Queen Mother Champion Chase
Grade 1 race | |
Location | Cheltenham Racecourse Cheltenham, England |
---|---|
Inaugurated | 1959 |
Race type | Chase |
Sponsor | Seasons Holidays |
Website | Cheltenham |
Race information | |
Distance | 2 miles (3,219 metres) |
Track | Turf, left-handed |
Qualification | Five-years-old and up |
Weight | 11 st 10 lb Allowances 7 lb for mares |
Purse | £320,000 (2010) 1st: £182,432 |
The Queen Mother Champion Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt chase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles (3,219 metres), and during its running there are twelve fences to be jumped. The race is scheduled to take place each year during the Cheltenham Festival in March.
It is the leading minimum-distance chase in the National Hunt calendar, and it is the feature race on the second day of the Festival.
History
The event was established in 1959, and it was originally called the National Hunt Two-Mile Champion Chase. It was given its present title in 1980 – the year of the Queen Mother's 80th birthday – in recognition of her support to jump racing. The Queen Mother was a successful owner of National Hunt horses, particularly chasers, and among these was Game Spirit – the runner-up in this race in 1976.
The Queen Mother Champion Chase was not sponsored before 2007, and between 2008 and 2010 it was backed by Seasons Holidays. The new sponsor from 2011 until at least 2015 will be online gambling firm Sportingbet.com.
Records
Most successful horse (3 wins):
- Badsworth Boy – 1983, 1984, 1985
Leading jockey (5 wins):
- Pat Taaffe – Fortria (1960, 1961), Ben Stack (1964), Flyingbolt (1966), Straight Fort (1970)
Leading trainer (6 wins):
- Tom Dreaper – Fortria (1960, 1961), Ben Stack (1964), Flyingbolt (1966), Muir (1969), Straight Fort (1970)
Leading owner (3 wins):
- George Ansley – Fortria (1960, 1961), Straight Fort (1970)
- Doug Armitage – Badsworth Boy (1983, 1984, 1985)
Winners
- Amateur jockeys indicated by "Mr".
1 Chinrullah finished first in 1980, but he was subsequently disqualified after testing positive for a banned substance.
2 The 2001 running was cancelled because of a foot-and-mouth crisis.
References
- bbc.co.uk – "Royalty absent and present" (2003).
- cheltenham.co.uk – Media information pack (2010).
- pedigreequery.com – Queen Mother Champion Chase – Cheltenham.
- sportingchronicle.com – Queen Mother Champion Two Mile Steeple Chase Past Winners.
- The Breedon Book of Horse Racing Records. Breedon Books. 1993. p. 231. ISBN 1-873626-15-0.
See also
- Horseracing in Great Britain
- List of British National Hunt races
- Recurring sporting events established in 1959 – this race is included under its original title, National Hunt Two-Mile Champion Chase.