When was the Grand National last cancelled?

In mid-March, the Randox Grand National Festival, which was due to take place between April 2 and April 4, 2020, was cancelled, in its entirety, because of the coronavirus pandemic. Jockey Club Racecourses, which owns Aintree Racecourse, said that it was ‘no longer appropriate to stage the event’, adding that running the celebrated steeplechase behind closed doors was ‘no longer a viable consideration’.

Consequently, the Grand National roll of honour will be without a winner for the first time since the infamous ‘National that never was’ in 1993. On that occasion, a combination of circumstances, including disruption caused by animal rights’ protesters, led to two false starts, the second of which insufficiently signalled by the starter. The majority of the jockeys set off, with several completing the National Course, and the Jockey Club was forced to declare the result null and void.

In 1997, the so-called ‘Monday National’ was postponed by 48 hours after a coded IRA bomb warning, but the race was still run. The last time the Grand National was cancelled outright was in 1945, during the final months of World War II, at which point Aintree Racecourse was still commandeered by the Army.

What happened to the Grand National during World War I?

World War I officially began on July 28, 1914 and ended on November 11, 1918. The 1914 renewal of the Grand National was staged, as usual, at Aintree Racecourse on March 27, four months before the commencement of hostilities, and the 1915 renewal was also staged on Merseyside.

However, in 1916, Aintree Racecourse was requisitioned by the War Office and, under the auspices of Frederick Cathcart, who was, at the time, Chairman of Gatwick Racecourse, a substitute version of the Grand National, renamed the ‘Racecourse Association Steeplechase’, was run at the Surrey venue. Notwithstanding the fact that Gatwick Racecourse was right-handed rather than left-handed, the substitute race was run over the full Grand National distance and bona fide ‘National’ fences.

Subsequently renamed the ‘War Steeplechase’, the substitute Grand National was held at Gatwick Racecourse again in 1917 and 1918, before returning to Aintree Racecourse in 1919. The 1918 winner, Poethlyn, who was ridden by Ernie Piggott, grandfather of Lester Piggott, went on to win the Grand National ‘proper’ at Aintree the following year. Of course the 2020 Grand National was cancelled due to the Coronavirus, despite thoughts about holding it behind closed doors. I guess we needed a bit more of that wartime spirit!

Has the Grand National ever resulted in a dead heat?

The Grand National may be the most celebrated steeplechase in the world but is still, essentially, a handicap, in which each horse is allocated a weight according to its ability. In other words, the official rating of each horse represents, in Imperial pounds, the ability of the horse in the eyes of the handicapper.

According to their previous form, which is assessed on a regular, typically weekly, basis, more capable horses are allotted higher official ratings than their less able counterparts, and carry correspondingly higher weights, such that every horse has an equal chance of winning. Consequently, in the eyes of the handicapper, the ideal result of the Grand National, or any other handicap, is a dead-heat among all the participants. Of course, the countless imponderables governing the outcome of any horse race, not least the Grand National, render any such notion completely infeasible in practice.

Indeed, the first official running of the Grand National took place in 1839 and after 172 attempts the race has yet to result in a dead-heat between two horses, never mind more than two. Nevertheless, in 2012, Neptune Collonges edged out Sunnyhillboy by a nose or, in other words, the narrowest possible margin, in the closest finish ever seen at Aintree.

Who trained Arkle?

For the uninitiated, Arkle was arguably the greatest steeplechaser of all time. In a four-year period between 1962 and 1966, Arkle won 22 of his 26 races over fences – including the Cheltenham Gold Cup three years running in 1964, 1965 and 1966 – and finished behind just six horses. His Timeform Annual Rating, of 212, is the highest ever awarded to a steeplechaser and 20lb superior to any other steeplechaser in history, with the exception of his stable companion, Flyingbolt. Arkle was owned by Anne Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster, and trained by Thomas William ‘Tom’ Dreaper at the family farm in Greenogue, Kilsallaghan, Co. Dublin, Ireland.

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