Sydney’s spring carnival will undergo an expansion in 2019 with Racing NSW and the Australian Turf Club announcing the launch of The Golden Eagle (1500m), a A$7.5 million race exclusively for four-year-olds.

It will become the third richest race on turf in the world behind fellow Sydney race The Everest (1200m) and France’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (2400m). The first instalment of the Golden Eagle is set to take place at Rosehill Gardens on November 2 next year.

An added feature to the race is its charitable element. The connections of each runner will nominate a charity that has been accredited with Racing NSW and that charity will receive 10 percent of the prizemoney won by their horse.

“The Golden Eagle is the first feature race on the Australian Racing Calendar exclusively for four-year-old horses,” Racing NSW Chairman Russell Balding said.

“We believe The Golden Eagle will be attractive in retaining our top three-year-olds to race on as four-year-olds and benefit the racing industry, underpinning the strength of racing in NSW and Australia more broadly.”

The Golden Eagle will also be the third leg of the new Golden Slam at Rosehill, with a A$5 million bonus offered to any horse that can win the Gr.1 Golden Slipper (1200m) at two, the Gr.1 Golden Rose (1400m) at three and The Golden Eagle (1500m) as a four-year-old.

“The Golden Eagle is an exciting development, which will bring together the best sprinter-milers of their generation at an age when they have fully matured,” ATC Chairman Matt McGrath said.

“We are excited by The Golden Eagle, which alongside Rosehill’s other great races in the Golden Slipper and Golden Rose, creates a Golden Slam that only champions can dream of.”

The Golden Eagle headlines changes to the program for spring racing in Sydney which will feature two new A$1 million races.

The Bondi Stakes (1600m), a race for three-year-olds, will be run at Randwick on October 26 next year, while The Golden Gift (1100m), a race for two-year-olds, will be run on November 9.