List Of British National Hunt Races
A list of notable National Hunt horse races which take place annually in Great Britain, under the authority of the British Horseracing Authority, including all races which currently hold Grade 1, 2 or 3 status. History of the National Hunt Pattern A National Hunt (NH) Pattern of important races was first recognized in 1964 when the Horserace Betting Levy Board made a grant of £64,000 to fund a "prestige race allocation" split between the Cheltenham Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle and Grand National. In 1968 a Jump Racing Pattern Committee headed by Lord Leverhulme William Hesketh Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme , (, ; 19 September 1851 – 7 May 1925) was an English industrialist, philanthropist, and politician. Having been educated at a small private school until the age of nine, then at church school ... recommended the creation of a formal NH Pattern, which came into being in 1969 with 14 races initially. The Pattern underwent further revisions in the 1980s and was subject to ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
National Hunt Racing
In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: hurdles and steeplechases. Alongside these there are "bumpers", which are National Hunt flat races. In a hurdles race, the horses jump over obstacles called hurdles; in a steeplechase the horses jump over a variety of obstacles that can include plain fences, water jump or an open ditch. In the UK the biggest National Hunt events of the year are generally considered to be the Grand National and the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Outline Most of the National Hunt season takes place in the winter when the softer ground makes jumping less dangerous. The horses are much cheaper, as the majority are geldings and have no breeding value. This makes the sport more popular as the horses are not usually retired at such a young age and thus become familiar ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Ascot Racecourse
Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and three Grade 1 Jumps races. Ascot Racecourse is visited by approximately 600,000 people a year, accounting for 10% of all UK racegoers. The racecourse covers , leased from the Crown Estate and enjoys close associations with the British Royal Family, being founded in 1711 by Queen Anne of Great Britain, Queen Anne and located approximately from Windsor Castle. Queen Elizabeth II used to visit the Ascot Racecourse quite frequently, sometimes even betting on the horses. Ascot currently stages 26 days of racing over the course of the year, comprising 18 Flat racing, flat meetings between April and October, and 8 National Hunt racing, jump meetings between October and March. The Royal Meeting, held in June each year, remains the highlight of t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Cheltenham Racecourse
Cheltenham Racecourse at Prestbury Park, near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, hosts National Hunt horse racing. Its most prestigious meeting is the Cheltenham Festival, held in March, which features several Grade I races including the Cheltenham Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle, Queen Mother Champion Chase, Ryanair Chase and the Stayers' Hurdle. The racecourse has a scenic location in a natural amphitheatre, just below the escarpment of the Cotswold Hills at Cleeve Hill, with a capacity of 67,500 spectators. Cheltenham Racecourse railway station no longer connects to the national rail network, but is the southern terminus of the preserved Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway. The main racecourse has two separate courses alongside each other, the Old Course and the New Course. The New Course has a tricky downhill fence and a longer run-in for steeplechases than the Old Course. Hurdle races over two miles on the New Course also have a slight peculiarity in that most of the hu ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Supreme Novices' Hurdle
The Supreme Novices' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles and ½ furlong (2 miles and 87 yards, or ), and during its running there are eight hurdles to be jumped. The race is for novice hurdlers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Cheltenham Festival in March. It is the first event on the opening day of the Festival, and its start is traditionally greeted by the "Cheltenham Roar", a loud cheer generated by the crowds of onlookers. History The race was originally called the Gloucestershire Hurdle, and it used to be split into two or three separate divisions. The Irish trainer Vincent O'Brien recorded ten victories in the race during an eight-year spell in the 1950s. It became known as the Lloyds Bank Champion Novices' Hurdle in 1974, when Lloyds Bank began a brie ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Ascot Chase
The Ascot Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of about 2 miles and 5 furlongs (2 miles, 5 furlongs and 85 yards, or ), and during its running there are seventeen fences to be jumped. The race is scheduled to take place each year in February. The event was first run in 1995, as the Comet Chase, and its distance was originally set at 2 miles and 3½ furlongs (3,923 metres). This was modified slightly when the race was temporarily switched to Lingfield Park, and also upon its return to Ascot in 2007. The present length was introduced in 2008. The race was run on a Wednesday until 1998, moving to its current Saturday in 1999. It replaced the Whitbread Trial Handicap (3 miles 100 yards) on the Wednesday card, a race which was first run in 1966. Records Most successful horse (2 wins): * Tiutchev – ''2001, 2003'' * Monet's Garden †... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Scilly Isles Novices' Chase
