National Hunt racing

Last updated

National Hunt Racing, also known as Jump Racing, [1] is a form of horse racing particular to many European countries, including, but not limited to: France, Great Britain and Ireland. Jump Racing requires horses to jump over fences and ditches.

Contents

In the UK, National Hunt Racing is divided into two major distinct branches: Hurdling and Steeplechase, as well as flat races called “Bumpers”. Hurdling involves horses jumping over Hurdles, while Steeplechase involves the horses jumping over a variety of different obstacles that includes fences, water jump or an open ditch. [2] Some of the biggest National Hunt events of the year in the UK are the Grand National and the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Overview

The National Hunt season primarily occurs during the winter months when softer ground conditions make jumping safer for horses. [3] The horses are significantly cheaper compared to sport horses for other equestrian sports, reason being the majority are geldings and have no breeding value. [4]

Jump Racing primarily takes place in France, Great Britain and Ireland, with some events also taking place in Australia, Canada and the United States. In Ireland, National Hunt racing receives much higher attendances than flat racing, while in Great Britain, it is more balanced.[ citation needed ]

National Hunt horses are often bred for jumping, while others are former flat horses but they do not have to be Thoroughbreds: many French-bred jumpers are Selle Français or AQPS. [5] Many horses begin their racing careers in amateur point-to-pointing where they compete over steeplechase races of three miles (4.8 km).

Two of the biggest events of the National Hunt calendar are the Cheltenham Festival meeting and the Grand National meeting. The Cheltenham Festival is held at Cheltenham Racecourse over four days in the second week of March. On Friday, it features eleven grade one races, culminating in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, one of the most prestigious Chase races in the world. The Grand National meeting is held at Aintree over three days every April.[ citation needed ].

Other important festivals are: the Galway Races a mixed (NH and flat) meeting in Ireland; Punchestown Festival the Irish equivalent of the Cheltenham Festival; The Tingle Creek at Sandown Park Racecourse; the Scottish Grand National at Ayr Racecourse; the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park Racecourse; the Welsh National at Chepstow Racecourse; and the Irish National at Fairyhouse Racecourse.

History

National Hunt racing originated in Ireland, particularly in the southern counties. Early races were mainly two-horse contests known as "pounding races" that became popular in the early 18th century. These involved long trips across country where horses were required to jump whatever obstacles the landscape threw in their way. [6]

The first recorded race of this nature is traditionally said to have taken place between the towns of Buttevant and Doneraile in the north of County Cork in 1752. [7] The distance of the race was 4.5 miles (7.2 km). The start and finish were marked by the church steeple in each town, hence the term "steeplechase".

The first use of the term steeplechase on an official racecard was in Ireland in the early 19th century. The 'official' first running of the Grand National, held annually at Aintree in England, took place in 1839 and was won by an Irish horse, Lottery. The "National", as it is known, was run over 4.5 miles (7.2 km), but since 2013 is run over 4.3 miles (6.9 km).

Organizing steeple chasing in Britain, began with annual events being staged cross country over a number of fields, hedges and brooks, the earliest most notable of these being the St Albans Steeplechase (first run in 1830). For some years, there was no regulation of steeplechasing.

A breakthrough came in the 1860s with the formation of the National Hunt Committee, and the running of the National Hunt Steeplechase. This steeplechase would form part of an annual race-meeting staged at a different track each year. The 'National Hunt Meeting' established itself in the racing calendar, in turn moving around such courses as Sandown, New market, Derby, Liverpool, Hurst Park, Lincoln, Leicester and many others.

In 1904 and 1905, Cheltenham hosted the meeting, and although Warwick was awarded it for five years after that, it then returned to Cheltenham which became the permanent home of the fixture. Further prestigious races were added to the card during the 1920s, such as the Cheltenham Gold Cup and Champion Hurdle.

As steeple chasing entered its modern era, the Cheltenham Festival became a major part of the season, providing a series of championship races.

With the introduction of sponsorship (starting with the Whitbread Gold Cup in 1957), a whole host of other important races have been added to the National Hunt racing season,

National Hunt racing in the 2000's

Given the sport's origins, Irish-bred and trained horses remained a force in national hunt racing during the 2000's. In 2005 and 2006, Irish-trained horses captured the three main prizes at Cheltenham and won the Grand National. Best Mate who captured the Cheltenham Gold Cup three successive times between 2002 and 2004, was Irish-bred, but trained and owned in England.

French-bred horses have also come to the forefront with horses such as Master Minded becoming the highest rated horse in Britain after winning the Queen Mother Champion Chase. Kauto Star who won the Gold Cup in 2007, 2009 and was second in 2008 is also French bred.

