Author: admin

The 2020 Cheltenham Festival was one of the most controversial in recent years, not because of events on the racecourse, but because it was staged during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Cheltenham Gold Cup, for example, was witnessed by 68,500 on-course spectators on March 13, 2020, just ten days before then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced national lockdown measures in the United Kingdom, which legally came into force on March 26. Despite accusations that the Cheltenham Festival was a ‘super spreader’ incident, the Jockey Club, which owns Cheltenham Racecourse, insisted that the decision to proceed with the four-day event was in line with the unequivocal government guidance at the time.

Politics aside, the Prestbury Cup went, once again, to Ireland by a score of 17-10, with Easysland, saddled by David Cottin, providing a rare French-trained Festival winner in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase. Willie Mullins was leading trainer with seven winners and Paul Townend with five, but the Champion Hurdle, Queen Mother Champion Chase and Stayers’ Hurdle all went the way of British-trained horses, namely Epatante, trained by Nicky Henderson, Politologue, trained by Paul Nicholls, and Lisnagar Oscar, trained by Rebecca Curtis.

Fittingly, perhaps, the Cheltenham Gold Cup was won, for the second year running, by Al Boum Photo, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Paul Townend. Winner of the Savills Chase at Tramore on New Year’s Day, as he had been in 2018/19, the reigning champion was sent off 100/30 favourite for his title defence, but had to work significantly harder than he had the previous year. At the top of the hill, he disputed the lead, but was narrowly headed by Lostinthetranslation between the final two fences, before regaining the lead soon after the last. In the closing stages, he was all out to hold the challenge of 5/1 second favourite Santini, who stayed on well close home to get within a neck of the winner at the finishing line. Lostintranslation finished a valiant third, a further length and a quarter behind and just a neck in front of the fourth horse, Monalee.

The 2019 Cheltenham Festival provided brief respite for British trainers from the Irish onslaught, with the Prestbury Cup, for once, ending in a 14-14 draw. County Carlow trainer Willie Mullins was, nonetheless, leading trainer for the sixth time in his career with four winners, but Hampshire-born Nico de Boinville, who rode three winners, became the first Englishman to win the leading jockey award since Robert Thornton, back in 2007.

De Boinville won the Coral Cup, the Queen Mother Champion Chase and the Triumph Hurdle on William Henry, Altior and Pentland Hills, all trained by Nicky Henderson. Elsewhere, the Ryanair Chase and the Stayers’ Hurdle stayed at home, courtesy of Frodon, trained by Paul Nicholls, and Paisley Park, trained by Emma Lavelle, respectively. The Champion Hurdle, though, was won in impressive style by the ill-fated Espoir D’Allen, trained by Gavin Cromwell in County Meath, on what proved to be his last racecourse appearance.

In an effort to break his hoodoo in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, in which he had previously saddled the runner-up on no fewer than six occasions, Willie Mullins saddled four of the 16 runners. However, his challenge started badly when Kemboy, the best-fancied of his quartet, landed awkwardedly and unseated jockey Danny Mullins at the very first fence. Indeed, events took further turns for the worse throughout the first circuit; Bellshill, ridden by Ruby Walsh, made an appalling blunder at the fifth fence and, following further mistakes, was soon pulled up, while stable companion Invitation Only fell, fatally, when disputing the lead at the tenth fence.

Thus, Al Boum Photo, in the black and yellow colours of Joe and Marie Donnelly, was the only Mullins-trained runner left in the race after halfway. Nevertheless, the seven-year-old led turning for home and stayed on strongly from the final fence to beat Anibale Fly by two and a half lengths. Mullins said afterwards, “I had probably resigned myself to never winning a Gold Cup, so I didn’t really obsess about it or get too disappointed about it.”

Rivalry between horses trained on either side of the Irish Sea at the Cheltenham Festival has long existed, but, in 2014, was formalised as a competition officially titled the ‘Prestbury Cup’, for which a trophy is awarded. With the exception of 2019, when the scores were tied at 14-14, the Irish have won the Prestbury Cup every year since and, in 2018, did so by a score of 17-11.

Irish-trained horses won nine of the 14 Grade 1 races, including two of the ‘feature’ races. Balko Des Flos, trained by Henry de Bromhead and ridden by Davy Russell, won the Ryanair Chase and, immediately afterwards, Penhill, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Paul Townend, won the Stayers’ Hurdle.

The Master of Seven Barrows, Nicky Henderson, struck a double blow for the home team, winning the Champion Hurdle with Buveur D’Air, ridden by Barry Geraghty, and the Queen Mother Champion with Altior, ridden by Nico de Boinville. Dorset-based Colin Tizzard also rowed in with two Grade 1 winners, Kilbricken, ridden by Harry Cobden, in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle and, more importantly, Native River, ridden by Richard Johnson, in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Despite their best efforts, though, Irishmen Gordon Elliott and Davy Russell became leading trainer and jockey with eight and four winners respectively.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup featured 15 runners and the market was headed by the talented, but quirky, Might Bite, trained by Nicky Henderson and the winner of the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park on Boxing Day on his most recent start. Our Duke, trained by Jessica Harrington in Co. Kildare, was next best, marginally ahead of the aforementioned Native River, who had proved his well-being with a ready, 12-length win in the Denman Chase at Newbury the previous month.

As it was, Our Duke was never really travelling and was eventually pulled up, when in rear, four fences from home. The other two market leaders fought a ding-dong battle for most of the way, though, with Native River in the lead, but constantly harried by Might Bite. Indeed, the latter led, briefly, between the last two fences, but was outstayed on the run-in and eventually beaten four and a half lengths.