The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse, Aintree, Merseyside, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap steeplechase over an official distance of about 4 miles and 2½ furlongs, with horses jumping 30 fences over two laps. It is the most valuable jump race in Europe, with a prize fund of £1 million in 2017. An event that is prominent in British culture, the race is popular amongst many people who do not normally watch or bet on horse racing at other times of the year.
In horse racing in Great Britain, 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: hurdles and steeplechases. Alongside these there are "bumpers", which are National Hunt flat races. In a hurdles race, the horses jump over obstacles called hurdles; in a steeplechase the horses jump over a variety of obstacles that can include plain fences, water jump or an open ditch. In the UK, the biggest National Hunt events of the year are generally considered to be the Grand National and the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Ayr Racecourse at Whitletts Road, Ayr, Scotland, was opened in 1907. There are courses for flat and for National Hunt racing.
The Ayr Gold Cup is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Ayr over a distance of 6 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in September.
Kelso Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Kelso, Scotland. It is frequently described as "Britain's Friendliest Racecourse". It was voted the Best Small Course in Scotland and the North of England in 2007, 2012 and 2014 by the Racegoers Club. In addition to staging Scotland's most valuable hurdle race, the Morebattle Hurdle, Kelso stages a comparatively high number of Class 1, 2 & 3 races over jumps.
Musselburgh Racecourse is a horse racing venue located in the Millhill area of Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland, UK, close to the River Esk. It is the second biggest racecourse in Scotland and is the fourteenth biggest in the UK. In 2016, Musselburgh staged 28 fixtures. It was officially known as "Edinburgh Racecourse", and referred to as such in the English press, until the beginning of 1996 but was widely referred to as "Musselburgh" in Scotland long before that and was widely referred to as Musselburgh in the racing pages of Scottish newspapers.
Ian Balding is a retired British horse trainer. He is the son of the polo player and racehorse trainer Gerald Matthews Balding and the younger brother of trainer Toby Balding. Ian Balding was born in the US, but his family returned to the UK in 1945. He was educated at Marlborough College and Millfield school in Somerset. He went up to Christ's College, Cambridge, in 1959 to read Rural Estate Management, where he played Rugby for the university team, gaining his Blue in 1961 at full back. He started training in 1964. Kingsclere became his home at the age of 26 and it is here that earned his reputation as an internationally respected trainer.
Horseracing in Scotland is a popular spectator sport, with a history dating back over 900 years. There are currently five operating racecourses in Scotland - one exclusively for flat racing, two exclusively for jump racing and two mixed. Between them they held one hundred and three race meetings in 2014. The main National Hunt meeting held is the Scottish Grand National meeting at Ayr each April, and the main Flat meeting is the Ayr Gold Cup Festival, at the same course each September.
The Scottish Champion Hurdle is a Grade 2 National Hunt hurdle race in Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ayr, South Ayrshire, over a distance of about 2 miles, and during its running there are nine hurdles to be jumped. It is a limited handicap race, and it is scheduled to take place each year in April.
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.
Auroras Encore is an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2013 Grand National. In a racing career which lasted from February 2007 until January 2014 he won two hurdle races and six steeplechases from forty-seven starts.
Ryan Mania is a Scottish National Hunt jockey from Galashiels, most famous for winning the 2013 Grand National on the Sue Smith-trained Auroras Encore, at starting odds of 66/1.
Bogside Racecourse was a horse racing track situated in Irvine, Scotland, on the banks of the River Irvine. Its first meeting was held on 7 June 1808, and its last on 10 April 1965, although there is evidence of an event known as the Irvine Marymass Races in the area as far back as 1636, initiated by the Earl of Eglinton.
Ragstone (1970–1978) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. A specialist stayer, he was unplaced in his only run as a two-year-old but won all four of his races in 1973. When moved up in class as a four-year-old he won the Aston Park Stakes and the Henry II Stakes before taking Britain's premier long-distance race, the Ascot Gold Cup. After seven successive wins he was beaten in his next race and retired to stud. He showed some promise as a breeding stallion before dying at the age of eight.
Carl Llewellyn is an assistant racehorse trainer to Nigel Twiston-Davies and a retired Welsh professional National Hunt jockey. Llewellyn won the Grand National on two occasions along with the Welsh Grand National and Scottish Grand National as a jockey. He has also won the Whitbread / Bet365 Gold Cup both as a jockey and as a trainer and many grade races.
Kerstin was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who won the 1958 Cheltenham Gold Cup. She was imported to England as a young horse and showed early promise by winning over hurdles as a four year old. She showed improvement when campaigned in steeplechases and won the National Hunt Handicap Chase in 1956. She ran four times in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, finishing second in 1957 before becoming the second mare to win the race in the following year. She was unplaced in the net two Gold Cups but produced an outstanding effort to win the Hennessy Gold Cup under 164 pounds in November 1959. After her retirement from racing she had some success as a broodmare.
One For Arthur was an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in National Hunt racing. In 2017 he became the second horse trained in Scotland to win the Grand National.
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.
Kitty's Light is a British Thoroughbred racehorse who competes in National Hunt races. In 2023 he completed a rare double in winning the Scottish Grand National and, a week later, the Bet365 Gold Cup. He is trained by Christian Williams and ridden in most of his races by Jack Tudor.
