The Kosciuszko Tips, Betting, Odds, Horses & More 2024

The Kosciuszko is an annual horse racing event held at the Randwick Racecourse in Sydney. It is a relatively new event, having been first held in 2018, and is named after Mount Kosciuszko, the highest mountain in Australia. The race follows a similar format to that of The Everest, which is run on the same day but focuses on country-trained horses.

The Kosciuszko race is a 1,200m race under set weights and penalties, exclusively for New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory country-trained horses. The race is in fact the world's richest race for country-trained racehorses with a prize purse of $2 million. 

While it is not a Group 1 race, the prize money always ensures we see some of the best country-trained horses. It is an excellent incentive introduced by Racing NSW to shine a light on horses that the average enthusiast wouldn’t necessarily have seen before.

The field now features 14 runners after being increased from 12 runners in 2019 and each position in the race is held by a slot owner. The public can purchase tickets in The Kosciuszko to become a slot holder. If you are lucky enough to hold one of the winning tickets, you can choose a runner from the pool of nominated horses. 

The Kosciuszko has quickly become a popular event on the Australian racing calendar, with large crowds attending the race day and many people participating in the ballot to purchase a slot in the race. The event is seen as a way to promote and support country racing in Australia and to allow country-trained horses to compete at the highest level.

The Everest Day is a really important date in the NSW Spring Carnival in Sydney schedule and will feature several supporting races on the 10-race card. Many people love this day and even if they can’t make it to one of the top tracks in the country, Randwick Racecourse, they will catch the race live.

OnlyRacing.com.au will cover all the important details you need to know about The Kosciuszko. From horse racing betting to more general information about the field, we’ve got every aspect of The Kosciuszko covered and we will update this page multiple times a year, so you always have the most up-to-date information!

The prize money for the Kosciuszko is impressive for this type of race, with $1 million going to the winner. Some of the runners would have never seen this type of prize money before, so it’s a really big deal! Check out the full breakdown of prize money for The Kosciuszko below:

The OnlyRacing team live and breathes horse racing tips. It’s that simple. Horse racing tips are our biggest assets and the thing we focus on the most. We enjoy providing the best tips going around to our loyal readers. We tip all the key races on the calendar as well as general weekly tips, so there’s always something happening here.

Our experts are chomping at the bit to provide their The Kosciuszko tips, but as we don’t know which runners will be filling the 14 slots just yet, we are holding off. During race week, when more information is 100% confirmed about the runners that will take part in the race, our experts will get cracking with their tips. 

Each year, our experts provide three tips for The Kosciuszko, their best bet, next best and best roughie. While you’re here, check out what they put together for The Kosciuszko in 2023:

The Kosciuszko Best Bet - Opal Ridge

I’m certainly picking up what the favourite, Opal Ridge, is putting down. It’s a competitive edition of the race, but I’m sticking with my guns and tipping Opal Ridge as my best bet. The mare’s fresh record is solid and we haven’t seen her since the Tattersalls Tiara, where she ran fifth.

She could have gone into The Everest with a better run in that race, but instead, she lines up in The Kosciuszko, which is a step back in class. I love that she’s drawn an inside gate and I think it will be difficult for anyone else to keep up with her in the closing stages. With odds of $2.80, it isn’t the juiciest, but it’s better than a poke in the eye! 

The Kosciuszko Next Best - Far Too Easy

At odds of $7.50, I’ll be having something on Far Too Easy, to at least place. It’s pretty clear that The Kosciuszko has been Far Too Easy’s target and I think he is on track to give this one a red-hot crack, which is why I’ve got him down as my next best. 

Far Too Easy does his best work during the early stages of his prep, so I’m excited to see if he can go bang here. He is always there or thereabouts in the closing stages and you can never really write him off. Can his amble ability turn into a race win? Maybe! And with seven wins from 17 starts, I think there’s a decent enough chance!

The Kosciuszko Best Roughie - Mogo Magic

Okay, so not a massive roughie, probably not technically even a roughie at all, but I just couldn’t have a set of tips for The Kosciuszko that didn’t include Mogo Magic, who is currently listed at odds of $7.00. I’m a little surprised at the price though, I thought he would be a little shorter than what’s on offer, but I’ll take it!

He is yet to lose a race, or even a trial, in his entire career! It’s not only that he is winning, but the way he is winning as well, often gapping the rest of the field for easy victories. He wouldn’t even need luck on his side to win this, he has enough class to overcome anything and take the cake come Saturday.

Our tips for The Kosciuszko in 2024 will be available during race week. Don’t forget to check back in with us then!

When it comes to The Kosciuszko betting there are some simple strategies you can use to decipher the complex world of picking a bookie. At the end of the day, it comes down to two important things:

1. Firstly, which bookie is going to offer you the best value for betting with them on feature races such as The Kosciuszko race, bonus bets may come into play here. 
2. Secondly, which are your preferred markets or bets that you wish to place on the race.

