Elitloppet

Elitloppet (literally: "The Elite Race") or Solvallas Internationella Elitlopp is an annual, invitational Group One harness event that has taken place at Solvalla Racetrack in Stockholm, Sweden, since 1952. The competition is regarded as one of the most prestigious international events in trotting. The winner is decided through two qualifying rounds and a subsequent final later the same day. Both the eliminations and the final are raced over the mile. The overall purse for the 2022 event was SEK11,350,000, equalling approximately US$1,073,000. In 2002 the Italian champion Varenne, (considered the strongest trotter of all time), took it in a world record time of 1:10.4 in the elimination and then bested that mark by winning the final in 1:10.2 – the fastest mile ever trotted around three turns. The fastest winning time in a final is 1:08.0, run by the French Horsy Dream in 2024. Elitloppet was part of the European Grand Circuit and is part of that circuit's successor, the UET Masters Series.