The 1998 Cheltenham Gold Cup was a horse race which took place at Cheltenham on Thursday 19 March 1998. It was the 71st running of the Cheltenham Gold Cup, and it was won by Cool Dawn. The winner was ridden by Andrew Thornton and trained by Robert Alner. The pre-race favourite Dorans Pride finished third.
Cool Dawn's victory in the Gold Cup was the highlight of a progressive career, in which he had initially competed in minor point-to-point races and hunter chases.
| * | Horse | Age | Jockey | Trainer† | SP | |
| 1 | Cool Dawn | 10 | Andrew Thornton | Robert Alner | 25/1 | |
| 2 | 1¾ | Strong Promise | 7 | Norman Williamson | Geoff Hubbard | 14/1 |
| 3 | hd | Dorans Pride | 9 | Richard Dunwoody | Michael Hourigan (IRE) | 9/4 fav |
| 4 | 14 | Senor El Betrutti | 9 | Carl Llewellyn | Susan Nock | 33/1 |
| 5 | 3 | Suny Bay | 9 | Graham Bradley | Charlie Brooks | 9/1 |
| 6 | 4 | Simply Dashing | 7 | Lorcan Wyer | Tim Easterby | 33/1 |
| 7 | 1¼ | Challenger du Luc | 8 | Chris Maude | Martin Pipe | 20/1 |
| 8 | 2 | Barton Bank | 12 | Adrian Maguire | David Nicholson | 33/1 |
| 9 | hd | Strath Royal | 12 | Martin Brennan | Owen Brennan | 100/1 |
| 10 | 30 | Yorkshire Gale | 12 | Leighton Aspell | Josh Gifford | 100/1 |
| 11 | 6 | Go Ballistic | 9 | Conor O'Dwyer | John O'Shea | 12/1 |
| PU | Fence 22 | Couldn't Be Better | 11 | Dean Gallagher | Charlie Brooks | 33/1 |
| PU | Fence 19 | Addington Boy | 10 | Brian Harding | Gordon W. Richards | 12/1 |
| Fell | Fence 17 | Rough Quest | 12 | Mick Fitzgerald | Terry Casey | 14/1 |
| PU | Fence 7 | Cyborgo | 8 | Tony McCoy | Martin Pipe | 10/1 |
| CO | Fence 7 | Indian Tracker | 8 | Jonothan Lower | Martin Pipe | 150/1 |
| CO | Fence 7 | See More Business | 8 | Timmy Murphy | Paul Nicholls | 11/2 |
* The distances between the horses are shown in lengths or shorter. hd = head; PU = pulled-up; CO = carried out.
† Trainers are based in Great Britain unless indicated.
Further details of the winner, Cool Dawn :