Festival Trophy

The Festival Trophy is a Grade 1 National Hunt chase in the United Kingdom for five-year-old and above horses. It is run over a distance of 2 miles 5 furlongs (4,225 metres) on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse during the Cheltenham Festival in March. There are seventeen fences to be jumped in the race.

It was first run in 2005 as a new race when the Festival was increased from a three-day to a four-day meeting. The Cathcart Chase, which was run over the same distance and restricted to novices and second-season steeplechasers, was discontinued and effectively replaced by two separate races; the Festival Trophy open to all chasers and a novices’ handicap chase also run over 2 miles 5 furlongs.

The race has been run as the Ryanair Chase since 2006, sponsored by Ryanair, having initially been sponsored by the Daily Telegraph. It was first run with Grade 1 status in 2008, before which it was contested at Grade 2 level. The 2008 race was run on Cheltenham's Old Course over a distance of 2 miles 4½ furlongs (4,124 metres) with fifteen fences to jump.

Winners

References

* Racing Post:
** [http://www.racingpost.co.uk/horses/result.sd?&race_id=372477&r_date=2005-3-17 2005] , [http://www.racingpost.co.uk/horses/result.sd?&race_id=399608&r_date=2006-3-16 2006] , [http://www.racingpost.co.uk/horses/result.sd?&race_id=424133&r_date=2007-3-15 2007] , [http://www.racingpost.co.uk/horses/result.sd?&race_id=447196&r_date=2008-3-13 2008]

ee also

* Horseracing in Great Britain
* List of British National Hunt races