The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1

National Hunt 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: ...

horse race run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse in England, over a distance of about 3 miles 2½ furlongs (3 miles 2 furlongs and 70 yards, or 5,294 m), and during its running there are 22 fences to be jumped. The race takes place each year during the

Cheltenham Festival The Cheltenham Festival is a horse racing-based meeting in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, with race prize money second only to the Grand National. The four-day festival takes place annually in March at Cheltenham Ra ...

in March. The steeplechase, which is open to horses aged five years and over, is the most prestigious of all National Hunt events and it is sometimes referred to as the ''Blue Riband'' of jump-racing. Its roll of honour features the names of such chasers as Arkle,

Best Mate Best Mate (28 January 1995 – 1 November 2005) was an Irish-bred, English-trained racehorse and three-time winner of the Cheltenham Gold Cup. He was considered one of the most loved horses in the history of horse racing in the UK, with hi ...

Golden Miller Golden Miller (1927–1957) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who is the most successful Cheltenham Gold Cup horse ever, winning the race in five consecutive years between 1932 and 1936. He also is the only horse to win both of the United Kingdom's p ...

Kauto Star Kauto Star (19 March 2000 – 29 June 2015) was a French-bred National Hunt champion racehorse trained by Paul Nicholls in Somerset and owned by Clive Smith. He was known for his versatility and longevity, being the only horse ever to be top ...

, Denman and Mill House. The Gold Cup is the most valuable non-handicap chase in Britain, and in 2021 it offered a total prize fund of £468,750.

History

Early years

The first horse race known as the Cheltenham Gold Cup took place in July 1819. It was a

flat race National Hunt flat races, informally known as bumper races, are a type of flat racing but run under National Hunt racing rules in Britain and Ireland. National Hunt flat races were created on 15 July 1891 when a conference between the stewards of ...

, and it was contested over 3 miles on Cleeve Hill, which overlooks the present venue. The inaugural winner, Spectre, won a prize of 100

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...

for his owner Mr Bodenham. The Cheltenham Gold Cup was first run as a jumps race on 12 March 1924. The race was covered by Pathe News. A prize of £685 was awarded to the owner of the winning horse. The event originally took place on what is now the "Old Course" at Cheltenham. In its early years it was overshadowed at the Festival by another race, the National Hunt Chase and was worth less in prize money than the County Handicap Hurdle which had a purse of £1,000. The Gold Cup was abandoned in 1931 (because of frost) and 1937 (flooding), but the five intervening years saw the emergence of the most successful horse in the event's history. All five races from 1932 to 1936 were won by

, who also won the

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap st ...

in 1934. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the Gold Cup was cancelled twice, in 1943 and 1944. The first multiple winner in the post-war era was

Cottage Rake Cottage Rake (1939–1961) was a successful National Hunt racehorse. His breeder was Richard Vaughan from Hunting Hall, Castletown Roche, Co. Cork, Ireland. Before he embarked on his jumping career, he was failed by a vet on three different ...

, who won the three runnings from 1948 to 1950. Cottage Rake was trained in Ireland by

Vincent O'Brien Vincent O'Brien (9 April 1917 – 1 June 2009) was an Irish race horse trainer from Churchtown, County Cork, Ireland. In 2003 he was voted the greatest influence in horse racing history in a worldwide poll hosted by the ''Racing Post''. In ...

, and his successes helped to popularise the Gold Cup, and the Festival itself, with the Irish public.

Modern era

The Gold Cup was switched to the "New Course" in 1959, and this remains the regular track used for the event. In the mid-1960s, the race was dominated by Arkle, who won three consecutive runnings from 1964 to 1966. Such was Arkle's perceived superiority before the last of these victories that he was given a

starting price In horse racing, the starting price (SP) is the odds prevailing on a particular horse in the on-course fixed-odds betting market at the time a race begins. The method by which SPs are set for each runner varies in different countries but is gener ...

of 1/10 (a £10 bet would have won £1). He remains the shortest-priced winner in the race's history. The first commercial sponsorship of the race was by Piper Champagne, which began supporting the event in 1972. The Tote (now known as Totesport) became the sponsor in 1980. The most remarkable feat in the Gold Cup by a trainer came in 1983, when Michael Dickinson was responsible for all of the first five horses to finish – Bregawn, Captain John, Wayward Lad, Silver Buck and Ashley House. The 1986 winner,

Dawn Run Dawn Run (1978–1986) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse (Deep Run - Twilight Slave) who was the most successful racemare in the history of National Hunt racing. She won the Champion Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in 1984 and the Chelten ...