Types of race

Grades and classes

Races are graded depending on their health and mental status. The most prestigious are Grade 1, then Grade 2, Grade 3, Listed, Handicaps, to Bumpers the least prestigious. The more highly graded races attract more prize money and better horses. (In flat racing the more prestigious races are Group 1, 2, and 3, then Listed).

All National Hunt races are also classified in classes 1-7 (class 1 best). Graded and listed races are class 1.

See the list of Grade 1-3 National Hunt races and the list of Group 1-3 Flat races.

Major National Hunt festivals

Cheltenham

Cheltenham Racecourse, in the Cotswolds, hosts the Cheltenham Festival in the third week of March each year, as well as other important fixtures during the NH calendar.

The highlight of the Cheltenham Festival is the Gold Cup. All races run at Cheltenham finish with a long uphill run-in in front of the stands. The Gold Cup is a Grade 1 race, run over a distance of 3 miles 2+12 furlongs (5.3 km). All horses carry the same weight in the Gold Cup. Famous winners of the Gold Cup include Dawn Run (mare, ridden by Jonjo O'Neill), Arkle, Golden Miller, Best Mate, Desert Orchid & Kauto Star.

Grand National

The highest profile National Hunt race is the Grand National, run at Aintree in April each year. The race is a different sort of contest from the Gold Cup: it is a Grade 3 race, it is run over a distance of more than 4 miles (6.4 km), there are up to 40 runners, the course at Aintree is essentially flat, and the horses are handicapped (the best horses carry the most weight). Perhaps the most fundamental difference is that the Grand National fences are far bigger than the fences at Cheltenham and a number of fences incorporate significant drops. The best-known fence is Becher's Brook which is 5 ft (1.5 m) high but has a 7 ft (2 m) drop on landing and is often regarded as the biggest challenge on the course.

Winners of the Grand National include Red Rum (won 3 times:1973, 1974, 1977), runner up twice (1975, 1976)); Mr Frisk (1990, the last winner to date to be ridden by an amateur jockey and still holds the record for the fastest time); Aldaniti (1981, ridden by Bob Champion shortly after he had recovered from cancer. His story was made into a film); and Foinavon (1967, won at odds of 100/1 after a mêlée at the 23rd fence resulted in the majority of the field falling or refusing. Foinavon was far enough behind at that point to avoid the confusion and ran on to win by 20 lengths. The fence where the mêlée occurred is now named "Foinavon Fence").

Other National Hunt races

Other NH races of note include the King George VI Chase, run at Kempton Park on 26 December and the Hennessy Gold Cup run at Newbury at the end of November.

Hunter chase racing

Hunter chases take place at national hunt racecourses but are only open to horses that have hunter certificates. Hunter certificates are issued to horses that have hunted for at least four days in the season before racing starts in January. In addition, the jockey must be an amateur who has obtained a certificate from the hunt secretary.

Unlike point-to-points, licensed trainers as well as amateur trainers may have runners in Hunter Chases. This often causes controversy when big name trainers run former Grade 1 horses in Hunter Chases as amateur trainers feel they are unable to compete. New rules which took effect in 2009, will prevent horses which have finished in the first 3 of a Grade 1 or 2 chase in the previous season from taking part.

The two biggest Hunter Chases are the Aintree Fox Hunters' Chase and Cheltenham Foxhunter Chase. The Aintree Fox Hunters' is run as the feature race on the first day of the Grand National meeting over one circuit of the Grand National course. This gives amateur riders the chance to jump these famous fences before the professionals.

The Cheltenham Foxhunter is run after the Gold Cup over the same distance and is often referred to as the amateur Gold Cup.

Point to point racing

"Point to Point" racing is steeplechase racing for amateurs.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golden Miller</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

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 premier steeplechase races - the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Grand National - in the same year (1934).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cheltenham Racecourse</span> National Hunt racecourse in England

Cheltenham Racecourse at Prestbury Park, near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, hosts National Hunt horse racing. Racing at Cheltenham took place in 1815, but comprised only minor flat races on Nottingham Hill. The first racing on Cleeve Hill was on Tuesday 25 August 1818 when the opening race was won by Miss Tidmarsh, owned by Mr E Jones. It was a year later when the results were printed in the Racing Calendar when a programme of flat racing was watched by the Duke of Gloucester who donated 100 Guineas to the prize fund. By 1831 races were being staged at Prestbury, although not on the present day course. In 1834 the Grand Annual Steeplechase was run for the first time. In 1839 Lottery won the Grand Annual having previously won the first Aintree Grand National. In 1840 the meeting transferred to Andoversford for a brief period, only to return to Prestbury in 1847. 1902 was a notable year in that racing moved to the present course at Prestbury Park. The new stands were completed in 1914 and the present day Festival races, as we know them, began to take shape. The Cheltenham Gold Cup, over 3 ¼ miles, was run for the first time in 1924, with the Champion Hurdle following in 1927.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steeplechase (horse racing)</span> Horse race form originally from Ireland, featuring jumps over fence and ditch obstacles

