colonial Turf Cup, a Derby prep race of sorts, is held on June 18, 2011.

 

 

 

Summer racing is held on Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from June 8 – July 31, 2011. Races begin at 5 PM during the week and Saturday, 1 PM on Sunday. A two-day “Racing to the Stars & Stripes” Festival is held on the 2nd and 3rd of July featuring horse racing, a patriotic concert and fireworks with racing starting at 5 PM on July 2nd and 3rd.

 

 

 

Fall harness races begin in September 17 and continue through November 5. Opening weekend festivities coincide with the New Kent County Fair, which also is held at Colonial Downs.

 

 

 

In mid-October, the country’s top trotters are invited to Colonial Downs to compete in the $40,000 Patriot Invitational and several weeks later, top Virginia-bred pacers and trotters compete in the annual $350,000 (est.) “Day of Champions” event.

 

Can’t make it to the track?

Colonial Downs has ten Off Track Betting (OTB) Centers in Virginia where fans can watch and wager live horse races year-round via satellite from around the country. Three OTBs are in Richmond (Our newest located inside Finn McCool's at the Innsbrook Shoppes), two are in Hampton Roads, another is in Alberta (45 minutes south of Petersburg on I-85), and three are in southwest Virginia — in Vinton, Martinsville and Scott County.

 

Source: http://www.colonialdowns.com

The Richmond Coliseum has offered quality entertainment to the Richmond Metropolitan area for over 30 years. The Coliseum averages 130 events annually with an average annual attendance of over 700,000 patrons!

Phone: (804) 780-4970
Fax: (804) 780-4606
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Administration Office Hours:
Monday-Friday 8:30am-5:30pm

Box Office Hours:
Monday-Friday 10:00am-5:00pm

Ticketmaster

Online sales: www.ticketmaster.com
By Phone: 1-800-745-3000
In Person:Ticketmaster Outlets

Group Sales

Phone: (804) 592-3401

 

Source: http://www.facebook.com/richmondcoliseumva and http://www.richmondcoliseum.net

 

The Richmond Flying Squirrels are a minor league baseball team in Richmond, Virginia, The team is a Double-A Affiliate of the San Francisco Giants and play at The Diamond.

 

 

Established in 1993, the Richmond Kickers have consistently been one of the most successful professional soccer clubs in America.  Over the past 18 seasons, Richmond has qualified for postseason play 16 times, and reached the title match in 2010 for the sixth time in the past nine campaigns, falling just short of the Championship title following a 2-1 loss to the Charleston Battery.  Richmond’s seven previous league Championship appearances (1995, 1996, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009) include winning the Premier League title in 1995, a shoot-out loss to Seattle in the USL First Division final in 2005 and taking the USL Second Division crown twice against Charlotte in 2006 and 2009.  The Kickers have claimed Organization of the Year honors on five occasions (1995, 2000, 2006, 2007, 2009) and have had 22 players progress from the Richmond Kickers into Major League Soccer.

USL PRO is the strongest, best operated and most sophisticated North American men’s professional soccer league below MLS, both on and off the field. Focused on franchise stability and longevity, USL PRO will feature an unprecedented six teams with more than a decade of operational experience in 2011, and more than 100 years of combined operational experience. It will also benefit from national television and online broadcast packages.

Today over 8,000 soccer players participate in programs sponsored by the Kickers and partner clubs, including Midlothian Youth Soccer League, Ashland Youth Soccer League, City of Richmond Parks and Rec., Goochland United Soccer Association and Little KICKS. The Kickers travel program consists of 64 teams and over 900 players who compete in the US Soccer Academy Program, Super Y-League, VCCL and ADSL.  The club was recently named as one of only 30 adidas Sports Marketing Clubs in the U.S. The club provides opportunities for all players of all abilities and unites soccer in the Central Virginia community.  Benefits include economy of scale, consistency of coaching philosophy, professional administrative and coaching staff expertise, positive role models for youth players and a clear pathway from youth to pro for aspiring young players.

Mission:
The mission of the Richmond Kickers is to grow the beautiful game of soccer through a successful soccer club that entertains, invites community participation, and inspires all.

Vision
To serve as the model for the future of American soccer
- Encompass all areas of soccer
- Involve as many members of community as possible

Values
 Golden Rule
 Integrity and sportsmanship in everything we do.