So you are trying to extract the most profit from your bets, if there are bonus bets on win odds for runners coming second, third, or even fourth, then you have some additional cover. This could be worth exploring with the compromise of possibly lower odds being available from those Australian betting sites.

Compare the odds for your picks across as many available Australian bookmakers as you can. For reference, we have a bookmaker review page that includes a pros and cons list of all the best betting apps and websites that offer racing markets. 

Additionally, our bookmaker reviews feature in-depth reviews of specific bookmakers that we care to highlight. Some of these bookmakers include PlayUp, PalmerBet and Unibet. Be sure to click on any of these bookmakers to visit their full bookmaker reviews.

Bet on whichever available Australian bookmaker offers you the best price for your preferred bets on races. The more options you look into, the longer the process will take. So, it’s important to consider how much time you are willing to put into this process.

Another option is to simply bet with whichever bookie you are used to, or rather, most comfortable with. They may or may not offer the best odds, but it is a bookmaker that you know well and you can easily navigate their webpages to place bets.

Betting sites bonuses also come into play here. Each bookie will offer different bonuses and betting promotions, so it can pay to shop around to see if you can pick up some extra value. There might even be specific promotions for The Kosciuszko, so keep your eyes peeled!

The Kosciuszko field is formed a little differently to your typical race. It follows the same format as The Everest, which means there are 14 slots for the race and everyday Australians can purchase tickets to go into the running to be a slot holder. If you’re one of the lucky Aussies, you can choose from a pool of different runners.

We will provide details on which runners will take part in The Kosciuszko field during race week. If you’d like to gain some insight into which runners may take part in the field, you should check out the odds for the race. If available, you’ll see which runners are currently more favoured in the market. 

We can’t provide information on which runners will take part in The Kosciuszko for 2024, but you can check out the table below, which lists the entire 2023 field:

For The Kosciuszko in 2023, we saw a field of 14 confirmed for the race. There were also four emergencies for slot holders to choose from if the runner they originally chose got scratched. In the end, there weren’t any pre-race scratchings, so the original 14 runners took their place in the starting gates.

Scratchings happen a lot in horse racing, so it’s important to keep your eyes peeled. They can also happen at any time, usually without notice. There are several reasons why a runner may be scratched, from being dual accepted into two races on the same day to vet’s advice, but if the runner you bet on is scratched, you will get your stake back.

Along with scratchings, you should also look into the barrier draw. Each runner has a different race style and would prefer a certain barrier. On top of this, some barriers are more successful than others, so you should look at the history of barriers in the race, even though it’s a short history!

Checking out The Kosciuszko form guide is pretty important if you’re looking to bet on the race. Even for a race like The Kosciuszko that hasn’t been around for a long time, some patterns have started to emerge that you should look into. These patterns aren’t a 100% guarantee that you’ll nail down the winner, but they could certainly improve your chances.

There isn’t a lot of data to go through, but we’ve gone through it all and found some little nuggets of gold that you should be aware of. The key form indicators below are for your reading pleasure and something to think about when you’re choosing which runner to bet on for the next The Kosciuszko. Check out what we’ve found below!

Only NSW and ACT-trained horses can compete in The Kosciuszko, but the field will mainly consist of NSW-trained horses, as the current rules only allow for two ACT-trained runners. With the race taking place at Randwick, look for runners who have proven experience on the track. 

Out of the six winners of The Kosciuszko, only one mare has won the race, with the other five runners being geldings. The Kosciuszko is run under set weights and penalty conditions, with the more accomplished runners carrying more weight, which we have seen on five occasions, where 57kg or more was carried by the winner.

Investigating lead-up form is important as well, but it can be difficult for country-trained horses, as there are multiple different form lines to check. If a runner is competing at Saturday Metropolitan grade level, that is a fairly good indicator. 

The Country Championships Final is run under similar conditions, so a runner that competes well in that race could fit the mould for another good run in The Kosciuszko. In the six runnings of The Kosciuszko that we have seen so far, there have been two favourites to win, It’s Me in 2020 and then Art Cadeau in 2021.

The Kosciuszko is one of the newer races on the calendar and each year we see some of the best country-trained horses compete and win this race. With only a handful of editions of this race so far, we’ve chosen to talk about each and every winner of The Kosciuszko in this section!

We talk about all The Kosciuszko horses, the things they have accomplished in their career and more. While they may not be Group 1 level horses, they are still highly competitive and worthy of a section dedicated to them! Check out The Kosciuszko horses below:

Belflyer - 2018

Belflyer won the first-ever The Kosciuszko and at massive odds of $71! The gelding ended up winning over $1 million in prize money throughout his career, with the $1 million on offer for winning The Kosciuszko making up the majority of his earnings. He ended his career with a record of 58:14-6-8 and was unplaced in his one attempt at Group 2 level.