A steeplechase is a distance horse race in which competitors are required to jump diverse fence and ditch obstacles. Steeplechasing is primarily conducted in Ireland, Great Britain, Canada, United States, Australia, and France. The name is derived from early races in which orientation of the course was by reference to a church steeple, jumping fences and ditches and generally traversing the many intervening obstacles in the countryside.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hedgehunter</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Hedgehunter is an Irish race horse, who won the 2005 Grand National steeplechase, ridden by Ruby Walsh and trained by Willie Mullins. He had fallen at the final fence the previous year when well placed. He then finished second in 2006 to Numbersixvalverde. He also finished second in the 2006 Cheltenham Gold Cup to War of Attrition. The horse was owned by Lancashire billionaire Trevor Hemmings who also owned Blackpool Tower.

Anthony Bingham Mildmay, 2nd Baron Mildmay of Flete was an English amateur steeplechaser, who raced in the Grand National. He also inspired the Queen Mother's interest in National Hunt racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Synchronised (horse)</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Synchronised was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. A specialist long-distance steeplechaser, he was best known for his performances in the 2011–2012 National Hunt season, when he won the Grade I Lexus Chase in Ireland before winning Britain's most prestigious steeplechase, the Cheltenham Gold Cup, on 17 March. He was euthanized after incurring a leg fracture in the Grand National on 14 April 2012.

Morley Street (1984-–2009) was an Irish racehorse. He was a specialist hurdler but also won steeplechases and races on the flat. In a racing career which lasted from November 1988 until December 1995, he ran forty-five times and won twenty races including the Champion Hurdle in 1991 and the Aintree Hurdle on four successive occasions. He won the title of American Champion Steeplechase Horse on two occasions, as a result of back-to-back wins in the Breeders' Cup Steeplechase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jodami</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Jodami was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. A specialist steeplechaser, he ran thirty-nine time and won eighteen races in a career which lasted from March 1990 until February 1997. After winning five races over hurdles, Jodami switched to racing over fences in the autumn of 1991. In early 1993 he won four consecutive races, culminating with a win in Britain's most prestigious steeplechase, the Cheltenham Gold Cup. He also won three editions of the Hennessy Gold Cup at Leopardstown Racecourse. Jodami's racing career was ended by injury in 1997. He died in 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobs Worth</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Bobs Worth was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He won the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle in 2011, the RSA Chase in 2012 and the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 2013 at the Cheltenham Festival, making him the first horse since Flyingbolt in the 1960s to win three different races at consecutive Cheltenham Festivals. In 2012, he also won the Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury. Bobs Worth was trained by Nicky Henderson, owned by the Not Afraid Partnership.

Albertas Run was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in National Hunt races. He won two National Hunt Flat races and became a successful hurdler, winning the National Hunt Novices' Handicap Hurdle Final and the John Smith's Extra Cold Handicap Hurdle in 2007. He became more successful as a Steeplechaser, winning four Grade I races: the Royal and SunAlliance Chase, the Melling Chase and two runnings of the Ryanair Chase. His other wins included the Reynoldstown Novices' Chase, the Amlin 1965 Chase and the Old Roan Chase.

Oscar Whisky was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in National Hunt racing. In his early career he showed promise, winning two National Hunt Flat races and two novice hurdles. In the 2010/2011 National Hunt season he emerged as one of the leading hurdlers in the British Isles, winning the Welsh Champion Hurdle and the Aintree Hurdle as well as finishing third behind Hurricane Fly in the Champion Hurdle. In the following season he won the Relkeel Hurdle and a second Aintree Hurdle. He won the Ascot Hurdle and a second Relkeel Hurdle in 2012/2013 before being moved up to compete in steeplechases in the following season when he won the Dipper Novices' Chase and the Scilly Isles Novices' Chase. Oscar Whisky was fatally injured in a fall at Sandown Park Racecourse on 6 December 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charter Party (horse)</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Charter Party was an Irish-bred British-trained thoroughbred racehorse, best known for his win in the 1988 Cheltenham Gold Cup. He overcame persistent injury problems to win twelve races under National Hunt rules. He showed promise as a hurdler and as a Novice steeplechaser before recording his first major win in the 1986 National Hunt Handicap Chase. As a ten-year-old in 1988 he defeated Desert Orchid in the Gainsborough Chase, before taking the Gold Cup at Cheltenham in March. He never won again, but produced a fine effort to finish third on heavy ground in the 1989 Gold Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Many Clouds</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Many Clouds was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2015 Grand National. After being sold as a foal, he was sent to England and trained for a National Hunt racing career by Oliver Sherwood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Easter Hero</span> Irish-bred racehorse