, is the only horse to have ever won both this race and the leading

hurdle A hurdle (UK English, limited US English) is a moveable section of light fence. In the United States, terms such as "panel", "pipe panel" or simply "fence section" are used to describe moveable sections of fencing intended for agricultural us ...

event, the Champion Hurdle. One of the most popular horses to win the Gold Cup was

Desert Orchid Desert Orchid (11 April 1979 – 13 November 2006), known as ''Dessie'', was an English racehorse. The grey achieved a revered and esteemed status within National Hunt racing, where he was much loved by supporters for his front-running atta ...

, a

grey Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

who won the event in 1989. The following year's running was won by Norton's Coin, whose starting price of 100/1 represents the race's longest ever winning price. The entire Cheltenham Festival was cancelled in 2001 because of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. A replacement for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the Gold Trophy Chase, was contested at

Sandown Sandown is a seaside resort and civil parish on the south-east coast of the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom with the resort of Shanklin to the south and the settlement of Lake in between. Together with Shanklin, Sandown forms a built-up area of ...

in late April, but the Racing Post stated that this ''"lacked any strength in depth and was no substitute for the Gold Cup"''. The next three runnings were all won by

, who is the most recent of the four horses to have won the race three or more times. In 2009,

became the first horse to regain the Gold Cup. He overcame his stablemate and conqueror in 2008, Denman, who had recovered from a heart condition to take his place in the race.

Timeform Timeform is a sports data and content provider located in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1948, it provides systematic information on form to punters and others involved in the horse racing industry. The company was purchased by t ...

spokesperson Kieran Packman said of Kauto Star's performance, ''"it is the best Gold Cup-winning figure since the Arkle era in the mid-1960s"''. One of the cups, a different one being awarded each year, was reported stolen on 14 July 2010 after a burglary at a home in

Wormington Wormington is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Dumbleton, in the Tewkesbury district, in Gloucestershire, England. It lies on the River Isbourne, north of Winchcombe and south of Evesham. In 1931 the parish had a popula ...

, Gloucestershire. Cheltenham Racecourse announced in September 2018 that it had been reunited with the original Cheltenham Gold Cup trophy, dating back to 1924, and will present it to the winner of the 2019 race. First awarded to five-year-old Red Splash, owned by Major Humphrey Wyndham, trained by Fred Withington and ridden by Dick Rees, it will now be re-introduced as a perpetual trophy, presented to the winning connections of the 2019 race and in future years. In 2020 the Cheltenham Festival, and the Gold Cup in particular, was blamed for accelerating the spread of Covid-19 in the UK, being one of the last major sporting events to take place before national lockdowns were imposed by the government. In 2021 the Gold Cup was contested behind closed doors, as the rest of the festival was, resulting in a muted atmosphere. In 2022,

Rachael Blackmore Rachael Blackmore (born 11 July 1989) is an Irish jockey who competes in National Hunt racing. In 2021, she became the first female jockey to win the Grand National in the 182-year history of the race. She also became the first woman to be lea ...

became the first ever female jockey to ride to victory at the Gold Cup on

A Plus Tard A Plus Tard (foaled 6 February 2014) is a French-bred thoroughbred racehorse competing in National Hunt racing. Career A Plus Tard was bred in France by Mme Henri Devin and raced five times in the country in 2017 and 2018, never finishing outs ...

, who she'd ridden to second place the previous year.

Records

Most successful horse (5 wins): *

– ''1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936'' Leading jockey (4 wins): *

Pat Taaffe Patrick Taaffe (9 March 1930, Dublin - 7 July 1992, Dublin) was an Irish National Hunt jockey who is best remembered as the jockey of Arkle. The pair dominated National Hunt racing in the mid-sixties, winning the Irish Grand National, the King ...

– ''Arkle (1964, 1965, 1966), Fort Leney (1968)'' Leading trainer (5 wins): *

Tom Dreaper Thomas William Dreaper (1898-1975) was a Irish steeplechase racehorse trainer, best known for having been the trainer of Arkle and Flyingbolt. Dreaper was born into a farming family in Donaghmore near Ashbourne on the County Meath-County ...

– ''Prince Regent (1946), Arkle (1964, 1965, 1966), Fort Leney (1968)'' Leading owner (7 wins): *

Dorothy Paget Dorothy Wyndham Paget (21 February 1905 – 9 February 1960) was a British racehorse owner and sponsor of motor racing. Early life Paget was the daughter of Lord Queenborough and Pauline Payne Whitney of the American Whitney family. She was ...