Handle the Truth - 2019

Handle the Truth has been a regular of The Kosciuszko, that’s for sure! He first tried his hand at The Kosciuszko in 2019, when he won the race. After that, he contested The Kosciuszko on three more occasions; in 2020 he came fourth, in 2021 he came second and in 2022 he came ninth. His best result to date is a third place in a Group 3 race.

It's Me - 2020

It’s Me was on a roll before taking out The Kosciuszko, winning three races in a row, before making it four with a victory in this race. The lightly-raced mare has only competed in nine races, for which she won five of them and she has almost $900K in prize money. She competed in two Group 2 races but was unplaced in both of them.

Art Cadeau - 2021

Art Cadeau is one of the country-trained horses that has won both the Country Championships Final along with The Kosciuszko. So far, he has a career record of 30:7-7-2 and over $1 million in prize money. When looking at Group racing, his best result so far has been third place in a Group 3.

Front Page - 2022 & 2023

Front Page is the first multiple-winner of The Kosciuszko, taking out the 2022 and 2023 editions of the race. He is the most successful out of all The Kosciuszko winners so far, with almost $3 million in prize money, he has placed at Group 1 level before, coming third in The Galaxy. For more information on The Galaxy, check out our Group One races list.

It’s always a good idea to check out The Kosciuszko odds with multiple bookies before placing any bets. You’ll notice that different bookies may have different odds for the same runner, which means you are leaving easy money on the table by not shopping around!

The first market that will open up for The Kosciuszko will be a Fixed Win and Place market. But, as we get closer to the event, more horse racing markets will open up, so no matter your preferred market, you’ll successfully be able to place your bets. 

However, at the time of writing, The Kosciuszko odds markets are not yet released. We will keep an eye on our favourite bookie, PlayUp and when their market is live on their site, we will get the odds up in this section as well. Remember, when the odds are released, they will be changing all the time, so if you see a good price, you should jump on!

Another good idea is to look into what stage the market is in. If you notice the Fixed Win and Place market is listed as “Before Noms”, this is a great time to bet on your chosen runner. 

This is because if your runner doesn’t end up making the final field, you’ll get your stake back. If you bet when the market is listed as “All-In” you won’t get this luxury.

Don’t forget to come back here closer to race day, as we will have all The Kosciuszko odds information you’ve been looking for when PlayUp releases their market!

The Kosciuszko is a fairly recently introduced race with a unique entry that requires owners, syndicates etc., to buy a race slot. This is one of the most interesting races on the racing calendar and it allows punters to see the current crop of best country-trained horses in Australia. 

The race has only been running since 2018, but we have already seen a multiple winner, with Front Page winning the 2022 and 2023 editions of The Kosciuszko. The Kosciuszko follows a similar format to The Everest, except this time, everyday Aussies can buy a ticket to go into the running to become a slot holder for the race!

If you are one of the lucky Aussies, you get to choose from a pool of country-trained runners and you’ll pocket at least 40% of whatever prize money your chosen runner brings in on the day. The Kosciuszko takes place on the same day as The Everest, which is run during Spring Racing Carnival, undoubtedly one of the biggest horse racing carnivals of the year.

There are some unique race conditions for The Kosciuszko. As we’ve already mentioned, the race is only available to NSW-trained horses, with a maximum of two ACT-trained horses allowed. Runners that have a BM rating of 110+ cannot compete, as well as runners who have won a Group 1, The Everest or The Golden Eagle in the last two years.

Each horse must have raced in at least one NSW-based event to be eligible and after the race, the runner must still be in the care of an eligible country trainer for 12 months. As well as this, each runner must legitimately be in the care of a country-based trainer.

So, do you want to know all the latest The Kosciuszko results? Well, you’ve come to the right place because we have the finishing order of the entire field, plus a full video replay, so you can easily relive all the action. Keep reading below to find out what went down in the most recent The Kosciuszko.

For The Kosciuszko in 2023, it was Front Page that successfully defended his crown, after winning the race in 2022 as well. It was a fairly comfortable victory for Front Page, who was first for a significant proportion of the race. Opal Ridge finished in second place, 1.8L off the pace.

Far Too Easy came from near the back of the field to finish in third place, 2.2L off Front Page. The Kosciuszko was run in a time of 1:08.04 in 2023 and there was a total of 24.11L that split the first and last runners. 

Take a look below to see where each runner finished in The Kosciuszko in 2023:

There’s no better time than the present to relive all the action by watching the full race replay of The Kosciuszko below:

The Kosciuszko hasn’t been around for as long as most of the other key races on the Australian calendar, but it has certainly already made a splash. Keep reading below to see every horse that has won The Kosciuszko:

Before you go, we’ve got one final section for you! We know people have lots of questions about The Kosciuszko and we’ve gone through them, finding all the most common ones. Check out our The Kosciuszko FAQs section below: