The Spa Novices' Hurdle, known for sponsorship purposes as the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle, 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: ...
hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to
horses aged four years or older. It is run on the New Course at
Cheltenham over a distance of about 3 miles (2 miles 7 furlongs and 213 yards, or 4,822 metres), and during its running there are twelve hurdles to be jumped. The race is for
novice
A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience.
Religion Buddhism
...
hurdlers, and it is scheduled to take 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.
It was one of several new races introduced at the Festival when a fourth day was added to the meeting in 2005. For its first three runnings the event was sponsored by
Brit Insurance, and it was classed at Grade 2 level. The vegetable growing company Albert Bartlett began supporting the race in 2008, and since then it has held Grade 1 status.
Records
Leading jockey (3 wins):
*
Tony McCoy
Sir Anthony Peter McCoy (born 4 May 1974), commonly known as AP McCoy or Tony McCoy, is a Northern Irish former National Hunt horse racing jockey. Based in Ireland and the UK, McCoy rode a record 4,358 winners, and was Champion Jockey a reco ...
– ''Black Jack Ketchum (2006), Wichita Lineman (2007) At Fishers Cross (2013)''
Leading
trainer (3 wins):
*
Willie Mullins
William Peter Mullins (born 15 September 1956) is an Irish racehorse trainer and former jockey.
Career
He commenced racehorse training in 1988 having previously worked as an assistant to his father Paddy Mullins and Jim Bolger. Willie is a fo ...
– ''Penhill (2017), Monkfish (2020), The Nice Guy (2022)''
Winners
See also
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Horse racing in Great Britain
Horse racing is the second largest spectator sport in Great Britain, and one of the longest established, with a history dating back many centuries. According to a report by the British Horseracing Authority it generates £3.39 billion total d ...
*
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 Patter ...
References
*
Racing Post:
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thejockeyclub.co.uk/cheltenham/– ''Media information pack (2010).''
{{Cheltenham Festival
National Hunt races in Great Britain
Cheltenham Racecourse
National Hunt hurdle races
Recurring sporting events established in 2005
2005 establishments in England