Nowadays, the Welsh Grand National is run over 3 miles 6½ furlongs, and 23 fences, at Chepstow Racecourse, which has been its home since 1949. Indeed, in the interests of safety, the official distance was increased by about a furlong as recently as 2019; the start was moved back up the home straight to prevent a downhill 'cavalry charge' into the tight, left-hand bend immediately beyond the winning post.
Traditionally – or, at least, since 1979 – the Welsh Grand National has been scheduled, weather permitting, on the day after Boxing Day. That said, 'weather permitting' is the operative phrase; in the past decade or so, the Welsh Grand National has been postponed until the following January five times because of snow and frost or waterlogging.
The Welsh Grand National was inaugurated in 1895 at Ely Racecourse, to the west of Cardiff, where it remained until 1939. Following the closure of Ely Racecourse and a brief hiatus for World War II, the race was transferred, briefly, to Newport (Caerleon) Racecourse in 1948, before finding a permanent home at Chepstow the following year.
Originally scheduled for Easter Tuesday, in March or April, the Welsh Grand National was moved to February in 1969 and to late December a decade later. Since 1973, the race has been sponsored by long-standing bookmaker Coral, making it the subject of the longest-running sponsorship in National Hunt racing. In 2021, the Welsh Grand National will be run in memory of the late Kim Gingell, the daughter of Somerset trainer Colin Tizzard, who died in May, 2020, at the age of 43 after a short battle with cancer.
Hightlights on the recent Fury vs Wilder (3) fight. Enthralling rom beginning to end, the 'possibly' the final part of a trilogy that delivered from beginning to end. Two warriors in the ring.
Unless you've been living under a rock for the past couple of weeks you'll of course be aware of the stunning achievement of British teenager Emma Raducanu in the US Open Women's Tennis tournament. Not only did the teenage tennis sensation storm to victory from a position of obscurity in the sport, she did so without losing a single set. Any sports or casino online gambling company going will have given you big odds on this occurring, but as they say 'who dares wins'.
Her stunning rise to world fame has seen news reports saying that she's likely to make £100 million of more in sponsorship deals - which will of course also be accompanies by, in all likelihood, significant tournament winnings (case in point, she pocketed $2,500,000 from her US Open success). Her connections to China too and ability to speak Mandarin (she has a Romanian father and Chinese mother) will no doubt bring more fans and sponsorship opportunities in that part of the world also.
Now 23rd in the tennis world rankings (and the British number one), the 18 year old was ranked 150 prior to the US Open and had little in the way of tournament experience. At the start of the year she was ranked 345, which just goes to show how fast her ascent to greatness in the sport has been. For this reason alone it's not surprising that she was a huge outsider to win the US Open, available at 499-1 with bookmakers (and of course bigger on platforms like Betfair). She was similarly priced to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year but is now favourite to win that accolade, currently at odds of 1/10. The only way is up for this emerging talent!
In horse racing, a penalty refers to
additional weight carried by a horse as a result of its previous
performances on the racecourse. In a handicap race, each horse has an
equal chance of winning so, by definition, a horse that wins a
handicap must have performed better than its official handicap
rating, so a rise in the weights is necessary.
Of course, it's possible that the same
horse could be entered in another handicap before the team of
handicappers at the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has had the
opportunity to revise its handicap rating. In that case, the horse in
question will carry a penalty, say 6lb, which is denoted by '6ex'
immediately to the right of its allotted weight on the racecard. In
some cases, penalties may also be incurred by horses that have won a
race, or races, above a certain 'penalty value' in a specified
period.
A similar situation exists in Listed and Pattern Races, insofar that a horse that has won in a higher
grade within a specified period, or at any time, may be penalised if
it races in a lower grade. In a Group 3 race, for example, horses
that have already won at that level may be penalised 3lb as a matter
of course, while horses that have previously won at Group 1 or Group
2 level may be penalised 5lb.
It was heartbreak once again last weekend when Gareth Southgate's England team fell at the final hurdle against a consistent Italy in the Euro 2020 tournament (postponed for a year due to Covid). Disappointment of how England's previous World Cup display displayed such promise, combined with our less than stellar penalty record to bring about a gut wrenching penalty shootout loss. Those missing the spot kick not only had to deal with the emotional weight of the occasion, but also racism by an idiotic few on social media platforms. It's not quite the ending we had in mind.
