The Gold Cup at Ascot, the Ayr Gold Cup and the Cheltenham Gold Cup are all historic races dating back to the nineteenth century, although the latter pair have undergone significant changes, in terms of venue, distance and, in the case of the Cheltenham Gold Cup, code, since they were first established.
Strictly speaking, the Ayr Gold Cup, inaugurated in 1804, is the oldest of the trio, but was originally run over two miles at the former location of Ayr Racecourse, on the Belleisle Estate in the Seafield district of Ayr, south of the town centre. The Ayr Gold Cup did not become a handicap until 1855 and the distance was not shortened to six furlongs until Ayr Racecourse relocated to its current location, in the Craigie district of Ayr, in 1907.
By contrast, notwithstanding the evolution of Ascot Racecourse and Royal Ascot, which did not officially become known as such until 1911, the Gold Cup has continued in more or less the same form since its inauguration in 1807. The oldest surviving race at the Royal Meeting, the Gold Cup is still run over two and a half miles, as it always has been but, nowadays, is open to horses aged four years and upwards, rather than three years and upwards, as it was originally.
Last, but no means least, the Cheltenham Gold Cup, which is now the premier weight-for-age steeplechase in the National Hunt calendar, was inaugurated, as a Flat race, in 1819. Originally run over three miles, on Cleeve Hill – the highest point in the Cotswolds, on the northeastern edge of Cheltenham – the Cheltenham Gold Cup was established, in its current guise, on what is now the Old Course at Prestbury Park in 1924.