The Scilly Isles Novices' Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain, which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of around two miles and four furlongs (2 miles 4 furlongs 10 yards, or 4,033 metres). During its running there are seventeen fences to be jumped. The race is for novice chasers, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late January or early February. It was sponsored by The Tote in 2011 and run as the Totepool Challengers Novices' Chase, and by Betfair in 2012 and run as the Betfair Novices' Chase. The 2013 running was sponsored by Betfred and run as the Betfred Mobile Lotto Challengers' Novice Chase. The Scilly Isles name was restored to the race title from 2014. The race was first run in 1964 and takes its name from the Scilly Isles, Surrey, an area near to Sandown Park racecourse. Prior to 1988 the distance of the race was 2 miles and 18 yards (3,2 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Clarence House Chase
The Clarence House Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of about 2 miles and 1 furlong (2 miles and 167 yards, or 3,371 metres), and during its running there are thirteen fences to be jumped. The race is scheduled to take place each year in January. The event was sponsored from its inauguration to 2013 by the bookmaker Victor Chandler. It was registered as the Clarence House Chase, but it was usually referred to by its sponsored title. In 2014 the race reverted to its registered title and the sponsorship was taken over by Sodexo. In 2018 it was sponsored by Royal Salute Whisy and since 2019 Matchbook betting exchange have sponsored the race. The first running was planned to have taken place in 1987. However, it was abandoned that year due to frost, and also the following year because of fog. Originally it was a handicap race, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Tolworth Novices' Hurdle
The Tolworth Novices' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of about 2 miles (1 mile 7 furlongs and 216 yards, or 3,215 metres), and during its running there are eight hurdles to be jumped. The race is for novice hurdlers, and it is scheduled to take place each year in January. From 2011 to 2018 the race was sponsored by online casino 32Red and was run as the 32Red Hurdle between 2011 and 2013. Since 2019 it has been sponsored by Unibet The race was first run in 1976. Records Leading jockey (3 wins): * Norman Williamson – ''Silver Wedge (1995), Monsignor (2000), Miros (2002)'' * Ruby Walsh - ''Silverburn (2007), Breedsbreeze (2008), Yorkhill (2016)'' * Barry Geraghty - ''Minella Class (2011), Captain Conan (2012), L'ami Serge (2015)'' Leading trainer (6 wins): * Nicky Henderson – ''New York Rainbow (1992), Minell ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Newbury Racecourse
Newbury Racecourse is a racecourse and events venue in the civil parish of Greenham, adjoining the town of Newbury in Berkshire, England. It has courses for flat races and over jumps. It hosts one of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat races, the Lockinge Stakes. History The racecourse held its first race meeting on 26/27 September 1905 at its current location, in the Greenham area on the south-east side of Newbury, West Berkshire. The first recorded racing at Newbury took place in 1805 with "Newbury Races", an annual two-day race meeting at Enborne Heath. The meeting lasted until 1811 when it transferred to Woodhay Heath until 1815. Newbury Racecourse didn't come into existence for another 90 years when Kingsclere trainer, John Porter proposed a new racecourse at Newbury. The Jockey Club had laid down strict qualifications for new racecourses and after Porter's plans were rejected several times, a chance meeting with King Edward VII brought about a further applicati ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Challow Novices' Hurdle
The Challow Novices' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Newbury over a distance of about 2 miles and 4½ furlongs (2 miles 4 furlongs and 118 yards, or 4,131 metres), and during its running there are ten hurdles to be jumped. The race is for novice hurdlers, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late December. Prior to 1999 the race was sometimes run in early January. Initially contested as a two mile juvenile hurdle (restricted to horses who were three years old at the start of the season), the race was opened to older horses from the 1981–82 season onwards. After a hiatus during the mid 1990s, juvenile hurdlers are now excluded from the race. Records Leading jockey since 1971 (6 wins): * Tony McCoy – ''Classified (2001), Coolnagorna (2002), Wichita Lineman (2006), Backspin (2010), Taquin du Seuil (2012), Captain Cutter (2013) '' Leading ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
King George VI Chase
The King George VI Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Kempton Park over a distance of about 3 miles (4,828 metres), and during its running there are eighteen fences to be jumped. The race is scheduled to take place each year on 26 December, and features as part of the course's Christmas Festival. The event was first run in February 1937, and it was named in honour of the new British monarch, King George VI. It was only run twice before World War II, during which Kempton Park was closed for racing and used as a prisoner-of-war camp. The two pre-war runnings were each contested by four horses. The winner of the first, Southern Hero, remains the race's oldest ever winner. After the war the racecourse re-opened, and the event returned in 1947 on a new date – Boxing Day. In the 1960s it was a handicap. The King George VI Cha ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Christmas Hurdle
The Christmas Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Kempton Park over a distance of about 2 miles (3,219 metres), and during its running there are eight hurdles to be jumped. The race is the second leg of the Triple Crown of Hurdling and is scheduled to take place each year during the King George VI Chase meeting on Boxing Day. History During the 1960s Kempton staged a 2-mile handicap race on Boxing Day called the Kempton Park Handicap Hurdle. Its winners included Salmon Spray and Saucy Kit – both subsequent winners of the Champion Hurdle. The race was abandoned in 1967 and 1968, and it returned in the guise of the Christmas Hurdle in 1969. Five winners of the race in its present format have gone on to victory in the Champion Hurdle. The first was Lanzarote, the winner of the latter event in 1974, and the others are Dawn Run (1983–84), Kribe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |