Another day at the races has come to a close as the Derby Day celebrations wrap up in Melbourne.
Glamorous attendees of all ages arrived at Melbourne’s Flemington Racecourse on Saturday, with many following the event’s traditional black and white dress code.
Some decided to carry on the celebrations well into the evening, while others appeared to be all worn out, with some women seen heading home barefoot.
The racecourse was left littered with garbage after a day of festivities, with staff seen cleaning up the endless empty cups and cans as happy ticket holders slowly trickled out the exit.
Temperatures reached 26 degrees and many racegoers were seen waving fans on the grassy knolls in an attempt to quell the heat.
Across four days the 2024 Melbourne Cup Carnival will attract more than 260,000 racegoers beginning with the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday and continuing through to Champion Stakes Day on Saturday.
Derby Day’s history begins across the pond more than two centuries ago in 1787 when the Earl of Derby’s horse won the race while wearing black and white colours.
In 1910, King Edward died and in true Edwardian fashion racegoers swapped out their best clothes for black, the colour traditionally associated with mourning.