– ''Golden Miller (1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936), Roman Hackle (1940), Mont Tremblant (1952)''

Winners

* ''Amateur jockeys indicated by "Mr".'' * ''Winning mares indicated by †'' * ''Winning trainers based in Great Britain unless indicated (IRE) = Ireland, (FRA) = France'' The race was abandoned in 1931 because of frost, and in 1937 because of flooding.
It was cancelled in 1943 and 1944 because of

.
The 1957 winner, Linwell, was trained by Ivor Herbert, a well-known racing journalist and so barred from holding a trainer's licence.

Tied Cottage In the United Kingdom, a tied cottage is typically a dwelling owned by an employer that is rented to an employee: if the employee leaves their job they may have to vacate the property; in this way the employee is tied to their employer. While the ...

finished first in 1980, but was subsequently disqualified after testing positive for a banned substance.
The 2001 running was cancelled due to a

foot-and-mouth Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids. The virus causes a high fever lasting two to six days, follow ...

outbreak. A substitute race at Sandown was won by

Marlborough Marlborough may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Marlborough, Wiltshire, England ** Marlborough College, public school * Marlborough School, Woodstock in Oxfordshire, England * The Marlborough Science Academy in Hertfordshire, England Austral ...

Race sponsors

Betfred Betfred is a bookmaker based in the United Kingdom, founded by Fred Done.Pronounced to rhyme with "bone". It was first established as a single betting shop in Ordsall, Salford, in 1967. Its turnover in 2004 was reported to be more than £3.5 bi ...

began sponsoring the Gold Cup in 2012, after the betting company bought the Government-owned Tote in June 2011, but in late 2015 they lost their sponsorship following Jockey Club's and Arena Racing new initiative to not allow

bookmaker A bookmaker, bookie, or turf accountant is an organization or a person that accepts and pays off bets on sporting and other events at agreed-upon odds. History The first bookmaker, Ogden, stood at Newmarket in 1795. Range of events Bookm ...

sponsorships on their tracks that do not offer any contribution to horse racing from their offshore business. Only two weeks later a new sponsorship deal was announced with

Timico Timico is an Information Technology Managed Services provider in the United Kingdom. Company overview Timico gained a top 10 place in The Sunday Times Tech Track Fastest Growing Companies list, and in 2009 were ranked 7th in the Deloitte Techno ...

, an independent internet service provider whose CEO Tim Radford is a horse owner having top

chasers ''Chasers'' is a 1994 American comedy film directed by Dennis Hopper. It is about a pair of United States Navy shore patrollers (SPs) (Tom Berenger and William McNamara) who must escort a beautiful prisoner (Erika Eleniak), and the troubles they ...

like Somersby and Racing Demon associated with his name. Timico also offered an increase of £25,000 to reach a total of £575,000 prize money for the 2016 Gold Cup renewal. It was the first time that the race had been sponsored by a non-bookmaker since the Tote took over from Piper Champagne in 1980. In July 2018 Cheltenham Racecourse announced

Magners Magners Irish Cider is a brand of hard cider produced in County Tipperary in Ireland by the C&C Group. The product range includes the cider varieties: Original, Light, Berry, Pear and Rosé. The cider was originally produced as Bulmers Irish ...

Irish Cider as the new Cheltenham Gold Cup sponsor until 2021 with a possible extension to 2022. Magners ended their sponsorship early, after the 2020 race, and the 2021 race will carry the name of the charity

WellChild WellChild is a charity that provides care for seriously ill children and young people in the United Kingdom, founded in 1977. The charity introduced and funds WellChild Nurses, who provide care and support to children and young people needing long-t ...

. On 24 January 2022 it was announced luxury jeweller Boodles would sponsor the Cheltenham Gold Cup from 2022. The Cheltenham Gold Cup has had the following sponsors: *''No sponsor'' before 1972 *Piper Champagne Cheltenham Gold Cup (1972 – 1979) *Tote Cheltenham Gold Cup (1980 – 2003) *totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup (2004 – 2011) *Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup (2012 – 2015) *Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup (2016 – 2018) *Magners Cheltenham Gold Cup (2019–2020) *

Cheltenham Gold Cup (2021) *Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup (2022-

References

---- * Racing Post: ** , , , , , , , , , ** , , , , , , , , , ** , , , , , ----
thejockeyclub.co.uk/cheltenham''Italic text''
– ''Media information pack (2010).''
horseracinghistory.co.uk
– ''Cheltenham Gold Cup.''
pedigreequery.com
– ''Cheltenham Gold Cup – Cheltenham.''

– ''Cheltenham Gold Cup.'' *

External links

* Race Recording

{{Cheltenham, Gloucestershire Cheltenham Gold Cup, National Hunt races in Great Britain Cheltenham Racecourse National Hunt chases Gold Cup Recurring sporting events established in 1924 1924 establishments in England Annual sporting events in the United Kingdom March sporting events