Rupert "Ruby" Walsh is an Irish former jockey. He is the second child, and eldest son, of former champion amateur jockey Ted Walsh and his wife Helen. Widely regarded as one of the greatest National Hunt jockeys of all time, Walsh is the third most prolific winner in British and Irish jump racing history behind only Sir Anthony McCoy and Richard Johnson.
John Joseph "Jonjo" O'Neill is an Irish National Hunt racehorse trainer and former jockey. He is a native of Castletownroche, County Cork in Ireland. Based at the Jackdaws Castle training establishment in England. O'Neill twice won the British Champion Jockey title and won the Cheltenham Gold Cup on the mare, Dawn Run who became the only horse to complete the double of winning the Champion Hurdle and the Gold Cup at the Cheltenham Festival. He won 900 races as a jockey.
The Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and 1 furlong, and during its running there are nine hurdles to be jumped. The race is for novice hurdlers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Grand National meeting in early April.
The Sefton 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 Aintree over a distance of about 3 miles and half a furlong, and during its running there are thirteen hurdles to be jumped. The race is for novice hurdlers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Grand National meeting in early April.
The Kauto Star Novices' 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, and during its running there are eighteen fences to be jumped. The race is for novice chasers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the King George VI Chase meeting on Boxing Day. The race was originally known as the Feltham Novices' Chase. The 2012 running additionally carried the name of Kauto Star pending a permanent change of name. The permanent name change was confirmed by the BHA in July 2013.
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. 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.
Paul Frank Nicholls is a British National Hunt horse trainer with stables at Ditcheat, Somerset. A relatively successful jump jockey, Nicholls has become the leading National Hunt trainer of his generation in Britain, finishing the 2007–08 season with 155 winners and a record £4 million in prize money. As of April 2023, he has trained over 3,500 winners, won the 2012 Grand National, four Cheltenham Gold Cups and has been crowned British jump racing Champion Trainer fourteen times.
The Mersey Novices' Hurdle is a Grade One National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Aintree, Merseyside, over a distance of about 2 miles and 4 furlongs, and during its running there are eleven hurdles to be jumped. The race is for novice hurdlers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Grand National meeting in early April.
The Barberstown Castle Novice Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt Steeplechase in Ireland which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Punchestown over a distance of about 2 miles, and during its running there are eleven fences to be jumped. The race is for novice chasers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Punchestown Festival in late April or early May.
The Future Champion Novices' Chase was a Grade 2 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which was open to horses aged five years or older. It was run at Ayr, Scotland, over a distance of about 2 miles, 4 furlongs and 110 yards, and during its running there were seventeen fences to be jumped. The race was for novice chasers, but was cut from the race calendar ahead of the 2023/24 National Hunt season.
The Mildmay Novices' Chase is a Grade One National Hunt chase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the Mildmay course at Aintree over a distance of about 3 miles and 1 furlong, and during its running there are nineteen fences to be jumped. The race is for novice chasers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Grand National meeting in early April.
The Top Novices' Hurdle is a Grade One National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and half a furlong, and during its running there are nine hurdles to be jumped. The race is for novice hurdlers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Grand National meeting in early April.
Aidan Coleman is a retired Irish National Hunt jockey. During a seventeen-year career based in Great Britain, he rode four winners at the Cheltenham Festival and a total of 13 Grade 1 winners. In June 2023 he sustained a serious leg injury in a fall at Worcester and was unable to return to race-riding. He announced his retirement on medical advice in April 2024.
The Manifesto 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 Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and 4 furlongs, and during its running there are sixteen fences to be jumped. The race is for novice chasers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Grand National meeting in early April.
Davy Russell is an Irish retired National Hunt jockey. He was Irish jump racing Champion Jockey three times, and won the Grand National (twice), the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris.
Paddy Brennan is a retired Irish jump jockey. He was champion conditional jockey in the 2004/05 season and won the 2010 Cheltenham Gold Cup on Imperial Commander. He was based in Gloucestershire as stable jockey at Fergal O'Brien's yard for several years before his retirement in April 2024.
The Topham Chase is a Premier Handicap National Hunt handicap chase in England which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and 5 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in April.
Twist Magic was a French-bred, British-trained National Hunt horse trained by Paul Nicholls. He specialised as a two-mile chaser, and recorded many top class wins such as the Tingle Creek in 2007 and 2009 and the Victor Chandler Chase in 2010. He suffered a serious injury while racing in the rearranged Peterborough Chase at Newbury and was put down. He was a rather quirky character, although not at his best at Cheltenham, he was one of the best two-mile chasers of his generation.
The Foxhunters' Open Hunters' Chase is a National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain for amateur riders which is open to horses aged six years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles and 5 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in April.
Denis O'Regan is a retired Irish jockey who competed in National Hunt racing and won seven Grade 1 races. In November 2023 he became the first jockey to ride a winner at every active National Hunt racecourse in Britain and Ireland. He retired after riding at Navan on 18 November 2023.
