Vincent O'Brien County Handicap Hurdle

Grade 3 race
Vincent O'Brien County Handicap Hurdle

Location	Cheltenham Racecourse Cheltenham, England
Inaugurated	1920
Race type	Hurdle race
Website	Cheltenham
Race information
Distance	2m 1f (3,420 metres)
Track	Turf, left-handed
Qualification	Five-years-old and up
Weight	Handicap
Purse	£75,000 (2010) 1st: £42,758

The Vincent O'Brien County Handicap Hurdle is a Grade 3 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles and 1 furlong (3,420 metres), and during its running there are eight hurdles to be jumped. It is a handicap race, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Cheltenham Festival in March.

History

The County Hurdle was established in 1920, and its inaugural winner was Trespasser, ridden by George Duller. Its title now honours Vincent O'Brien, an Irish racehorse trainer who retired in 1994. During his career O'Brien recorded a total of twenty-three victories at the Cheltenham Festival, and his name was added to the title of this event in 1995.

For many years the County Hurdle was traditionally the last race to be run at the Festival. However, a new running order was announced ahead of the 2009 meeting, and it is now the second race on the final day.

Records

Most successful horse since 1946:

• no horse has won this race more than once since 1946

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Leading jockey since 1946 (4 wins):

• Ruby Walsh – Sporazene (2004), Desert Quest (2006), American Trilogy (2009), Final Approach (2011)

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Leading trainer since 1946 (3 wins):

• Paul Nicholls – Sporazene (2004), Desert Quest (2006), American Trilogy (2009)

Winners since 1946

• Weights given in stones and pounds; Amateur jockeys indicated by "Mr", "Ms", "Lord" etc.

Year	Winner	Age	Weight	Jockey	Trainer
1946	Vidi	5	11-10	Don Butchers	Reg Hobbs
1947	no race 1947 [1]
1948	Cape Light	5	11-01	Joe Maguire	Ivor Anthony
1949	no race 1949 [2]
1950	Blue Raleigh	7	10-00	Jimmy Power	Bobby Renton
1951	Southwick	7	10-03	George Spann	J. Whiting
1952	Ballymacan	5	10-12	Bryan Marshall	Neville Crump
1953	Teapot II	8	12-07	Pat Taaffe	Clem Magnier
1954	Bold Baby	8	12-00	Paddy Powell	Michael Dawson
1955	no race 1955 [2]
1956	Pommel	9	10-11	Steve Boddy	John Waugh
1957	Flaming East	8	10-05	Peter Pickford	Ricky Vallance
1958	Friendly Boy	6	10-05	Liam Brennan	Joe Osborne
1959	Approval	13	11-02	Derek Leslie	Syd Mercer
1960	Albergo	6	12-05	Doug Page	Clem Magnier
1961	Most Unusual	6	10-07	Josh Gifford	Bill Ransom
1962	Sky Pink	5	10-11	Fred Winter	Ryan Price
1963	Bahrain	6	10-06	Tommy Carberry	Dan Moore
1964	Icy Wonder	5	10-02	Jeff King	Vernon Cross
1965	Mayfair Bill	6	10-04	Andrew Turnell	Bob Turnell
1966	Roaring Twenties	6	11-02	George Milburn	Ken Oliver
1967	Cool Alibi	5	10-09	Roddy Reid	Rodney Bower
1968	Jolly Signal	6	10-11	Jimmy Uttley	Earl Jones
1969	Gay Knight	5	10-03	Aly Branford	Les Kennard
1970	Khan	6	09-11	Lord Petersham	Delmer Harty
1971	Carry Off	7	10-01	David Goulding	Nigel Angus
1972	Cold Day	6	10-08	Ron Hyett	Katie Gaze
1973	Current Romance	7	10-07	David Nicholson	Frenchie Nicholson
1974	True Song	5	11-02	Gary Old	Donald Underwood
1975	no race 1975 [3]
1976	Java Fox	6	10-01	Mr George Jones	Roy Cambidge
1977	Kilcoleman	5	10-07	Tommy Kinane	Billy Boyers
1978	no race 1978 [3]
1979	Monte Ceco	6	10-12	Colin Tinkler	Fred Rimell
1980	Prince of Bermuda	5	10-00	Steve Knight	Bob Turnell
1981	Staplestown	6	10-07	Tommy Ryan	Edward O'Grady
1982	Path of Peace	6	10-06	Jonjo O'Neill	Chris Thornton
1983	Robin Wonder	5	10-03	Jeff Davies	David Elsworth
1984	Hill's Guard	5	10-11	Andrew Stringer	Andrew Scott
1985	Floyd	5	10-05	Colin Brown	David Elsworth
1986	Jobroke	6	10-03	Jonjo O'Neill	Peter Easterby
1987	Neblin	8	11-00	Richard Guest	Toby Balding
1988	Cashew King	5	10-04	Trevor Wall	Bryan McMahon
1989	Willsford	6	10-08	Michael Bowlby	Jenny Pitman
1990	Moody Man	5	11-02	Peter Hobbs	Philip Hobbs
1991	Winnie the Witch	7	09-08	David Bridgwater	Ken Bridgwater
1992	Dusty Miller	6	10-06	Jamie Osborne	Simon Sherwood
1993	Thumbs Up	7	10-02	Richard Dunwoody	Nicky Henderson
1994	Dizzy	6	10-00	Tony Dobbin	Peter Monteith
1995	Home Counties	6	10-12	James Moffatt	Dudley Moffatt
1996	Star Rage	6	10-00	Dean Gallagher	Jimmy Harris
1997	Barna Boy	9	10-12	Richard Dunwoody	Nicky Henderson
1998	Blowing Wind	5	11-08	Tony McCoy	Martin Pipe
1999	Sir Talbot	5	10-00	Timmy Murphy	Jim Old
2000	Master Tern	5	10-03	Tony Dobbin	Jonjo O'Neill
2001	no race 2001 [4]
2002	Rooster Booster	8	11-01	Richard Johnson	Philip Hobbs
2003	Spirit Leader	7	11-07	Barry Geraghty	Jessica Harrington
2004	Sporazene	5	10-13	Ruby Walsh	Paul Nicholls
2005	Fontanesi	5	10-00	Timmy Murphy	Martin Pipe
2006	Desert Quest	6	10-10	Ruby Walsh	Paul Nicholls
2007	Pedrobob	9	10-00	Philip Carberry	Tony Mullins
2008	Silver Jaro	5	10-13	Noel Fehily	Tom Hogan
2009	American Trilogy	5	11-00	Ruby Walsh	Paul Nicholls
2010	Thousand Stars	6	10-05	Ms Katie Walsh	Willie Mullins
2011	Final Approach	5	10-12	Ruby Walsh	Willie Mullins

¹ The 1947 edition was abandoned because of snow and frost.
² It was cancelled in 1949 due to frost, and in 1955 due to snow.
³ The race was abandoned in 1975 due to waterlogging, and in 1978 because of snow.
⁴ The 2001 running was cancelled because of a foot-and-mouth crisis.

References

• Racing Post:
  • 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997
  • 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
  • 2009, 2010, 2011

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• pedigreequery.com – Vincent O'Brien County Handicap Hurdle – Cheltenham.
• racenewsonline.co.uk – Racenews Archive (February 21, 2008).
• Ladbrokes Pocket Companion 1990/91. Aesculus Press. 1990. p. 64. ISBN 1-871093-21-X. 

See also

• Horseracing in Great Britain
• List of British National Hunt races
• Recurring sporting events established in 1920 – this race is included under its original title, County Hurdle.