Easter Hero (1920–1948) was an Irish-bred British-trained racehorse who won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1929 and 1930 and made three unsuccessful attempts to win the Grand National. He showed little early promise and was passed from owner to owner before beginning to display ability in 1927. Wins in the Becher Chase and the Coventry Chase established him as a leading steeplechaser and he was bought by Alfred Loewenstein with the aim of winning the National. In his first attempt at the race he fell at the eighth and brought the field to a virtual halt after becoming trapped in the ditch in front of the fence.

Prince Regent was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1946 Cheltenham Gold Cup. He was the dominant steeplechaser in Ireland during World War II with his wins including the Irish Grand National in 1942. After the war he was able to compete in the major British chases and won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1946. He finished third when favourite for the 1946 Grand National and fourth in the race in 1947, carrying top weight on both occasions. He continued to race until the age of fourteen, retiring in 1949.

Silver Fame was a British Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1951 Cheltenham Gold Cup. After beginning his racing career in Ireland he moved to England and became one of the leading steeplechasers of his time. He won races at the Cheltenham Festival in 1948 and 1950 and ran twice in the Grand National, falling when favourite for the race in 1948. Despite running extremely well at Cheltenham he did not contest the Gold Cup until 1951 when he won the race in record time. He was also the oldest winner of the race up to that time, and remains one of only two horses to win the race at the age of twelve. He spent his retirement as a hunter.

Limber Hill was a British Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1956 Cheltenham Gold Cup. He was owned and bred by James Davey and trained in Yorkshire by Bill Dutton. After racing on the point-to-point circuit he then ran over hurdles before becoming a steeplechaser in 1954. He made an immediate impact and won the National Hunt Handicap Chase at the end of his first season. In the 1955/56 National Hunt season he was the leading staying chaser in Britain winning both the King George VI Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup. He continued to race until 1958 but his later career was disrupted by injury and he never recovered his best form.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Native River</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Native River is an Irish-bred, British-trained, retired Thoroughbred racehorse who raced under National Hunt rules. He was a specialist long-distance steeplechaser known for his front-running style and apparently inexhaustible stamina. He won three minor hurdle races in the 2014/15 season and started his chasing career in the 2015/16 season, winning the Worcester Novices' Chase and the Mildmay Novices' Chase. He emerged as a top-class steeplechaser in the following season when he won the Hennessy Gold Cup, Welsh Grand National and Denman Chase as well as finishing third in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. In the 2017/18 season he won a second Denman Chase before recording his biggest win in the 2018 Cheltenham Gold Cup. In the 2019/20 season he won the Many Clouds Chase and achieved a record third win in the Denman Chase. His last win came in the Cotswold Chase in February 2021 and he was retired after a disappointing run in the 2021 Welsh Grand National. He is the most recent British-trained Cheltenham Gold Cup winner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minella Indo</span> Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Minella Indo is an Irish racehorse who competes in National Hunt racing. He was one of the leading Novices' Hurdlers 2018/19 season when he recorded Grade 1 victories in the Spa Novices' Hurdle and Irish Daily Mirror Novice Hurdle. He made little impact in his first season over fences but emerged as a top class steeplechaser in the 2020/21 season as he won the M W Hickey Memorial Chase and the BetVictor Make Your Best Bet Chase before taking the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Minella Times is a retired Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in National Hunt racing. In 2021, he won the Grand National under Rachael Blackmore, becoming the first horse ridden by a female jockey to win the race.

References

  1. "Flat and Jump Racing | France Galop". www.france-galop.com. Retrieved 2024-10-19.
  2. Types of Race British Horseracing Authority.
  3. "History And About National Hunt Racing In The UK | Horse Racing Guru". 2017-08-21. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  4. Skinner, Graham (2023-06-04). "Gelding Vs Stallion: What's The Difference?". Strathorn Farm Stables. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  5. "French AQPS system offers an easier route to jumping top tier". Free Online Library. 2012-03-09. Retrieved 2012-07-25.
  6. https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/tag/national-hunt-racing
  7. "Buttevant in North County Cork, Ireland". Discoveringcork.ie. Retrieved 2012-07-25.