The Festival
Cheltenham
10-13 March 2009

Book tickets for the Cheltenham Festival.

The roar of the crowd as the tapes rise for the first race of the Festival each year tells you everything you need to know - 12 months of waiting for the pinnacle of Jump racing is over! It is every owner, trainer and jockey's dream to have a winner at the Cheltenham festival, and this is your chance to witness the ultimate in Jumps racing.

Virtually every top Chaser and Hurdler is aimed at the Festival from the start of the season and, for jumps racing fans too, all roads lead to Cheltenham in March. Racegoers from across Britain and Ireland return year after year for a meeting guaranteed to provide a host of magic memories.

The feature race on Tuesday is The Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle, the most sought after prize anywhere for 2 mile hurdlers. The Irish have won seven of the last ten runnings of this historic contest, but Katchit led home a 1-2-3 for Britain in 2008.

Wednesday sees the Seasons Holidays Queen Mother Champion Chase take centre stage, as the best two mile chasers produce a fast and furious contest over the famous Cheltenham fences. For many, this is the most exciting race of the year and Master Minded produced one of the greatest performances of the modern era to claim victory in 2008.

Thursday is the famous Ladies day, and also the day the long distance hurdlers contest The Ladbrokes World Hurdle where only the brave and the strong prevail. Inglis Drever made history by winning the 3 mile race for the third time in 2008 and is being aimed at the race for one last time in 2009. Thursday also features the Grade 1 Ryanair chase.

Then comes Friday and the highlight of the entire Jump season: the totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup. Denman led home Kauto Star and Neptune Collognes in a Paul Nicholls-trained 1-2-3 in 2008 and will be looking to add his name in 2009 to those of legends Golden Miller, Arkle and Best Mate as multiple winners of Jumping's Blue Riband event. 2009 expects to see stablemates Kauto and Denman once again battling it out for the most prestigious race in Jumps.

Apart from the big races, the novice events for Hurdlers and Chasers are championships in their own right, while the handicaps are among the most fiercely contested races in the Jumps season.

The racing, the famous Cheltenham roar, the Irish craic, the picturesque backdrop of the Cotswolds – nothing can beat four days at the Festival. Make sure to book early to avoid missing out on this great event!