 Innovation
 Seeking continuous education to work smarter and more effectively.

 Excellence
 A competitive passion that inspires our people as well as our community.

 Teamwork
 Diverse people focused on our vision.

 Fun
 An exciting and challenging environment.

Source: www.richmondkickers.com

 

Richmond Raceway Complex is a sprawling, 1000- acre, multi-purpose facility that is home to Richmond International Raceway and one of the most versatile special events sites in the country. It has six permanent buildings with more than 160,000 square feet of exhibition and meeting space.

Our meeting facilities consist of five newly redesigned meeting rooms available for corporate retreats, catered affairs, receptions and other social events.  The Old Dominion Building is our newly remodeled 36,000 sq. ft. catering facility that can comfortably accommodate up to 1,500 people for a wide variety of events including wedding receptions and holiday parties. In addition, the Complex has three outdoor areas that can host anything from a small corporate picnic to a large outdoor festival.  The Horticulture Garden is a beautifully landscaped indoor/outdoor facility that can accommodate up to 1,000 people for corporate receptions and weddings. The facility also has a state of the art amphitheater with fixed seating and lawn that can accommodate 8,000 people as well as a 1,000 seat covered dirt arena.

One of the most unique special events venues in the Greater Richmond region is the Torque Club at the Richmond International Raceway, overlooking the racetrack. Seating for 300 with a view of the track makes the perfect corporate or social event setting. With drop down Audio Visual screens and themed bars the Torque Club can accommodate your seminar or reception.  Richmond Raceway Complex also offers free parking for show and event guests as well as an on-site catering service provided by Americrown.

Richmond Raiders
Professional Indoor Football Team

The Richmond Raiders are a professional indoor football team playing in the Southern Indoor Football League (SIFL) that will play its home games at the Richmond Coliseum in downtown Richmond, Virgina. Their season will run from March through June of each year and will provide economical family entertainment for all ages. The Richmond Raiders have hired former Oakland Raider and Super Bowl player Mike Siani as their head coach and look forward to an exciting season!

Source: Richmond Raiders Facebook Page

The Sports Backers own, manage or partner with 40 different sporting events in the Richmond region that draw nearly 328,000 attendees and help drive over $50 million in economic impact. These events and programs strengthen the local economy, provide health benefits to participants and make the region a better place to live. 

 

The Sports Backers organize some of the top events in the country. With a total of almost 40,000 participants, the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k presented by MARTIN’S is the 4th largest 10k in the nation and the SunTrust Richmond Marathon is the 27th largest marathon. The McDonald’s Half Marathon is the 49th largest half marathon in the country and the HCA Virginia 8k is the 12th largest 8k.

 

Sports Backers owned events:

 

• Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k presented by MARTIN’S
• SunTrust Richmond Marathon, McDonald’s Half Marathon, & HCA Virginia 8k
• Dominion Riverrock
• Anthem Stride Through Time
• Connects Federal Credit Union Corporate 4-Miler
• WhatIfCreditUnions.com Dragon Boat Festival
• Anthem Moonlight Ride
• Henricus Dauber Dash
• Cougar 7 v 7 Field Hockey Tournament
• East Coast Lax Fest
• Patrick Henry Half Marathon
• Maymont X-Country Festival
• Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen Hoopla 3 on 3

 

Among the organization’s other major programs are:

 

• Indoor Sports Tournament Center – The Sports Backers purchased $500,000 of portable sports flooring and related equipment to convert the Greater Richmond Convention Center into a sports tournament center.
• Bid On Events – The Sports Backers have bid on and successfully landed several events that have come to the region including the 2011 and 2012 USA Field Hockey National Indoor Tournament, the 2010 VHSL AAA State Outdoor Track and Field Championships, 2008 USATF National Junior Olympic Cross Country Championships, the 2008 USATF Men’s 10k National Championships, the 2008-2010 Duathlon National Championships, the 2008-2012 CAA Basketball Tournament.
• Sports Tourism Marketing Grants—The Sports Backers are providing grants for a total of $25,000 to area sports organizations to help expand the marketing of existing sports tourism events in our community.

The Sports Backers were named best sports commission in the country by the National Association of Sports Commissions (NASC) both in 2006 and 2009. Sports Backers is a 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit organization founded in October 1991 to build a more vibrant community through sports.

 

Source: http://www.sportsbackers.org