Despite a patchy group stage (decent showings against Croatia and the Czech Republic but a bore draw against Scotland), England really grew into the competition. The Germany group stage performance was in the balance before quality quick fire goals from Raheem Sterling and Harry Kane, the Ukraine game was a walk over, and Denmark match a good showing against a competent Danish side. Arguably losing to Italy isn't crime of the century as they are experts at doing just enough, as it attested to by being defeated in, now, 34 games. This winning streak is in fact just one short of the joint all-time record (shared by Spain - 2007 - 2009 and Brazil 1993 - 1996) .
Despite this fact the public reaction from some quarters was hyper critical. The British media, and to an extent the general public, love to build the team up just to knock them down. The default setting, somewhat at odds with the clear talent in the team, is the think that we're verging on hopeless. This flips back after a couple of good results to imagining that we're suddenly world beaters. It's always been that way really, with no balanced view of the national squad. To an extent I suppose we can call that passion, but I question how much it helps our national squad.
All eyes now turn to the 2022 World Cup, where we will once again likely see our talented young squad led by manager Gareth Southgate. Weather conditions will no doubt be more difficult to contend with, and we'll be taking on the world rather than 'just' Europe, but I for one am hopeful that we can put on a good display. Realistically, by any sensible measure we did ourselves proud in Euro 2020. Now let's build on that in Qatar. Well done, lads!
What became known as
the 'Monday National' was originally scheduled for 4.00pm on
Saturday, April 5, 1997 but, following two coded bomb threats from
the Irish Republican Army (IRA), received less than a hour before the
scheduled 'off' time, was hastily re-arranged for 5.00pm on Monday,
April 7.
Interviewed live on BBC
Television, Managing Director and Clerk of the Course Charles Bennett
announced that racing had been abandoned for the day and instructed
everyone to evacuate the racecourse immediately. Amid chaotic scenes,
police eventually ushered all 60,000 spectators to safety and, at
4.14pm, discovered two suspect devices, which were detonated by
controlled explosion. Nevertheless, approximately 7,000 vehicles were
impounded overnight, leaving 20,000 people stranded; the paucity of
accommodation in the vicinity left many of them reliant on the
hospitality of local residents. Similarly, many of the National
runners were stabled at Haydock Park, in nearby Newton-le-Willows,
until Monday.
The Monday running of
the National went ahead without further incident and was won by Lord
Gyllene, trained by Steve Brookshaw and ridden by Toby Dobbin, at
14/1. The 8-year-old was always travelling and jumping well at the
head of affairs and, although badly hampered, and nearly carried out,
by a a loose horse at the water jump, barely gave his supporters an
anxious moment. Indeed, when his nearest pursuer, Suny Bay, blundered
badly at the final open ditch, four fences from home, he took the
race by the scruff of the neck; in the last half-a-mile or so,
galloped further and further clear, leaving Sir Peter O'Sullevan –
commentating on his fiftieth, and final, GrandNational – to call
him home in splendid isolation. Lord Gyllene eventually won by 25
lengths from Suny Bay, with 100/1 outsider Camelot Knight staying on
into third place, a further 2 lengths away.
Sadly, Kauto Star and
Denman are no longer with us, having shuffled off their mortal coils
in 2015 and 2018, respectively. However, both horses achieved iconic
status and their head-to-head rivalry, particularly in the Cheltenham
Gold Cup, will live long in the memory of National Hunt racing fans.
According to Timeform, Kauto Star was rated 8lb superior to Denman,
but what might have happened if the latter had remained healthy
throughout his career is a matter for conjecture.
Direct contemporaries,
born within a month of each other at the turn of the twenty-first
century, albeit in France and Ireland, respectively, Kauto Star and
Denman became stable companions at Paul Nicholls' Manor Farm Stables
in Ditcheat, Somerset. Collectively, they ran in the Cheltenham Gold
Cup times and against each other on four occasions, in 2008, 2009,
2010 and 2011.
In the absence of
Denman, who had stormed home to a 10-length victory in the Royal &
Sun Alliance Chase 48 hours earlier, Kauto Star ran in, and won, the
Cheltenham Gold Cup for the first time in 2007. Sent off favourite,
at 5/4, Kauto Star quickened to lead at the second-last fence and
stayed on strongly in the closing stages to beat Exotic Dancer by 2½
lengths.
The
following year, 2008, both horses arrived at the Cheltenham Festival
in peak form. Defending champion Kauto Star was once again sent off
favourite, but had no answer to Denman, who went clear approaching
the third-last fence and was driven out to win by 7 lengths. Denman
subsequently received treatment for an irregular heartbeat, which
delayed his return to action until February, 2009, and it would be
fair to say that he was never quite the same horse again.
