What is the Cheltenham Festival?
The Cheltenham Festival is the highlight of the National Hunt season, four days in March when the finest jumps horses, jockeys and trainers from Britain and Ireland meet at Prestbury Park. It is part championship, part pilgrimage: around 28 races, the majority of them Grade 1, watched by huge crowds and followed by millions more betting from home. The opening day's "Cheltenham roar", the wall of noise as the first race of the week sets off, is one of the great sounds in sport.
The four days
The festival is built around a championship race on each day:
- Day 1, Champion Day: headlined by the Champion Hurdle, the two-mile hurdling championship.
- Day 2, Ladies Day / Style Wednesday: headlined by the Queen Mother Champion Chase, the two-mile chasing championship and the festival's fastest, most spectacular race.
- Day 3, St Patrick's Thursday: headlined by the Stayers' Hurdle and the Ryanair Chase, with a strong Irish flavour to the crowd.
- Day 4, Gold Cup Day: headlined by the Cheltenham Gold Cup, jump racing's blue riband and the climax of the entire season.
How to watch the Cheltenham Festival
Each afternoon of the festival is broadcast on UK television, and major bookmakers stream the races to eligible, funded account holders. Cheltenham publishes the full broadcast and start-time schedule in the build-up to the meeting.
Betting at the Cheltenham Festival
Cheltenham is the biggest betting week of the jumps year. Ante-post markets for the championship races open months in advance, and many punters follow the festival's well-known trends, the strength of the Irish-trained challenge, the record of leading yards, and the value often found in handicaps. For race-by-race analysis, see our individual hubs as they are published, starting with the Cheltenham Gold Cup.