What’s the lowdown on Cheltenham Racecourse?

Like Aintree or Ascot, to anyone with even a passing interest in the ‘Sport of Kings’, Cheltenham Racecourse needs little or no introduction. Situated in Prestbury Park, a natural amphitheatre in the foothills of the Cotswolds, near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, ‘The Home of Jump Racing’ is renowned for hosting the eagerly-awaited Cheltenham Festival in March each year and, as such, is a Mecca for National Hunt aficionados.

The undisputed highlight of the National Hunt season, the Cheltenham Festival, which was extended to four days in 2005, features 28 races, of which 14 are Grade 1, ‘championship’ events. The first two ‘feature’ races of the week, the Champion Hurdle and the Queen Mother Champion Chase, which place emphasis on speed, are run on the Old Course, whereas the last two, the Stayers’ Hurdle and the Cheltenham Gold Cup, which place emphasis on stamina, are run on the Old Course.

Both courses are left-handed, galloping and testing, with pronounced undulations, but there are some significant differences between them. The Old Course is slightly shorter, tighter and less demanding than the New Course. Horses are on the turn for more of the way and head for home much earlier, such that the Old Course is much the quicker of the pair.

The other course at Cheltenham, the Cross Country Course, has been in existence since 1995, but is used just once during the Cheltenham Festival, for the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase. A twisting, turning course witha variety of obstacles, including banks, ditches and hedges, it presents a unique test of jumping ability.