Nevertheless, Kauto
Star and Denman reopposed in the 2009 Cheltenham Gold Cup, with Kauto
Star running out an impressive 13-length winner and, in so doing,
becoming the first horse in history to regain his title. They did so
again in 2010, with Kauto Star falling at the fourth-last and Denman
finishing a tired, 7-length second to Imperial Commander, and again,
as 11-year-olds, in 2011. On the latter occasion, Denman once again
fared the better of the pair, but proved no match for the 6-year-old
Long Run, who stayed on strongly to win by 7 lengths.
More of the Cheltenham
Festival than ever before will be broadcast on terrestrial television
in the UK this year with ITV Racing showing six out of the seven
races per day live as part of their coverage.
Cheltenham is the
biggest horse racing meeting over jumps anywhere in the world. The
2021 Festival takes place from Tuesday, 16 March through until
Friday, 19 March.
As part of ITV Racing’s
broadcast schedule, traditional race times are expected to be brought
forward by ten minutes and intervals between them reduced by five. As
Cheltenham takes place behind closed doors this year, permission has
been granted by those owning media rights to the Festival to show all
but one race each day.
This increases the
mainstream attention it shall receive. Here’s a brief summary of
what you can expect day by day at the Cheltenham Festival.
Champion Hurdle day
The Supreme Novices’
Hurdle sees Appreciate It tackle a speedier type in Metier, with
Shishkin out to follow-up on previous Festival success in the Arkle
for novice chasers. After the first of many wide-open Cheltenham
handicaps in the Ultima over fences, the Champion Hurdle takes centre
stage.
Goshen is out to make
amends for unseating Jamie Moore at the
final flight when he was cruising to victory in the Triumph
Hurdle last year. However, the youngster faces two mighty mares in
the 2020 Champion Hurdle heroine Epatante and fellow Festival winner
Honeysuckle.
The Mares’ Hurdle
will be less competitive as a result, but Concertista and Roksana are
former Cheltenham winners taking part. ITV’s last race on Champion
Hurdle day will be the Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle.
Ladies Day
In a cracking Ballymore
Novices’ Hurdle, three Grade 1 winners are set to do battle in Bob
Olinger, Bravemansgame and Gaillard Du Mesnil. The Brown Advisory
Novices’ Chase, meanwhile, sees Monkfish out to continue his fine
form after winning the Albert Bartlett last year and stepping up on
that over fences.
Following a typically
wide-open Coral Cup is the Queen Mother Champion Chase. Ladies Day
was all the poorer for Chacun Pour Soi and Festival veteran Altior
missing the race 12 months ago. Tiger Roll takes to the Cross Country
course for what could be the final time too with the Grand Annual
Chase rounding off ITV coverage.
St Patrick’s Thursday
Everyone’s idea of a
Cheltenham banker, Envoi Allen, kicks things off in the Marsh
Novices’ Chase on the penultimate day of Cheltenham. Following the
Pertemps Final that brings a series of staying handicap hurdles
throughout the British Isles to an end is the Ryanair Chase.
Willie Mullins has a
strong hand for this, including Allaho and last
year’s winner Min among others. The Stayers’ Hurdle sees
Paisley Park looking to cement his comeback after flopping at the
Festival 12 months ago.
In the Paddy Power
Plate and Dawn Run for mares that are novices over hurdles, there are
two open races from a betting perspective that round off St Patrick’s
Thursday on ITV.
Gold Cup Day
Finally, Cheltenham
Gold Cup day kicks off with the Triumph Hurdle – a division in
which Gordon Elliott has a strong string. Many tips
for the County Handicap Hurdle include Betfair Hurdle scorer
Soaring Glory, although he could run in the Supreme earlier on during
the week.
The Albert Bartlett
Novices’ Hurdle is another open contest, with the Gold Cup itself
all about Al Boum Photo bidding for his hat-trick. New dangers have
emerged, including previous Festival winners A Plus Tard and Champ,
plus the rapidly progressing novice Royale Pagaille.
Before ITV Racing
brings the curtain down on their Cheltenham coverage, there is the
Hunter Chase and the meeting’s newest race. A Mares’ Chase, for
which Elimay is favourite, completes what promises to be a fantastic
Festival which you can witness live on TV.
It is now just over 100
days until the European Championships get underway. UEFA insists on
calling it Euro 2020 for sponsorship reasons, so apologies if it gets
a little bit confusing. At the time of writing, England are the
favourites with almost every major bookmaker. Much of that is likely
down to the fact that it is almost a home tournament for England
(Group Stage, Semis and Final will be played at Wembley), even though
the rest of the competition is spread out over several countries.
But anyone who has seen
England play over the last year might raise an eyebrow as to the
favourites tag. Gareth Southgate oversaw some
limp performances in 2020, particularly in the Nations League
double-header against Denmark. Southgate also doesn’t have a
settled line-up, although he does have some ‘good problems’ due
to competition for places, particularly in attack. But the question
begs: Do England deserve to be favourites, ahead of the likes of
Belgium and France?
There hasn’t been a
huge amount of discussion about England lately, and there is a
subdued feeling around Euro 2020. It’s hard to put your finger on
it as to why that is the case. Perhaps it is because it is a
multi-city event (UEFA has really dropped the ball there), or because
of the postponement last summer. After all, it’s been almost 18
months since England qualified – that’s a long build-up. As for
the other 23 teams, you can see if you can remember the other
qualified Euro 2020 nations in these sports
quizzes from MansionBet. Hint: Greece didn’t make it, but their
newly-named neighbours did.
Nonetheless, we expect
the build-up to begin in earnest when the Premier League and
Champions League campaigns are out of the way. England have five
games between now and the opener against Croatia on 13th
June. That’s three WC Qualifiers in March – San Marino, Albania
and Poland – followed by friendlies against Romania and Austria in
early June. Five games for Southgate to get England purring, and
rediscover some of the form that made them favourites in the first
place. While 2020 was a poor year for England, 2019 was excellent.
The components are there for Southgate – it’s just about putting
them in the right place.
Southgate’s
Options
Southgate has several
decisions to make, and there isn’t a lot of time left for
experimenting. First of all, he needs to decide what to do with
Jordan Pickford. The Everton stopper has been a bit better than last
season, but he is still being eclipsed by Burnley’s Nick Pope this
season. Pope has four caps for England, and four clean sheets –
what else can he do?
You would imagine that
John Stones and Harry Maguire will be the centre-back pairing, and
that seems fairly solid and a much better option than pairing Maguire
with Eric Dier. Trent
Alexander-Arnold’s form for Liverpool has been atrocious, and
that might open the door for Kieran Trippier or Kyle Walker at
right-back. Luke Shaw has been tremendous this season, and offers
competition at left-back for Ben Chilwell. Jordan Henderson and
Declan Rice seem obvious options for central midfield.
While Southgate has
headaches there, it’s arguably the attack where he has the most
room for manoeuvre, and the most pressure to get it right. Harry
Kane, Raheem Sterling, Jack Grealish, Mason Mount, Jadon Sancho,
Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden all have claims on a place. Kane is
perhaps the only definite starter. If you were going on form, you
would have to say Grealish, Foden and Sterling get the nod behind the
Tottenham man. But do they offer the right balance?
Belgium Look Like
Champions
Belgium have had
England’s number more
often than not in recent years, and they are placed right behind
England in the bookies’ odds (many bookies have them as
co-favourites). The Red Devils top the FIFA World Rankings, and with
good reason. They golden generation has continued to grow as a team,
and, if anything, are better than when finished third at the 2018
World Cup. But things aren’t perfect for Belgium. The form and
fitness of Eden Hazard is a big worry. And they are a Romelu Lukaku
injury away from disaster up front. For all Belgium’s brilliance,
this is still a nation that regularly calls up Crystal Palace flops
Christian Benteke and Michy Batshuayi to the squad.
As for France, the
world champions must deal with a very tough group featuring Germany
and Portugal. That has fed into France’s odds for the tournament,
but you imagine they have the quality to progress. However, a loss to
Germany in the opening game in Munich could lead to pressure being
put on Didier Deschamps’ men. Germany, who are usually perennial
favourites, have had a tough time recently, but you couldn’t rule
them out. Spain too will fancy their chances, although the team looks
to be in a transition era.
In the end, England’s
favourite status seems to come back to the Wembley factor. That, at
least in the eyes of bookmakers, is the difference-maker. Having a
semi-final and final there puts England in pole position in what
seems like a disjointed tournament. But England have to get there
first, and that means Southgate must get his sums right in the next
100 days or so. If he does, England might merit that favourites tag.
